Its almost like the Australian Army is trying to defend its Land 400 downselect.

Thanks to Sven for the link!

Australia's Army News has a two page spread on the Land 400 down selects and it reads almost like a defense of their actions.  Read it here.  My takeaway?  The Aussies have obviously been stung by the criticism that they're buying old vehicles.  They quickly make the point that they're both in service models AND that they can be modified for Australian use now and into the future.  The next takeaway is that they're pushing not only the recon mission but also the counter recon mission.  That kinda puts things into a little different perspective and helps justify the CRAZY protection package they're demanding...but only a little.

I can't wait to see who the ultimate winner is.  If the testing is only in the Northern Territories then its certainly gonna favor the Boxer.  But if their Ministry of Defence has even a sliver of integrity they'll remember the Timor op and take it into some slop to see how it does.  In that environment the Patria will shine.  No matter what happens this has gone from sunshine to shit in the blink of an eye.