Episode Details

The shipping container that powers global trade? The US Army invented it during the Korean War. In this episode, we explore the parallel universe of military logistics — from CONEX boxes to climate-controlled bunkers in the desert, from cave-stored Marine Corps equipment in Norway to the transloading nightmare of moving cargo from ISO containers to tactical containers that fit inside a C-130. We also examine how military logistics optimizes for worst-case conditions, not efficiency, and why the military maintains $200 billion in inventory as insurance against disruption.