The US Army is considering adopting a maintenance strategy used in Ukraine to reduce the time a broken vehicle has to wait before it can be fixed.
Speaking at a Center for Strategic and International Studies event, the service’s Acting Assistant Secretary for Acquisition, Logistics, and Technology Doug Bush said Kyiv has been successful in using so-called “telemaintenance” to repair its vehicles.
Telemaintenance involves conducting repairs with the help of secure voice, video, and chat channels.
Since the US military is not allowed to operate inside Ukraine, it remotely instructs Kyiv’s forces on how to fix a damaged vehicle. This real-time hardware support reportedly happens often while Ukrainian troops are in battle and exchanging fire with the enemy.
“It’s remarkable and we’ve never tried anything like that for ourselves,” Bush said. “Now that it’s succeeded with Ukraine, we need to fundamentally rethink how we support our own maintainers in the field.”
‘Saving Time and Money’
According to Bush, current maintenance methods mostly involve a “costly and time-consuming trip” that delays vehicle repairs on the frontline.
Utilizing the “telemaintenance” concept would reportedly give the US military “more efficient ways” to do advanced repairs further forward.
“These are all things that can save time and money versus bringing a tank for example all the way back to the depot,” Bush said.
Army Materiel Command spokesperson William King said the remote maintenance method can be included in training to familiarize soldiers with the process.
It can also be part of large-scale military exercises in the Indo-Pacific, considering its apparent success on the battlefield in Ukraine.
