Archive for June, 2007

New Trends in Infantry Combat Gear Defense Update surveys the latest protection and survivability gear including body armor and helmets, developed for the modern infantry, including new ergonomic bullet-proof vests, fire resistant clothing and microclimate personal cooling systems and load carrying systems, enabling the warfighter to endure andsurvive in combat as well as endure extreme climatic conditions. Among the [...]

The Pentagon has approved the expansion of the MRAP program to over 20,000 vehicles. The US Army plan to increase its fleet of MRAP vehicles from the planned 2,300 to 17,700. The Marines’s allocation will remain at 3,400 and special operations forces will receive about 300 (170 have already been [...]

Start < Page 5 of 5 > The millimeter-wave guidance of the Hellfire Longbow version (as well as the British Brimstone) is inadequate for missions where are not clearly defined far in advanced (specific types of tanks, missiles etc). For example, the cannot target a ‘red pickup truck’ suspected carrying improvised rockets or machine guns, [...]

Start < Page 4 of 5 > Laser guided weapons, such as the Lockheed Martin Hellfire, and Lahat and Nimrod, developed by IAI/MBT offer many advantages for heliborne and airborne use. The SAL seeker is relatively low cost, offering high precision operational flexibility, despite its adverse weather limitations. Integration with into net-centric operations [...]

Start < Page 2 of 5 > Since most helicopters were designed for full scale anti-armor warfare, they may be inadequately equipped to carry out low intensive combat missions. The most common weapon in use today is the Hellfire semi-active laser (SAL) guided missile. Hellfire has excellent precision and “man in the loop” control, [...]

Start < Page 3 of 5 > The Israeli SPIKE missile family represents the only true “fourth generation” missile currently available on the world market. This family includes the man-portable SPIKE LR, employed from land platforms, on armed helicopters and UAVs, and the heavier SPIKE ER, designed for vehicular, naval and airborne applications. The [...]

Start < Page 1 of 5 > European combat helicopter missions, as part of modern Army Aviation units, are rooted in the 1980s, when NATO deployed large numbers of attack helicopters as part of its defense planning to counter numerically superior Warsaw Pact armor and mechanized forces. Combat helicopters retained [...]

Start < Page 5 of 5 > Traditionally infantry operated in small units such as squads, companies and platoons. While ancient armies used larger formations to aggregate firepower, enhanced communications and devastating firepower of the modern age empower the infantry leader to use different tactics. In practical terms, allocation of communications determines [...]

Start < Page 4 of 5 > Apart from their additional weight vests block natural ventilation, preventing sweat heat dissipation. Physiological tests have demonstrated that body and surface temperature of soldiers wearing bulletproof vests can rise by up to 2C degrees (4F) after one hour continuous physical workout, compared to those not [...]

Start < Page 3 of 5 > Soldier’s survivability is improved with superior bullet-proof ballistic protection, enhancement of mobility and introduction of advanced firepower that can be employed at extended standoff range, thus eliminating the mandatory phase of close quarters fight in every combat engagement. Modern, light weight body armor, helmets and [...]

Start < Page 2 of 5 > Infantry weapons firepower enhancement is provided by more accurate improved performance of kinetic ammunition, including lethal and less-than-lethal small arms and advanced multi-purpose munitions, such as 40mm grenades. The use of optical sights, including red-tot reflection and magnifying optics (x1.5 – x3) improve target discrimination in daylight [...]

Start < Page 1 of 5 > Infantry warfare went through significant changes in recent years, transforming from heavy mechanized forces, designed to fight post WW-II and cold war operations, to light expeditionary forces which were considered suitable for peacekeeping and rapid intervention operations. However, combat experience in the war [...]

FELIN is a modular infantry combat suite, offering efficient ergonomics, autonomy and weight saving. In March 2004 Sagem Defense Systems won the French Defense R&D Directorate (DGA) contract to develop and produce up to 30,000 infantry combat suits, to be fielded with all French Army active infantry regiments by 2010 [...]

Start < Page 3 of 3 > Future Force Warrior (previously known as Objective Force Warrior) is now scheduled to be the third capability upgrade phase of the Land warrior System (formerly known as Land Warrior Block III). Future Force Warrior (FFW) is designed as an integrated “system of systems”, as part of [...]

Start < Page 2 of 3 > The net-centric Future Force Warrior will operate in squads or sub-squad teams, requiring dedicated wireless communications network for operation. Each warrior will be equipped with a sensor set, comprised of a helmet integrating day and night cameras and weapon’s mounted sight cameras. The [...]

Start < Page 1 of 3 > The Future Force Warrior uniform suite is based on the Soldier Protective Integrated Ensemble System (SPIES), fabricated from highly durable, flexible textile, embedded with protective pads for elbow and knee protection. SPIES is built with a load carrying ‘chassis’ designed to distribute the [...]

LAST Armor incorporating ceramic appliqué armor hexagons has been used on American, Canadian and French ground vehicles since the 1990s and is also used to reinforce plane cockpits by the Air Forces of ten nations around the world. The system uses a unique attachment system, enabling rapid assembly and removal [...]

Hellfire is currently produced in three configurations – Anti-Tank, Blast-Fragmentation and Thermobaric. A choice of semi-active laser and milimeter wave active seekers are also available. The 45kg Hellfire II missile (48kg in AGM-114M version) offers operational range of 0.5 to 8 km, and utilizes a semi-active laser seeker which has [...]

Start < Page 11 0f 11 > Enhanced body armor is extending the protected area covering even more body parts. Yet, even with these improvements, medical facilities are seeing more devastating extremity injuries than ever before, the wounded arrive with severe damages to bones, blood vessels and nerves, resulting from devastated explosions [...]

Start < Page 10 0f 11 > As the body armor is only part of the combat load carried by the infantryman, the military is seeking new concepts to offload some of the weight from the soldier. One way to overcome the weight barrier is offloading some of the cargo to load [...]

Start < Page 9 0f 11 > Several cooling vests are available on the market, including PCM based vests provided by Kappler, Another type is offered by Texas Cool Vest and Glacier Tek. The later is offering a five pound vest designed to maintain a constant temperature of 59-degree F for up [...]

Start < Page 6 0f 11 > A serious challenge associated with body armor, apart from its excessive weight, is the heat caused by lack of effective perspiration, eliminating the body’s natural ability to dissipate and dispose of metabolic heat. Increasing heat stress exhausts the human body within a short time, even [...]

Start < Page 5 0f 11 > The helmet has been the military trademark for centuries. Even today, helmet designers highlight their visual attributes side by side with their ballistic protection and comfort. Modern helmets are lightweight; providing superior ballistic protection and comfort, since they are shaped to optimally fit the individual [...]

Among the advanced GPS capabilities developed by Boeing for the U.S.A.F Navstar GPS Wing the military, are 12 GPS Block IIF satellites , currently under contract. Boeing is expected to deliver the first GPS IIF satellite in 2007. For the next decade, the company is offering the next generation GPS [...]

Start < Page 4 0f 11 > Excessive weight and limited mobility always exacerbate the weak points of personal body armor suits, demanding users and developers to agree and compromise on an acceptable balance between cost, weight, mobility and protection. Aiming always for ‘best possible protection’, meaning NIJ Level IV, does not [...]

Start < Page 3 0f 11 > One new product is Teijin’s Laminated Fabric Technology, or LFT, a fabric woven from Twaron fibers with a large number of densely packed, very fine-denier fibers which, according to the manufacturer, are improving protection level, compared to thicker, coarser fabric made of the same composite materials. [...]

Start < Page 2 0f 11 > Current body armor suites are designed to defeat most threats encountered on the modern battlefield. However, when configured for maximum protection, combat gear is becoming so heavy that it inhibits free movement and maneuverability, limits peripheral vision and causes dangerous heat stress that adversely affects [...]

An Armored Troop Carrier for the FCS The Infantry Carrier Vehicle (ICV) will be part of the Future Combat Systems Brigade Combat Team (BCT). It will carry a crew of 11 (commander, driver and 9 soldier infantry squad). Powered by a new hybrid electric system, ICV will share a common [...]

Start < Page 1 0f 11 > Where there is no clear ‘front line’ or ‘friendly area’, danger may be lurking everywhere and the enemy can strike anytime. Snipers, shooting from elevated levels, illusive Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) spraying deadly fragments over a large area, hit-and-run strafing from a passing vehicle or [...]

The Non Line-Of-Sight-Land Systems (NLOS-LS) is in development for the US Army by Netfires LLC, a joint venture between Raytheon and Lockheed Martin, under $1 billion System Design and Development (SDD) contract awarded by the Pentagon. NLOS-LS weapon system is a platform independent, self contained system, capable of autonomous or [...]

The Boeing Company successfully completed the first flight of the A160T Humingbird unmanned rotorcraft June 15, 2007 from an airfield near Victorville, California. During this flight, the aircraft hovered in ground effect for about 12 minutes. Further flights are now planed proceeding with flight tests of the new engine. The [...]

Cougar, developed and produced by Force Protection Inc. is a multi-purpose, 12 ton mine protected armored patrol vehicle. The design uses a monocoque, bulletproof and blast-proof capsule fitted with transparent armored glass, which protects the driver and crew from small arms fire, mine blasts and IED. Typical roles for the [...]

The launch of the Russian-made Sina-1 (also called Mesbah- “Lantern”) satellite into orbit aboard a Russian Kosmos-3M booster rocket, in October 2005, marked the start of Iran’s accelerated space program, and Tehran officials said that a second satellite – this one an Iranian-built – could be launched early 2006 or [...]

With the successful launch Monday, June 11, 2007 of its Ofeq-7 imaging satellite, Israel sustained its essential intelligence asset for any war contingency. According to Israel’s Ministry of Defense, the new satellite was launched westward over the Mediterranean by the local-made Shavit three-stage solid fuel vehicle from the Palmachim aerospace [...]

Hermes 450 was selected by the Israeli and British forces to provide Intelligence, Surveillance, Target Acquisition and Reconnaissance (ISTAR) services. In Israeli Hermes 450 is in operational use for about 10 years. Hermes 450 has already accumulated over 20,000 operational flight hours, mostly in combat service with the IDF, where [...]

DDG 1000 is the first in a class of the U.S. Navy’s multi-mission surface combatants tailored for land attack and littoral dominance. The ship’s mission is to provide affordable, credible, independent forward presence and deterrence and to operate as an integral part of naval, joint or combined maritime forces.

The XM307 Advanced Crew-Served Weapon (ACSW) 25mm system will replace current crew-served weapons such as the M-19 Mk3 40 mm grenade launcher, and heavy M2 0.5″ machine guns in US Army. ACWS is developed as the next-generation mounted and dismounted machine gun that will provide accurate long-range firepower, including air-bursting [...]

A futuristic concept pursued by Bell and Urban Aeronautics from Israel, is the X-Hawk, a “flying car” concept utilizing two lift fans and two turbine powered pusher propellers providing the vehicle lift, stability, lateral thrust and maneuverability for vertical and horizontal flight. X-Hawk will be able to hover, utilizing unique [...]

June 4, 2007: RAFAEL unveiled an enhanced version of the Skylite B UAV system, offering extended mission endurance of up to three hours, operating at ranges up to 35 km. The improved system also includes an encrypted digital communications and data link. The system was developed under cooperation between RAFAEL and [...]

U.K. Defence Minister Lord Drayson has awarded a £124millon contract to BAE Systems to develop a new Unmanned Combat Aerial vehicle (UCAV) technology demonstrator known as ‘Project Taranis’ (named after the Celtic god of thunder). About the size of a BAE Systems Hawk, the 8 ton autonomous stealth plane will [...]

Energy capacity of batteries means a great deal to ground forces. Heavy, expensive, non-rechargeable military batteries are slowing warfighting efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan as well as weighing down soldiers in critical combat situations. For a typical 72 hour mission, requiring 20 Watts average power, each foot soldier now needs [...]

Several companies introduced advanced personel radios at At Soldier Technology 2007. Among the systems on display were the RF-7800S-TR UHF set from Harris, the latest version of Spearnet from ITT. Rockwell Collins introduced its Flexnet waveform. Selex demonstrated its H4855 PRR system, which also included several add-ons, such as the command and control module. [...]

The latest display systems introduced for modern soldier systems incorporate miniature ‘near-eye’ transparent viewers and hand-held displays, offering wide field of view, efficient visibility in daylight conditions and covert, NVG compatible display at night time. Among the latest transparent eyepieces are the mini displays produced by Rockwell Collins, Liteye and Vuzix. Among the [...]

Soldier Technology 2007 conference and exhibition, organized by the Worldwide Business Research (WBR) group porovided an excellent view into some of the leading soldier modernization programs worldwide. Through the briefings, the common denominators and key differences between programs became evident. Two speakers from the US – Col. Richard Hanson, EO Soldier Land Warrior PM, [...]