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Questions about military body armor have been in the news just about as long as troops have been serving overseas in the War on Terror.

To help clear up the question of Army- and Marine-issue Interceptor OTV body armor versus Dragon Skin body armor, U.S. Rep. Mike Ross, D-Ark., has started a push for an external, independent investigation into "whether the U.S. Army is using the most effective body armor and equipment available for our troops' protection."

Ross is planning to send a letter to the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of the Army requesting the investigation. He has asked his fellow House representatives to sign on and support the letter.

Specifically, the Army has issued a "safety of use message" deeming Dragon Skin and any other commercial body armor unsuitable for use in combat. The Marine Corps had not followed suit in issuing such a message on Monday, when The Daily Times first contacted Capt. Jeff Landis, a spokesman for the Marine Corps System Command in Quantico, Va., about body armor.

On Tuesday, the Marine Corps issued a directive prohibiting the use of commercially purchased body armor in lieu of issued personal protective equipment. The directive does allow individual commanders to permit Marines under their command to use commercially purchased body armor in addition to issued armor, as long as it does not interfere with its functionality.

Already Ross' effort has garnered support from 35 representatives in the House, including three Tennessee congressmen — Democrats Steve Cohen, Lincoln Davis and John Tanner — who, according to Ross' office, have officially signed on to support the call for an investigation.

Duncan considering

Republican Rep. John J. Duncan Jr., who represents Blount County, has indicated he is considering supporting Ross' request for an investigation.

"We spend more on defense than any country in the world," he said in an e-mail response. "There is no reason that our troops shouldn't have the best equipment, and most of the military's equipment is the best that money can buy."

Tennessee Republican Reps. David Davis and Zach Wamp have also expressed interest in the investigation, but have not announced whether they will support it or not.

"I'm looking at this very closely, but before I signed onto a resolution or took an official position I wanted to get the facts and find out what the defense department's response was to this," Wamp said. "I continue to look into this because I'm very interested in making sure these families can be assured that our country is doing everything we can for every man and woman that we put in harms way.

"I'll continue to look in to this and take the appropriate action as quickly as possible."

Calls and e-mails sent to Tennessee's other representatives in the House seeking comment on the possible investigation were not returned by press time Thursday.

In a release, Ross, who was not available for comment, said the body armor issue was brought to his attention by a constituent whose son was about to deploy to Iraq and wanted to buy Dragon Skin. Citing Pinnacle Armor's assertions that their product is more than capable of protecting troops overseas, and the military's assertion that it's not, Ross said the confusion needs to be cleared up.

"We owe it to all soldiers and their families to ensure that our troops are given the finest armor and equipment available," he said in the release. "We must resolve this issue for our soldiers' welfare and their families' peace of mind."

Call for investigation

If there is even the possibility that biased testing has kept Dragon Skin out of the combat theater, an independent review should be undertaken, Ross said.

"This concerns me greatly because our combat soldiers should not be denied the use of the latest and most effective body armor, regardless of the cost involved, if it will result in the preservation of their lives," he said. "I am calling for an unbiased, external investigation to determine whether the (Interceptor body armor) is the most effective armor available and if additional testing reveals that Dragon Skin body armor is, in fact, superior, then the Army should provide it to our troops."

Members of the House have until today to sign the letter requesting the investigation before it is sent to the Secretary of Defense and Secretary of the Army.