• Protection - Shock-absorbing pads keep the helmet from slapping the skull when hit with blast forces, fragments, or being tumbled along the ground or inside a vehicle. This decreases the chance of brain injury from IED's, bombs, RPG's, vehicle accidents, falls, etc.
• Comfort - If it is comfortable, it will stay on troop's head longer and more often.
• Stability - Keeps the helmet firmly on the head and out of the eyes.

Mailing address: Operation Helmet
c/o Dr. Bob Meaders                                                           Donate by clicking this link:    Make a Donation
74 Greenview Street
Montgomery, TX 77356

Email: ophelm at operation-helmet.org

Telephone: 936-449-9706. Answered gladly 8AM-5PM CST (sorry, English only)  Reluctantly answered before and after... (this is our home phone also.)

We are a 100% volunteer, non-partisan, charitable organization headquartered in Montgomery, Texas (near Houston) with volunteer operations around the country.  99.96% of all contributions are used to send upgrade kits to our troops! [*]  We have less than one-half of one percent overhead which is used to for very limited expenses related to sending thanks to donors or forwarding upgrade kits that didn't reach the addressee. This is a labor of love.  We have no salaries or payroll. Doc Bob covers all office expenses.

PS: We now pay $34 for each kit, shipping included from the factory direct to the service member, thanks to a large discount from our main vendor.

Do you make a difference with  your donation?  "Just received the pads about two days ago. Have them in my ACH now and took them out on about an eleven hour patrol yesterday. I can quite possibly say that it was one of the best patrols I've had out here due to the pads. I usually take a Tylenol about halfway through our missions due to the headache I would get from the standard issue pads, not anymore though. These pads are hands down the best quality and most comfortable I have ever worn. I wouldn't even begin to compare these to the standard issue pads we get. Hands down the Oregon Aero surpass GI pads in comfort, sweat absorption, and heat ventilation. They not only felt more comfortable on my head, but noticeably cooler. Everyone here is very grateful to have generous civilians like yourself get them out to us. Thank you again"

Uncomfortable helmets simply aren't worn as much or strapped down as required as those you can 'forget about'. Hard to concentrate on a dangerous job when you are  distracted by pain. And IED's, RPG's and ambushes pop up anytime, anywhere. Removing or loosening helmets to deal with severe distracting headache = needless injury or death. Believe it: The life you save may save another!

Skull Flexure from Blast Waves- A New Mechanism for Brain Injury with Implications for Helmet (and Helmet pad) Design 

Blast-wave induced flexure ('ripple" of the seemingly rigid skull causes brain injury, made worse by simultaneous flexure of the Kevlar helmet shell's flexure being transmitted to the skull by too-firm helmet pads...SEE DOC BOB'S BLOG FOR IMPORTANT NEW INFORMATION ON HELMET PAD PROBLEMS, including a current email (2/13/2010), meetings in with the Marines in Quantico and with the Army's PEO Soldier and House Armed Services Committee staff in Washington DC. If and when the Army releases the information, three independent civilian labs have re-done the flawed tests done earlier and we'll report the actual results...not some pre-digested blather.  So far, our Freedom of Information request has been denied twice as the data from non-secure labs is cited as secret.????  Click Here for the summary of our meeting with PEO Soldier and House Armed Services Committee Staff.

Please remember our troops EVERY DAY

AND NOW EXCERPTS OF EMAILS FROM THE FRONT LINES (Not from 'desk warriors' in their air-conditioned foxholes !) 

• See also Service sections (on left: US Army, USMC, etc) and Doc Bob's BLOG

2/1/2010: Thank you, I appreciate it so much, was recently out on a patrol and had to wear my ACH with the standard issue pads and i constantly would get a pounding sensation at the top of my forward, causing me to want to move the ACH to the right or left.  Doing so kept me from being able to scan my sector, which was definantly not safe considering the use of NVG's. 

1/28/2010:  I'm on my second deployment with the same pads, my pads gone they are just pieces of cloth and Velcro with the broken supply system we have I can't get replacement pads.

1/19/2010: Thank you so much for the helmet pads.  They are 200% nicer than the ones originally issued to us.  Everyone in my platoon is very, very thankful.  The pads, are a lot softer and have a more ability to shape to the wearers head.  I wore them on our last mission and for once I didn't get a headache.  I can not thank you enough for this gift of comfort.

1/3/2010: I currently have some sort of grey pad, not vary specific I know but there is no name on them.  The current pads are very hard and most of them have no backing and do not actually stick to the Velcro in the helmet.  Therefore on mission I am forced to, in the turret of my RG, take off my helmet to fix the pads that have moved around.  I really wish the pads were softer and were a lot more durable.  Thanks, you guys are doing a great thing. (Army Sapper-route clearance, Afghanistan)

1/2/10: We no longer dread about wearing our helmets during long missions. They are now very comfortable and our helmets don't fall infront of our eyes while shooting. Thank you for the support we really appreciate it.

12/22/09: Other Marines in my unit told me how much better these pads were and how much more they were willing to wear their helmets with these pads in.

11/13/09: The pads I have now are horrible especially for someone who get's headaches easily like I do. And you when you are trying to shoot your helmet falls in your eyes unless you have it really tight and then the pads kill the top of your head. I was wondering how I could get some of the pads you offer to soldiers.

10/12/09: The current GI pads are very hard and cause pain. I was issued the new pad kit and spent a lot of time and energy trying to get them to fit with some level of comfort. Even after only placing 4 pads in the helmet it fits too tight. I tried on the next helmet size but the shell is too large and takes away from my vision. The old strap system was more comfortable. I especially do not like the pads when I have the added weight of NVGs on my helmet

10/01/09: The helmet gives me an incredible headache and makes my head go numb after one hour of wear. I have tried moving the pads and changing the straps or angle of wear but have found no solution. I simply cannot wear the helmet for more than one hour which doesn't get me very far. I've asked others for ideas and recently started searching for suggestions/solutions online. COL, USAF.

9/16/09: I originally received an Oregon Aero kit back in 2006 while I was in Fallujah and let me tell you that it saved my head on the 2 occasions that my vehicle was hit by an IED.  They are a god send and I know that many lives have been saved by the kits that are being supplied to the Marines and the FMF Corpsman.  I would like to thank Capt. Bob Meaders (Ret.) for what he has done and also my wife for the work that she did in the past to outfit my PSD unit and what she is doing now to outfit the unit I am currently with.  USMC.

9/10/09: About the pads you sent: they are 10 times better especially when in vehicles and we bump our Kevlars (helmet) on the roof; lot better shock absorbent. The issued ones are the same outer material as the Oregon Aero ones but the inner material is shards of plastic that don't conform to the operators head and don't provide any (shock) absorbency.

8/19/09: Mostly the main problem is comfort.  After wearing our helmets for longer than an hour the pads feel like they're digging into our skulls.  I have completed one tour prior and have had problems with my pads rubbing my forehead raw.  There are also problems with the helmets moving around too much over our heads.  If you can save some of my guys and my self the hassles that I went through on my last tour, I would be greatly appreciative. (EOD team)

8/11/09: They just hurt.  I've moved them all over the place to try to make them comfortable and my head aches after every mission. (We sent 30 for his platoon at his request)

7/2/09  Bob, received the Oregon Aero kits today and they are a big hit. Some of the guys did not think there was solution to their helmet pain. I am going to pass your info on to a couple of our associated Transition Teams. Thanks for your support, Dale (Major, US Army)

6/26/09: Using issued MSA pads and currently getting tension headaches 45min-1hr after wearing helmet. The corners of the "Pad Rect" (rectangular pads on temples) focus pressure on one location and do not form to the head. The only relief is finishing the mission and taking the helmet off.

6/1/09: Hey Bob, its LCPL xxxx. Sorry its been awhile, but we have been busy. We are getting out of here (Afghanistan) in a few days and I am real excited to say it. Let me just say that the pads you sent were a godsend. Everyone in the platoon loved them and not only do they feel better, but they don't leave a bald spot on your head like the old ones. Quite frankly many of my platoon members who didn't have them ended up with no kidding balding areas on the top of their heads... I think organizations like this are the unsung heroes for our American forces and the one's people do not know about... We all thank you for everything you have done and I'll send you a few pictures of my platoon and I when I get a chance. Thanks again

5/13/09:  The (GI pad) things are like rocks shrink-wrapped in Velcro.  Incredibly uncomfortable and in no way do they shape or form to the head. SGT, USMC.

5/8/09: I am the Command Sergeant Major of Task Force XXXX which is currently conducting Route Clearance missions in Afghanistan looking for IED's. We find a good number of them.  Well we find them all, but some are because they blow up on us. I have a good number of Soldier's that end up with concussions so anything that helps absorb that impact and blast wave is a good thing for my Warriors ... I have a set from my civilian Police helmet that I brought with me and they make all the difference in the world on long missions.  My head never hurts even after spending more than 24 hours straight in the helmet.

4/30/09: I just receive a brand-new USMC-LW helmet (still in plastic bag when I got it) in early March and wore it steady for a two week training exercise in Mississippi; consequently, the center pad is already flaking up. Also, for those two weeks I had to keep removing my helmet to relieve the tension headache that it was causing me!  My HM's and I are going OCONUS in the mid fall of 2009 and I would like to have all my gear ready prior to avoid any delays at the last minute.  Many thanks to you folks, and GOD BLESS YOU.  LCDR, USN, Medical Corps

 See Doc Bob's Blog for more information and reports on how we're trying to get the military to 'do the right thing' and provide the best, not the cheapest helmet pads to our troops in harm's way. Hard to do your dangerous job when distracted by a blinding headache.

Article on the  New Marine Helmet of the Future and interview with Gen Conway. Jan 28, 2008.

Operation Helmet's version three survey results,

• DoD Operational Test and Evaluation report, 13 Mar 07, 90 pages
• Doc Bob's letter pointing out above report's flaws Krieg-test-results-18Mar07.pdf
• Office of Sec Def letter of 30 Apr 2007, (not?) answering our 18 May 2007 letter.

We hear that DOD (And some vendors) is (are) convinced we're some sort of agent for Oregon Aero because we don't point out that their pads are more expensive than the competition. I have NO idea what OA charges the military nor do I care. That's not my business. All we want is for our troops to have the best, not the cheapest, equipment that makes their jobs safer and more effectively performed. If an item costs, for example, 3/4 as much as another but lasts only 1/2 as long, where is the savings? I also don't know how much a UAV costs, or even the M4 carbine. Attention DOD: Don't shoot the messenger, fix the problem!

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	Amanda Gracie - song about a young woman/soldier who suffered a TBI in Iraq - can't remember her two-year child, Amanda Gracie
We have heard from troops in the field that some pad systems are really hard, hot, and/or uncomfortable (but not the ones we send).  Fill out an anonymous survey here.  Version three survey results,

Operation Helmet, Inc. is a 501-c-3 charity; our EIN is 20-1756585. Donations are tax-deductible. Your cancelled check is sufficient unless you gave $250 or more, then we send a letter/email for proof of donation.

Once all troops are provided appropriate blast/impact protecting helmet upgrades, we will utilize residual funds to help other charities providing for rehabilitation and support of our wounded troops and their families. We are researching several charities and will support those we find to be well managed, little or AT LEAST MINIMAL administrative fees and have a proven track record of helping our wounded warriors cope with their injuries and return to either civilian or military life.