INTRODUCTION

Military bridge, are the temporary bridge, that are constructed in haste by military engineers, from
available materials or equipments . These are the structures used for troops, combat materials, and
transport to cross obstacles (such as water barriers, ravines, and roads) while traveling along roads or
column routes on the field of battle. Military bridges are mainly used in military, in emergency and in
disaster relief operations.
Easy transportability of bridge elements is an important factor for military bridges, because it makes it
possible for engineer units to accompany troops and get to the obstacles that must be crossed in limited
time. Other important characteristics for good military bridges are the speed with which bridges can be
erected by minimal forces, the adaptability of bridge materials and structural elements for use with
different kinds of obstacles, minimum vulnerability to weapons, and simplicity of repair under field
conditions.

Depending on the type of support, military bridges are classified as floating bridges, fixed-support bridges, 
or a combination of both.

Floating bridges, are used primarily but not invariably for military purposes. Military pontoon bridges are
usually built either by successively extending outward from the shore or by constructing whole sections
as rafts and floating them into position. Floating military bridges may be pack bridges assembled from
metal pontoons or barges, or they may rest on individual floating supports (such as pontoons, barges,
scows, or boats). They make it possible to erect a bridge crossing quickly in water more than 1 m deep,
regardless of the type or configuration of the bottom.
Fixed-support military bridges are bridges with its load-bearing structures composed of a series of wood,
metal, piles or a frame standing on a firm support. They are classified as low level, high level, and
underwater. Low-level military bridges have small spans (4–6 m, rarely 10–12 m), ordinarily permit one-
way traffic and are designed for short-term use. They are 0.5–1 m above the water surface. High-level
military bridges have 30 or more spans and usually provide for two-way vehicle traffic and one-way rail
traffic. They are intended for prolonged use and permit ice, floods, and river vessels to pass under them.
Dismountable fixed-support military bridges are used as rear bridges for numerous crossings of water
obstacles. In submersible military bridges the roadway is 30–50 cm below the water, which gives the
bridge a better chance of survival in case of enemy action and makes it difficult for reconnaissance to
discover the bridge.
Military bridges combining fixed and floating supports are generally erected over rivers or low-lying
areas that are very deep and wide. Mechanized bridges are used for troops to cross narrow obstacles and
water barriers on the field of battle and when moving in columns. They are erected by bridge-laying
vehicles.

BAILEY BRIDGE
A Bailey bridge is a type of portable, pre-fabricated, truss bridge. It was developed in 1940–1941 by the
British for military use during the Second World War and saw extensive use by British, Canadian and US
military engineering units. It has the advantages of requiring no special tools or heavy equipment to
assemble. The wood and steel bridge elements are small and light enough to be carried in trucks and lifted
into place by hand, without the use of a crane and are also strong enough to carry tanks.
The success of the Bailey bridge is due to the simplicity of the fabrication and assembly of its modular
components, combined with the ability to erect and deploy sections with a minimum of assistance from
heavy equipment. The Bailey parts were made of standard steel alloys, and were simple enough that parts
made at a number of different factories were interchangeable. Each individual part could be carried by a
small number of men, enabling army engineers to move more easily and quickly, in preparing the way for
troops and matériel advancing behind them. The modular design allowed engineers to build each bridge
to be as long and as strong as needed, doubling or tripling the supportive side panels, or on the roadbed
sections.
The basic bridge consists of three main parts. The bridge's strength is provided by the panels on the sides.
The panels are cross-braced rectangles which is constructed of welded steel. The top and bottom chord of
each panel had interlocking male and female lugs into which engineers could inset panel connecting
pins.The floor of the bridge consists of a number of transoms that run across the bridge, with stringers
running between them on the bottom, forming a square. Transoms rest on the lower chord of the panels,
and clamps hold them together. Stringers are placed atop the completed structural frame, and wood
planking is placed atop the stringers to provide a roadbed. Ribands bolt the planking to the stringers. Later
in the war, the wooden planking was covered by steel plates, which were more resistant to damage of tank
tracks. Each unit constructed in this fashion creates a single section of bridge, with a roadbed. After one
section is complete it is typically pushed forward over rollers on the bridgehead, and another section built
behind it. The two are then connected together with pins pounded into holes in the corners of the
panels.For added strength up to three panels (and transoms) can be bolted on either side of the bridge.
Another solution is to stack the panels vertically. Footways can be installed on the outside of the side-
panels. The side-panels form an effective barrier between foot and vehicle traffic, allowing pedestrians to
safely use the bridge.
Some of it’s features are :-
  Adaptable - pre-engineered to match each application
 Fast - modular stocked components, open to traffic in days
  Lower Cost - an alternative to custom designed bridges
 Easy - to handle, transport, assemble, install and reuse

MEDIUM TRACK BRIDGE

Medium Trackway Bridge, was developed by General Dynamics European Land Systems. This new light
bridge can be easily transported and launched by a light military vehicle. It is composed of 4 to 8 main
elements according to the length of the bridge, which can vary from 4 to 8 meters. The MTB allows
crossing of obstacle or river on the battle field, in a very short time and with an immediate availability.
The increased need for a self-sufficient gap-crossing capability for ground forces has lead to the
development of the Medium Trackway Bridge (MTB), a aluminium-construction modular lightweight
bridge for military and civilian vehicles up to MLC 40 that can be connected to form bridge lengths of 2,
4, 6 or 8 m. For the installation of the bridge, a launcher system is mounted at the front of an armoured
vehicle. A winch is fitted on the top of the launching system which is in charge to deploy the bridge over
the obstacle or the river. The launching/ retrieving time for a 4 m MTB is approximately 10 minutes with
4 soldiers.
This lightweight, modular bridge is fabricated of high strength aluminium specially made to cater for
military and civilian vehicles up to MLC 40. The bridge consists of two parallel treadways. The bridge
weight is 540 kg for a complete 4m MTB. Due to its lightweight, the bridge modules can be transported
easily by light tactical/commercial vehicle and launched on the same vehicle by the crew members as
shown in Fig. 2. It takes ~10 minutes to launch a 4m MTB with 4 crew members. It is interesting to note
from (GDELS, 2011) that MTB is able to increase the tactical mobility of units (with no gap-crossing
capability) without relying on engineer bridging unit.

Hybrid FRP-Aluminum Modular Bridge

A hybrid FRP-aluminum space truss structure system was first developed by Zhang et al.(2013) as a
modular emergency bridge with a span of 12 m. The bridge has a light weight and contains 8 structural
units, which are composed of an aluminum bridge deck supported by FRP trussed members and
connected by male jugs and female jaws based on the pre-tightened teeth connection (PTTC) technique.
For emergency purposes, especially in mountainous areas, a structurally sound lightweight space truss
bridge with a modular structure is desirable. The space truss bridge is intended to be erected and
dismantled manually with individual structural units, which can be further extended or easily transported
and installed elsewhere.
4 prototype structural units were fabricated and mounted as a single-span simply supported structure and
subjected to the four-point bending loading test. Structural computational models, including two FE
models and a simplified analytical planar model, were constructed and validated by the experimental
results. The results indicated that -
1. the structural behavior of the off-axis load differs from that of the on-axis load, and the off-axis
load is the critical loading condition controlling the structural performance of the triangular truss
2. under the off-axis load, the FRP trussed members and connectors bear certain out-of-plane
bending moments and are subjected to a complicated stress state
3. the stress state of these members does not match that of the initial design, and optimization for
the redesign of these members is needed, especially for the pre-tightened teeth connectors.

MEDIUM GIRDER BRIDGE

The Medium Girder Bridge (MGB) is a lightweight, man portable bridge and can be assembled without
help from heavy equipment. In addition, it is also a deck type, two-girder bridging system capable of
carrying loads up to and including Main battle tanks (MBT). MGB was originally produced by Fairey
Engineering Ltd., in Stockport England and is still made to this day by its successor WFEL based on a
design by MVEE in Christchurch. MGB was originally sold to the British Army in 1971, subsequently
also being sold to many other nations, including the Dutch, Danish, Swiss, German and US Militaries.
MGB single span bridges can be built as Single Storey, Double Storey, Double Storey with Link
Reinforcement (LRS).
The MGB parts are fabricated from a specially developed zinc, magnesium, and aluminium alloy
(DGFVE 232A). This enables a lightweight, high strength bridge to be built. All except three parts weigh
under 200 kg. Most parts can be handled easily by four soldiers. Short/low load bridges can be
constructed using just top deck components. The segments have knuckle joints at each end; assembly
consists of simply engaging the knuckle joints of adjacent segments then inserting a pin through a hole
down the length of the knuckle. In this way as many segments as are needed are connected end to end to
form a girder of the required length to span the obstruction. Two such longitudinal girders are constructed
parallel to each other to provide the bridge's strength. The bridge can be supported on unprepared and
uneven ground without grillages. The ends of the roller beams are supported on base plates and each can
be adjusted in height. No leveling or other preparation of the ground is required.
Significantly developed from its initial design to its multi-role capability of today, component
interchangeability across any bridge of any age has been maintained. MGB units are light, easily
transported and can be adapted for most tactical bridging requirements. The MGB system includes piers,
pontoons and ferries, all engineered for deployment with minimum manpower. The MGB meets the
evolving needs for bridging equipment across a wide spectrum of requirements, from short irrigation
channels, through ravines to large expanses of water. Highly transportable, rapidly deployed, adaptable
and cost-effective, it is ideal for a wide range of military or emergency and disaster relief situations.

M4T6 FLOATING BRIDGES

The M4T6 floating bridges and rafts consist of a deck built of square, hollow aluminum sections (called
balk) supported by pneumatic floats. The M4T6 equipment is hand erectable, air transportable, and can
provide the crossing force commander with rafts and bridges capable of supporting MLC 70 traffic in
river currents up to 8 FPS. The M4T6 was designed after World War II, combining the best
characteristics of the older M4 and Class 60 bridges. Proper military nomenclature for this set is the
Bridge, Floating, Aluminum, Highway Type, Desk Balk Superstructure on Pneumatic Floats. Until the
advent of the ribbon equipment system in 1972, M4T6 equipment provided the state of the art means of
conducting military, river crossing operations.
M4T6 Floating Bridges consists of a pneumatic float which supports the M4T6 deck actually consists of
two half-floats. The saddle assembly is placed upon the pneumatic float and bears the load of the bridge
itself. The two types of saddle adapters are normal and offset. Their primary purpose is to provide a
means to connect the deck balk superstructure to the saddle assembly. Balk-connecting stiffeners are
secured to the saddle adapters and are designed to receive the bridge’s deck balk. Aluminum alloy is
mainly used in the construction of deck balks, which is of three types, normal balk, short balk, and
tapered balk. Steel curb adapters are used to raise normal deck balk 6 inches above the level of the
roadway to provide curbing for a bridge or raft. Four aluminum alloy raft ramps are used at each end of a
raft to provide a sloping approach. Plates are used to protect balk handles from being damaged by
vehicles crossing the bridge, to distribute the load of the bridge on the shore.

DRY SUPPORT BRIDGE

The Dry Support Bridge (DSB) is the new generation of tactical military bridging, is operational with the
armed forces of the US, Turkey and Switzerland. It is built by WFEL, a subsidiary of Krauss-Maffei
Wegmann, which is engaged in providing military and civil mobile bridge systems. Deployable by just
eight soldiers and a single launch vehicle, the DSB can get traffic moving over a 46 metre gap in less than
90 minutes. Its primary mission is to support the momentum of attack, and secondary mission is
emplacement on main supply routes to the rear of the combat zone to help keep military and civilian
traffic flowing.
The DSB is built using specially-made lightweight aluminium alloys. It can be deployed by eight crew
members and launched within 90 minutes. Spanning up to 46m, the bridge can cover dry or wet gaps to
provide improved operational flexibility. The longitudinal bank slope and lateral bank slopes of the bridge
are 1:20 each. The bank heights of the bridge vary between -3m and 3m and the road width is 4.3m. The
bridge has a load rating of class MLC 80 (military load classification) for tracked vehicles and class MLC
96 for wheeled vehicles. The DSB’s maximum load rating for wheeled vehicles is MLC 120. It can
operate in temperatures ranging from -46°C to 49°C. The tactical military bridge system uses two outer
girders for supporting the deck, which fold underneath the decks to facilitate easy transportation and
automatically unfold when deployed. The bridge modules can be packed in either a 6m ISO container or
loaded on most PLS / DROPS systems. They can also fit into 6m flat bed vehicles.

LIGHTWEIGHT MODULAR CAUSEWAY

SYSTEM

Lighweight Modular Causeways System (LMCS) , was developed by, engineers at the U.S. Army
Engineer Research & Development Center (ERDC), using design elements from both conventional
floating causeways and modern tactical bridges, to meet rising requirements for rapid deployment. The
unique design allows military personnel to deploy the LMCS without a shore-based staging facility. This
makes the LMCS adaptable and flexible for applications in challenging physical settings, such as post-
disaster areas following earthquakes or severe storms, where ports have been damaged or destroyed. I has
a durable joint material (similar to material used to buffer building motions during earthquakes)that helps
support large weight requirements. It is easily tranportable along with easily deployable, even across
shallow areas.
For a floating structural system like the LMCS, engineers designed a compliant superstructure to better
distribute loadings to the floatation elements. The LMCS consists of the superstructure, flotation elements
(large inflatable tubes), and compliant two-way compressive connections. Engineers designed a compliant
system tobetter distribute loadings to the floatation elements, thereby reducing the internal bending
stresses within the superstructure. Each section is composed of four modules and each module is
supported by two 5-foot-diameter pneumatic floats. The internal pressure in the pneumatic tubes can be
adjusted for easier penetration onto shallow, sandy beaches to conform to the bottom slope. It was
designed to fit an Army Logistics Support Vessel (LSV), which can be used as the demonstration
platform and for transporting and emplacing the LMCS. This system allows the LMCS to emerge from
the LSV fully assembled, with floatation elements inflated. It incorporated material handling aspects,
mechanical assembly of modules, and inflation of floatation in a semi-automated system that minimized
manpower requirements and the time necessary to emplace and recover the LMCS.

EASIBRIDGE

EasiBridge offers the world’s first truly man-portable, long-span rescue/assault bridging system.
Exploiting the inherent flexibility of the EasiBridge systems, a further eight engineer/infantry “Super-Kit”
capabilities can be used. Key benefits include:- (1) Portability; weighing just 4kg/m the EasiBridge
sections can be easily carried by dismounted personnel and handled without mechanical assistance,
(2)Span Length; gaps of up to 18m can be installed by a single person, with access from one side only,
(3)Low Cost; EasiBridge is significantly lower cost than comparable infantry assault bridges,
(4)Versatility; using common components a wide range of demanding requirements can be addressed.
EasiBridge components are 85% lighter and 80% more compact than incumbent Infantry Assault Bridges.
EasiBridge is expandable to offer a universal, ground-breaking solution for gap crossing, infantry carriage
support, troop protection, logistics handling – even man-portable SVBIED barriers. A multi-function
super-kit, ideally suited for the challenges of urban warfare, as well as special-forces, engineer and
dismounted infantry operations.
EasiBridge uses 1.5m long, optimised ladder sections with a bespoke (EasiLock) jointing system to
ensure no loss of strength or stiffness at multiple section joints. Combined with a rope-stiffening system,
telescopic masts and variable tensioning elements, EasiBridge structures are half the weight and treble the
span of incumbent systems. Simple short spans, up to 6m, can be formed from plain ladder sections with
just three sets of EasiLock joint. Longer spans, up to 18m, use a link tensioning system common to
innovative military bridges like the Medium Girder Bridge and General Support Bridge. The Tactical
Assault Bridge (TAB) is the core EasiBridge configuration. A single Tactical Assault Bridge is designed
for low centre-of-gravity trolley loading. The low centre of gravity permits a narrow structure width for
maximum portability, even for long-span bridges. The trolley is used for two purposes; launch and
recovery, and personnel movement across the bridge. Walking upright on a ladder over a gap is difficult,
especially when encumbered. Adding handrails would mitigate some of the dangers but they add weight
and take time to deploy. The trolley lowers the centre of gravity and allows an encumbered person to
move quickly and safely across the gap.
 REFERENCES
1. Lightweight modular causeway system, engineering design
2. Dry support bridge army technology
3. Modular floating bridge to the rescue
4. Portable and rapidly deployable bridges, historical perspective
5. MTB Medium trackway bridge data sheet
6. Military bridge, Britannica
7. Easibridge- lightweight tactical bridge innovation