From: MVTrucker@aol.com
Date: Sun May 12 2002 - 19:24:31 PDT
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Date: 5/8/02 10:03:26 PM Eastern Daylight Time
From: HFD COMPANY45
To: MVTrucker
Military Safety: Army M939 5-Ton Truck Accident History and Planned
Modifications (Letter Report, 04/09/99, GAO/NSIAD-99-82).Pursuant to a
congressional request, GAO reviewed the Army's M939 series5-ton tactical
cargo truck, focusing on the: (1) extent to which accidents involving the
truck have occurred; and (2) results of Army studies on the truck's design
and its plans to address any identified deficiencies.GAO noted that: (1)
GAO's analyses and an Army analysis indicate ahigher rate of accidents
involving the M939 series 5-ton tactical cargo truck than other comparison
vehicles; (2) GAO's analysis of January 1987through June 1998 accident data
showed that, while M939s made up anaverage of about 9 percent of the Army
motor vehicle fleet during that time, about 34 percent of the fleet's
accidents resulting in fatalities of vehicle occupants involved these trucks;
(3) 44 percent of accidents that involved a rollover and resulted in
fatalities of vehicle occupant sinvolved the M939; (4) GAO's comparison of
Department of Transportation accident statistics and M939 accident statistics
showed that over a10-year period, the fatality rate for occupants of the M939
averaged about 30 times higher than the fatality rate for occupants of
comparably sized commercial trucks; (5) an Army Safety Center analysis found
that the chance of a fatality in a M939 was 3 to 21 times higher than in
other similar military trucks in the Army motor vehicle fleet--theM34/M35
series 2 1/2 ton trucks; (6) the Army plans to spend an estimated $234
million on various modifications to improve the M939's safety and operational
performance; (7) based on the results of studiesinto the root causes of M939
accidents, the Army concluded that the overall truck design was sound, but
some modifications were necessary;(8) the Army plans to use the $234 million
to add anti-lock brake kits, alter brake proportioning specifications,
upgrade the truck's tires, install cab rollover crush protection, and modify
the accelerator linkage; (9) most modifications will be completed by 2005;
and (10) theM939s will remain in service as these modifications are
made.--------------------------- Indexing Terms
-----------------------------REPORTNUM: NSIAD-99-82TITLE: Military Safety:
Army M939 5-Ton Truck Accident History and Planned ModificationsDATE:
04/09/99SUBJECT: Motor vehicle safetyMilitary trainingMilitary land
vehiclesTraffic accidentsTransportation statisticsArmed forces reserve
trainingTransportation safetyAccident preventionIDENTIFIER: M939 TruckM34
TruckM35
Truck********************************************************************
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********************************************************************Cover=====
=========================================================== COVERReport to
Congressional RequestersApril 1999MILITARY SAFETY - ARMY M939 5-TONTRUCK
ACCIDENT HISTORY AND PLANNEDMODIFICATIONSGAO/NSIAD-99-82Military
Safety(703276)Abbreviations===================================================
============ ABBREVAMV - Army Motor VehiclesDOD - Department of DefenseSUMHT
- single-unit medium and heavy trucksTACOM - Tank-Automotive and Armaments
CommandLetter===============================================================
LETTERB-282071April 9, 1999The Honorable Christopher J. Dodd The Honorable
Joseph I. Lieberman United States Senate The Honorable Rosa L. Delauro
House of RepresentativesI in April 1997, two U.S. Army Reserve soldiers were
fatally injuredduring a training exercise at a U.S. Army installation. Both
werepassengers in a M939 series 5-ton tactical cargo truck thatoverturned.
In response to your request, this report identifies (1)the extent to which
accidents involving the M939 series 5-tontactical cargo truck have occurred
and (2) the results of Army studies on the truck's design and its plans to
address any identified deficiencies. You also asked us to evaluate the
adequacy of the Army's training program for the drivers of the M939 truck
because inadequate training could be a contributing factor in accidents. This
issue will be addressed in a later report.
BACKGROUND------------------------------------------------------------ Letter
:1The Army classifies its vehicles on the basis of such factors asfunction
and physical characteristics. For example, tracked vehicles(Abrams Tanks and
Bradley Fighting Vehicles) are classified as Armycombat vehicles; wheeled
vehicles (trucks, automobiles, cycles, and buses) are classified as Army
motor vehicles. Within the Army motor vehicle grouping, vehicles are further
separated into tactical andnon-tactical categories and within the tactical
grouping, into light, series trucks are accounted for as part of the Army
motor vehicle's medium tactical fleet. The Army reviews operational
requirements for its vehicle fleet in an effort to improve readiness. From
January 1983 through October 1993,the Army upgraded its 5-ton medium tactical
fleet by purchasing about 34,900 M939s to replace aging and obsolete trucks.
The new truck, designed to operate on and off road, maintained the basic
design of its predecessors but came equipped with such first-time standard
equipment as air-brakes and automatic transmissions. At present, the Army
has three variations and nearly 40 different models of the M939 in its
inventory. Depending on the model, the truck performs multiple duties that
include hauling cargo, collecting refuse, transporting troops, and operating
as a tractor or wrecker. The last M939s were fielded in late 1993. Figure 1:
M939A2 5-TonTactical Cargo Truck (See figure in printed edition.) Source:
U.S. Army.(See figure in printededition.)Should vehicles or equipment prove
dangerous or unsafe to operate,the Army Safety Center, Transportation School
and Center, and Tank-Automotive and Armaments Command (TACOM) are responsible
for identifying problems and disseminating information. Among otherduties,
the commands collect and evaluate information from accident investigations
and field reports. They also issue Army-wide safety alerts, precautionary
messages, and other information warning of identified dangers with equipment
and vehicles. RESULTS IN
BRIEF------------------------------------------------------------ Letter
:2Our analyses and an Army analysis indicate a higher rate of accidents
involving the M939 series 5-ton tactical cargo truck than other comparison
vehicles. Specifically, our analysis of January 1987through June 1998
accident data showed that, while M939s made up an average of about 9 percent
of the Army motor vehicle fleet during that time, about 34 percent of the
fleet's accidents resulting in fatalities of vehicle occupants involved these
trucks. Moreover, 44 percent of accidents that involved a rollover and
resulted in fatalities of vehicle occupants involved the M939. Furthermore,
our comparison ofU.S. Department of Transportation accident statistics and
M939 accident statistics showed that over a 10-year period, the fatality rate
of occupants of the M939 averaged about 30 times higher than the fatality
rate for occupants of comparably sized commercial trucks. Finally, an Army
Safety Center analysis found that the chance of afatality in a M939 was 3 to
21 times higher than in other similar military trucks in the Army motor
vehicle fleet--the M34/M35 series2-1/2 ton trucks.\1The Army plans to spend
an estimated $234 million on various modifications to improve the M939's
safety and operational performance. Based on the results of studies into the
root causes ofM939 accidents, the Army concluded that the overall truck
design was sound, but some modifications were necessary. The Army plans to
usethe $234 million to add anti-lock brake kits, alter brake proportioning
specifications, upgrade the truck's tires, install cabrollover crush
protection, and modify accelerator linkage. Most modifications will be
complete by 2005. The M939s will remain inservice as these modifications are
made. --------------------\1 The latter two analyses were based on accident
rates per million miles driven. THREE DIFFERENT ANALYSES POINTTO HIGH M-939
ACCIDENT RATES------------------------------------------------------------
Letter :3Our two analyses and the analysis conducted by the Army Safety
Centerall involved comparisons of different types of accident data collected
over different time frames. Nevertheless, all of the analyses showed that
the M939 had a higher accident rate than each type of comparison vehicle.
COMPARISON OF M939 WITH ARMYMOTOR
VEHICLES---------------------------------------------------------- Letter
:3.1In our first analysis, we reviewed data from January 1987 throughJune
1998 and compared selected M939 accident statistics with those of the rest of
the Army motor vehicle fleet. We reviewed the accident categories in terms
of "fatal accidents," defined as any accident event in which at least one
occupant of an Army motor vehicle died; "occupant deaths," defined as the
total number of Army motor vehicle occupants killed; "rollovers," defined as
any vehicle that did not remain upright as the result of an accident; and"
rollover deaths," defined as those occurring to occupants of Army motor
vehicles that rolled over as a result of an accident. In analyzing this
selected accident information compiled by the ArmySafety Center, we found the
frequency of M939 accidents high in each instance. For the 11-1/2 year
period reviewed, the M939 series truck inventory averaged 26,991, or about 9
percent of the average annual Army motor vehicle inventory of about 314,000
vehicles, and accounted for about 15 percent of the total Army motor vehicle
accidents.\2Appendix I shows the actual figures by year, 1987-1998. Our
comparison of M939 accident statistics with accident statistics for the rest
of the Army motor vehicle fleet showed that the M939 accounted for about 34
percent of all Army motor vehicle fatal accident events, and 34 percent of
all Army motor vehicle occupant deaths. Comparative rollover statistics
revealed much the same. The M939 rollovers accounted for 17 percent of the
total Army motor vehicle rollovers, and 44 percent of the total Army motor
vehicler rollover fatalities. Figure 2 shows these accident statistics.
Figure 2: Comparison ofSelected M939 AccidentStatistics to Remaining
ArmyMotor Vehicle Fleet, 1987-1998(See figure in printededition.)Source: GAO
analysis of Army Safety Center accident data. --------------------\2 Army
Regulation 385-40 establishes the criteria for Army motorvehicle
classification of a motor vehicle involved in an accident. A vehicle's
general purpose must be to transport cargo or personnel,and be under full
operational control of the Army. A vehicle can include a passenger car,
station wagon, truck, ambulance, bus,motorcycle, fire truck, or refueling
truck. COMPARISON OF M939S WITHCOMMERCIAL, SINGLE-UNITMEDIUM AND HEAVY
TRUCKS---------------------------------------------------------- Letter
:3.2In our second analysis, we used Department of Transportation published
data for years 1987-1996 and compared the accident rate forM939s with the
rate for single-unit medium and heavy commercialtrucks (which are physically
similar to M939s). According to anagency official, the Department of
Transportation defines "fatalcrashes" as any event in which someone is killed
in a crash--vehicle occupant or otherwise--and "truck occupant fatalities" as
a fatalityof an occupant of a single-unit truck. These comparisons revealed
that the accident rates for the M939 were substantially higher thanthose
found for the commercial trucks. However, Army officials pointout that
commercial trucks are driven almost exclusively on pavedroads; the M939 is
driven on both paved and unpaved roads. We found that over the 10-year
period, 1987-1996, the frequency ratesof fatal crashes per million miles
driven for M939s averaged aboutseven times higher than those for commercial
trucks. The M939accident rate range
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OWNER OF MOMMA'S TOWING
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LIVING HISTORY DISPLAY
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