Chinese soldiers outgrowing old armaments: PLA Daily

BEIJING, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- A "significant" change in Chinese soldiers' physiques has meant an increasingly imminent need to replace older, smaller military armaments, said a People's Liberation Army (PLA) Daily report on Tuesday.

A research institute with the PLA's General Armament Department has found that the average Chinese soldier is two centimeters taller and their waistline five centimeters larger than 20 years ago.

The findings come from a data-gathering survey among more than 20,000 in-service ground-force soldiers with different ages. Initiated in 2009, the survey measured and analyzed the personnel's size, strength and other indicators of different body parts.

Because of the changes in physique, there is urgent need for military equipment with larger models, according to the PLA Daily report.

It said a soldier with a normal body figure can even feel "cramped" in some commonly used tanks, with the vehicle designs based on average physiques 30 years ago.

Firearm buttocks that are too short can also affect firing accuracy, the article warned.

"The configuration of armaments and military personnel's physique should be matched, because that is the only way to ensure handy use of the equipment," said Ding Songtao, the director of the survey.

The research measured 28 items of basic human body data compared to seven items before. The new database has also collected ergonomic parameters, such as data on hand muscle strength, which can be used to determine the optimum sensitivity of triggers.

According to Ding, the findings of the survey have been used in the designing of weapons and equipment for artillery, armored force, engineer corps and chemical defense corps.