Stryker Brigade News

“The most common breakage is when the height management system fails due to a bad sensor, nitrous, or a leaky manifold in the suspension,” Wilson said.

According to Wilson, the height management system helps to keep the vehicle level and when it fails it makes the vehicle sag in the front or rear and slightly harder to maneuver.

Wilson said he doesn’t see much improvised explosive device damage because his specialty is suspensions and engines and not slant armor repair.

“With a good crew you can change an engine in about three hours give or take a few,” Wilson said.

Wilson is going to continue in the vehicle repair field when he gets home by obtaining his automotive certifications. He said he wants a career with a hometown auto dealership.

Assisting Wilson was Pfc. William Hawkins of Greenville, N.C. who is not only a rifleman with Company A, 2nd Bn., 1st Infantry Regiment, 172nd SBCT, but also tasked to assist in the repairing of his Stryker vehicle and to fix the smaller things himself.

“The things I have to change out are the tires from the terrain in this country,” he said. “Changing a tire on a Stryker isn’t much different from changing a tire on a car back home; it’s just a lot bigger.”

Hawkins said he is not going to pursue a career as a repair mechanic when he gets home. Instead he plans on pursuing a career in law enforcement.

“It’s the closest thing to what I’ve been doing over here in Iraq,” Hawkins said. “We are here chasing bad guys, and I love it.”

(via DVIDS)