Degradation of HAWK Assault Fire Unit (AFU) Operating in a Chemical Environment
Abstract
Troop performance degradation due to chemical protective equipment has been of increasing concern to military commanders. This protective equipment is worn in one of four configurations referred to as Mission Oriented Protective Posture (MOPP) levels. MOPPIV posture, during which all equipment is worn and sealed, is the most protective and the most bulky, cumbersome and restrictive mode. Personnel are protected at the expense of their encumbrance, a circumstance which results from impeded physiological functions including vision, hearing, speaking, manual dexterity and others. This encumbrance produces degradation in the form of (usually) increased time to complete tasks and in some cases reduced accuracy. In order that these degradations might be quantified for use in simulations, war gaming, and other studies of unit effectiveness and combat readiness, field studies are deemed necessary since laboratory exercises typically introduce artifacts that can bias results. Performance degradation resulting from the wearing of individual protective equipment (IPE) was quantified and the resulting correction factors determined for a HAWK Assault Fire Unit. When multiplied by the time to perform a similar task while wearing IPE. All tasks were completed with results indicating little personnel degradation caused by the IPE. Correction factors ranged from 1.1 to 1.5 for fifteen HAWK unit tasks.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Dec 01, 1989
- Accession Number
- ADA213799
Entities
People
- Charles H. Wick
- John A. Morrissey
Organizations
- Ballistic Research Laboratory