Most of the time “closed minds” means “people who don’t agree with me”.

Take hand-held radios and GPS units. Today, a solider must carry dozens of replacement batteries – adding to the weight of their pack. Once the batteries are dead, replacements must be sent out to them, usually at great risk. With small solar units, mobile devices can be easily re-charged in the field. The soldier doesn’t need dozens of replacement batteries.

Hybrid military vehicles reduce, but don’t eliminate the need for fuel – what commander would pass up the opportunity to reduce fuel use?

Gasoline and deisel convoys are a huge tactical (and many times a strategic) problem – and have been since World War 2. Putting plug-in hybrids on the battlefield can significantly reduce consumption and increase flexibility.

Most land transportation use occurs well behind the front lines in relatively unprotected vehicles. If a soldier has mortors falling nearby, it doesn’t really matter what kind of vehicle they are reliant on.

As with just about every other industry the point is reached where the least efficient manufacturers are forced out of business as the most efficient manufacturers manage to decrease prices.

This is a good thing. This means that solar panel manufacturing has moved from a high margin industry to a low margin industry in which manufacturers will make their profits off higher volume production.

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“tell us who many square feet, not inches of solar panels are required in conjunction with Rate of charge to fully charge a stripped down motorcycle rated at 200 hp for a range of say 300 miles?”

I don’t know how much gasoline it takes to drive a 200 hp motorcycle so what I’ll do is give you the numbers for an EV.

0.3 kWh per mile. So 90 kWh for 300 miles. Going to be driving 300 miles every day, day in and day out? Highly unusual, but we can do that math. Maybe you mean 300 miles per day per base.

Assume 4.5 solar hours per day, it would take 20 kW of panels.

Just picking the first panel that popped up, a Sharp 250 watt panel. 64.6 × 39.1 inches = 17.54 sq ft for 250 watts. 0.07 sq ft per watt. 20 kW would be 1,403 square feet.
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Are you aware that fuel in a combat theater can cost $300 – $400/gallon? Plus get a lot of fuel truck drivers killed?

The leaders of our military are very aware of the cost.

The military is starting to use solar to power vehicles. They also have a very large biofuel program underway.

The war planners are way out in front of you. They have long recognized that relying on oil puts us in danger and they are devising alternatives. Alternatives while increase our security while lower costs and saving lives.

In WW2 Germany no slouch in technology had its military focus on producing energy from less refined means. An effort to preserving mobility. The American Goverment has ordered the US military to step up to EVs. How will the military remain mobile when electricity runs out? Build huge windmill and solar farms in a war zone? Lay down electrical lines susceptible to sabotage? I can imagine the US military successfully liberating oil refineries, gas fields and then running out of electricity. They won’t be able to move generators to the true source of electricity because their EVs are dead. All that feel good doesn’t make sense for war planners or winning wars but it makes good Green news.

As for combat regions, how do you protect an array of solar cells large enough to do the job in a combat environment? If all any enemy has to do is lob mortars at your energy source, seems like a major vulnerability. Fuel convoys are especially vulnerable as we have seen, so it would be good to solve that problem. Just not sure if this can do it.