How the Military Invented the Shipping Container

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.