I am a lowly SPC and not a combat soldier and I have never worked with mercenaries personally but from my perception from seeing them a lot, they are not an effective replacement for Military combat personnel and they honestly just seemed like a band of thugs and act like your supposed to move out their way.
They are not well enough armed or armored and I remember at least one occasion where Blackwater members were killed by U.S Soldiers by acting irresponsibly in a combat situation and ended up on the wrong end of a lot of fire power, they did not radio up, let people know they were there and when guns started shooting the soldiers had no clue who or where they were. Combat people should absolutely know better.
Too many people join a mercenary organization, spend a year in a combat zone and think they have what it takes to open a personal security organization and survive in a combat zone where all they have are Dodge Rams enforced with steel plating and probably small arms weapons. They are no replacement for a Bradley, MRAPP, Striker or a 50cal machine gun, the ability to call in an airstrike or m203 grenade launcher and they simply have not had the training that Military Combat personal do, even if they once did. Their TTP's and SOP's and skills are outdated. They are not as informed and they are not well enough supported or supplied. I don't think they belong there. They receive a ridiculous amount of money to do a job they shouldn't be doing.
They were removed from Iraq because the Iraq leaders felt they were hurting too many innocent people and not doing a decent job. This is just how I feel on the matter but again I say that to me, they are not well enough trained and they are also not well enough equipped.
IMHO... their thugs.
