The much discussed, admired, maligned, depending on your point of view, Landwarrior Project of the US Army is still very much alive, after being resurrected from some successes that it has achieved. We always discuss this project as many airsoft players try to achieve some of the look that soldiers use, albeit, not much of the functions. Now, the soldiers of the 5th Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division are getting shipped to Afghanistan with all their high-tech gadgets to test in actual combat if these can withstand the harsh regions, in contrast to the urban fighting in Iraq where it succeeded.

After 15 years and a half-billion dollars in development, the Army officially canceled the Land Warrior program in 2006. Seeing your fellow troops on a digital map inside helmet-mounted monocle was nice; but it wasn’t enough to justify all the bulk. Money had already been spent to equip a single Iraq-bound battalion with the gear, however. So, despite some pretty horrendous reviews from the troops, the Army told the 4/9th Infantry take Land Warrior with them to war.

To their surprise, many of the 4/9’s troops found the gadgets to be pretty useful in combat. The soldiers stripped Land Warrior down from 16 pounds, made the gear more functional. At their suggestion, “digital chem lights” were added to the electronic mapping software. They let buildings, escape routes, and enemies be marked in green on every soldier’s monocle. During air assaults on Baquba, for instance, troops were regularly dropped a quarter or half-kilometer from their original objective; the chem lights allowed them to converge on the spot where they were supposed to go. In the middle of one mission, a trail of green lights was used to mark a new objective — and show the easiest way to get to the place.

It worked so well, the program was resurrected.

Photo: Wired.com

We'll give you updates on this. But for the meantime, read more of the story at Wired.com Danger Room.