U.S. Army speeds high-tech arms to infantry

By Jim Wolf

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Army said on Thursday it is speeding up delivery of advanced rockets, robots and ultra-light drones to infantry units in Iraq and Afghanistan as part of a reshaped $160 billion modernization program.

The move brings forward by three years, from fiscal 2014 to 2011, the high-technology spin-out to light infantry and represents, "a very important shift in our priorities," said Lt. Gen. Stephen Speakes, the army's deputy chief of staff for programs.

The army said the shift would not change the overall cost of the so-called Future Combat Systems program, or FCS, co-managed by Boeing Co and Science Applications International Corp.

Defense Secretary Robert Gates hailed the changes, which dovetailed with a recent push of his for more focus on equipping to fight irregulars and less on preparing for a possible fight against a potential foe such as China.

"I was impressed" by the revised plan to speed systems to the infantry combat brigades in the near term, he told a Pentagon briefing, "and frankly, I think FCS, as they've restructured it, deserves support."

The move turns the $160 billion project's initial focus to the operational needs and survivability of infantry, or foot soldiers, rather than armored brigades with heavy vehicles. Until now, heavy brigades were to have been the first to be equipped with some of the FCS's 14 new component technologies.

Gates recently warned the armed forces to avoid "nextwaritis," or over-preparing for a larger, more conventional potential foe to the detriment of the U.S.- declared global war on terrorism.

His comments "reinforced the direction we were heading in," Lt. Gen. Michael Vaine, head of the army's capabilities integration center, told a briefing earlier in the day.

Rep. John Murtha, a Pennsylvania Democrat who chairs the House of Representatives panel that doles out funds for the military, said the shift would make the FCS program "more viable."

But two other House Democrats with Pentagon oversight power, said they were concerned the new plan may not allow adequate testing because of its "very tight schedule."

"In addition, the overall FCS program remains far over budget, far behind schedule, and unaffordable in the long term, given the many other pressing needs facing the United States Army," said Armed Services Committee chairman Ike Skelton of Missouri and Neil Abercrombie of Hawaii, who heads a subcommittee that overseas air and land power.

"We look forward to seeing more changes to this program in the future," they added in a statement.

Mary McAdam, a Boeing spokeswoman, said the army's decision "reflects confidence in FCS program progress and technological maturity, and sends a strong message to soldiers that their needs are a top priority."

The Army is seeking about $3.6 billion in fiscal 2009 for FCS, or about 10 percent of its combined research and procurement request for the year.

The House Armed Services Committee voted to cut about $200 million from the request for fiscal 2009, which starts October 1.