Army to improve body armor testing

FORT DRUM — The Army will make changes in the way it tests body armor, following a Department of Defense inspector general report in August that showed inconsistencies in armor testing from 2004 and 2006.

The report showed that tests for seven Army contracts, totaling $2.5 billion, were faulty because the plates used were the wrong size and the test rounds were inconsistent.

The plates are inserted in the chest and back areas of the jackets to provide protection from gunfire.

The Army has standard tests ready to be implemented by October. They will include better measurements and improved weather and altitude testing, according to an Army news release.

The Army also will establish methods to consistently measure the velocity of test rounds.

Acquisitions officer Lt. Gen. William N. Phillips responded to the report this month by saying that today’s soldiers have the best and most-tested body armor in the world and that he does not know of any instance in which body armor failed to stop an enemy round.

In 2007, the Army replaced the Interceptor Body Armor with the Improved Outer Tactical Vest, which is lighter and provides additional protection to the soldiers’ side areas. It also has a quick-release cord that makes the vest easy to remove in an emergency.

One 10th Mountain Division soldier recalls being saved by his body armor in a 2005 deployment to Iraq.

James E. Bonds, a former specialist with the 2nd Battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment, was shot twice in the chest at close range by an insurgent. The rounds hit his armor and he was knocked to the ground.

“It knocked the wind out of me,” he said. “I had … some bruises.”