[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 151 (2005), Part 18]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 24840]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




      RECOGNIZING THE OUTSTANDING EFFORTS OF ABERDEEN TEST CENTER

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                     HON. C.A. DUTCH RUPPERSBERGER

                              of maryland

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, November 2, 2005

  Mr. RUPPERSBERGER. Mr. Speaker, I rise before you today to commend 
the significant contributions of Aberdeen Test Center (ATC) located in 
Aberdeen, MD, for their outstanding efforts to protect American troops.
  In August of 2003, the M1 tanks moving toward Baghdad were assailed 
by Rocket Propelled Grenades (RPG). This situation highlighted a 
potential vulnerability to the Abram M1 fleet of tanks.
  Based on this concern, ATC was requested to provide modifications to 
the tanks to remedy the potential vulnerability. ATC employees 
developed the Slat Armor System designed to address the issue. Because 
of their diligence and motivation, the modifications were completed in 
only three days. The efficiency demonstrated by ATC enabled the 
vulnerability to be rectified in less than ten days.
  As the initial Stryker brigade prepared to enter combat in Iraq, ATC 
was again contacted requesting similar modifications to the Strykers, 
addressing a potential vulnerability to RPGs. These modifications were 
designed, prototyped and tested in under 10 days for mass production 
and fielding. Each Stryker was outfitted with this slat armor solution 
prior to entering combat in Iraq.
  In the course of one year the Stryker Brigade Commander reported one 
hundred fifteen incidents of RPG attacks on Stryker vehicles. Because 
of the modification to the Slat Armor System, there have been no 
fatalities as a result of these RPG attacks.
  Mr. Speaker, please join with me to acknowledge the exceptional work 
Aberdeen Test Center has done on the Abram M1s and Strykers. The elite 
attention and enthusiasm shown in this matter has saved the lives of 
many soldiers fighting the War on Terror.

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