April 2021 | Soldier Systems Daily Soldier Systems Daily

Archive for April, 2021

FirstSpear Friday Focus— Comm Pack

Friday, April 16th, 2021

Based off of the popular Exigent Circumstance Pack, the Comm Pack offers a distinctly urban style. The zippered main compartment offers ample storage for a wide variety of communications devices or other equipment and the cable access ports are discreetly located. Inside, there’s a padded laptop sleeve and zippered mesh pocket.

• Discrete backpack
• Distinct urban feel
• Internal laptop sleeve
• 2 Sizes: 980 cu in or 1800 cu in

The pack incorporates padded shoulder straps with QR buckles as well as a low profile, padded haul loop handle at the top of the pack. The mesh, padded back of the pack offers the distinctive FirstSpear logo stitched design. Each side of the pack features a mesh pocket for water bottles or other items. There is also an exterior, beavertail-style flap with dual zippered compartments for quick storage. Additionally, there is a flat zippered pocket at the front of the pack under the flap.

The Comm Pack is available in Black, Blue/Silver, Ranger Green/Coyote and the Ripstop Light Grey.

Check out the Comm Pack at www.first-spear.com/comm-pack-and-comm-pack-large

Posted in Advertiser, Comms, FS Friday Focus, Guest Post, Packs | Comments Off on FirstSpear Friday Focus— Comm Pack

5th SFG(A) Trains with 101st Abn Div

Friday, April 16th, 2021

Soldiers from 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) participated in night operations training with Green Berets from 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne) on March 15, 2021 at Muscatatuk Urban Training Center, Indiana. U.S. Special Operations Forces conduct training focused on increasing readiness for overseas operations that safeguard national security from worldwide threats.

U.S. Army video by SGT Brandon White

Posted in SOF | Comments Off on 5th SFG(A) Trains with 101st Abn Div

Federal Ammunition Introduces New 22 LR Punch Personal Defense

Thursday, April 15th, 2021

ANOKA, Minnesota – April 14, 2021 – Different shooters have different needs, different limitations, and different firearms. Yet for all those variables, 22 Long Rifle has never really been an option for personal defense—until now. Federal Premium introduces Punch 22 LR, a new load using a first-of-its-kind 29-grain nickel-plated lead-core bullet, pushed at maximum velocities for the deepest penetration through short-barrel handguns. Shipments of this product have begun to arrive at dealers.

“Self-defense isn’t one size fits all. So, whether shooters want to carry a 22 LR handgun as a backup gun, do not feel comfortable with centerfire pistols, or simply want to get more versatility from a rimfire handgun,” said Federal’s Rimfire Product Manager, Dan Compton, “Punch makes the 22 LR cartridge a viable defensive choice for the first time ever.”

The Punch 22 LR bullet is a departure from standard 22 LR design. It features a flat nose and utilizes a heavy nickel-plated jacket around a lead core. So not only does it travel faster than competing 22 projectiles, but its design also deliberately minimizes expansion and retains weight to maintain sufficient straight-line penetration. That is a lot to ask from a .22 bullet, which is why other manufacturers have shied away from the challenge. But Federal’s engineering team pulled it off, giving America’s favorite cartridge a chance to prove itself for protection.

“We’ve talked about making a 22 LR defensive load for some time. We finally decided that people are already carrying 22 LRs, so we might as well build a .22 bullet optimized for protection,” said Compton. “After much research, we decided that for a .22 LR defense bullet, penetration was more important than expansion.”

Features & Benefits

• Maximum velocity for energy and penetration; 1,070 fps through 2-inch barrel handguns, 1,650 fps out of 24-inch rifle barrels
• 29-grain nickel-plated lead-core bullet
• Projectile profile and composition optimized for the deepest penetration through short-barrel handguns
• Rigorous function testing ensures reliability
• Nickel-plated case for ease of extraction and corrosion resistance
• 50-count boxes

Part No. / Description / MSRP

PD22L1 / 22 LR Punch Personal Defense 29GR FN, 50CT / $9.99

For more information on all products from Federal or to shop online, visit www.federalpremium.com.

Posted in Ammo, Press Release | 13 Comments »

U.S. Inauguration’s Military Units Used Draper-developed WebTAK for Communications, Situational Awareness

Thursday, April 15th, 2021

CAMBRIDGE, MA—April 15, 2021—At the recent presidential inauguration, public safety was top of mind as thousands of military personnel were posted throughout the U.S. Capitol and the surrounding neighborhoods. Behind the scenes, a new software program developed by Draper called WebTAK gave military units a way to communicate and respond to potential threats in real-time.

The software is based on the Android Tactical Assault Kit (ATAK), which was developed by the Department of Defense and used by Special Operations forces and warfighters. ATAK has been tested through years of real-world use in combat situations, by more than 10,000 active warfighters.

After countless successful military operations, ATAK has grown to a broader product line known as TAK, which is also known as the Tactical Awareness Kit. The software has been deployed on popular technology platforms that include Android OS (ATAK), Microsoft Windows OS (WinTAK) and soon on Apple OS (iTAK). Now, along with contributing to the development of ATAK and WinTAK, Draper has developed a web-based version called WebTAK.

At the inauguration, WebTAK was used to share situational awareness and coordinate across multiple agencies. While specifics of the deployment are unavailable for security reasons, the goal of WebTAK is to enhance decision support, situational awareness (SA) and protect military and civilian populations from threats, both intentional and incidental, including chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear and high yield explosives (CBRNE).

Like ATAK, WebTAK is a geospatial collaboration platform that allows teams to share information and access data to improve real-time situation awareness. WebTAK provides a wide variety of useful SA functions including mapping and navigation, range and bearing, text chat, force tracking, geospatial markup tools, image and file sharing and video playback.

“For the first time, operators can access TAK from a password protected and encrypted website on any internet-connected device, instantly,” said Dan Nissen, a software engineer on Draper’s WebTAK team.

As the company’s technical director on WebTAK, Kyle Finley says Draper is not just about creating new technologies, but also ensuring that the full potential of those technologies is realized. “WebTAK’s foundation is a set of core capabilities built using modern web software principles and practices. The recent addition of plugin support to that core opens WebTAK to a whole new world of uses,” Finley said.

WebTAK’s Software Development Kit (SDK) gives developers a framework to quickly develop those custom plugins. These plugins enable rapid integration of innovative technologies into WebTAK, allowing the application to adapt to the continually evolving user needs for situational awareness. In other words, WebTAK was built to be flexible enough so when there is a new “must have” communication device or other technology, anyone with general coding skills can quickly write code enabling the use of that technology within WebTAK.

With WebTAK running on an internet-connected device, a user enters a URL, logs into the system and instantly receives information that can inform situational awareness of an event. The software offers protections through a secure socket layer and end-to-end encryption. As a device-agnostic application, WebTAK is designed to run equally well across various mobile or desktop devices.

“Maintaining continuous situational awareness is the foundation for maintaining security. With WebTAK, warfighters, first responders and public safety officials can customize their operating environment, depending on their role or mission, and benefit from anywhere, anytime secure connectivity through the internet,” explained Brad Vautour, sound designer and senior enterprise software engineer at Draper.

The work is sponsored by the Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA). DTRA is funding development of ATAK, WinTAK, and WebTAK decision support tools, along with supporting leading edge technologies.

www.draper.com

Posted in Comms, Digitization, Press Release | Comments Off on U.S. Inauguration’s Military Units Used Draper-developed WebTAK for Communications, Situational Awareness

Galvion Delivers First Silent Watch Battery Packs (SWBP) for Use in Canada’s LRSS LAV 6.0 Program

Thursday, April 15th, 2021

Galvion is pleased to announce the first delivery of our Symbasys Swatpack™ modular battery systems to General Dynamic Land Systems-Canada for use in the Light Armoured Vehicle (LAV) Reconnaissance Surveillance System (LRSS). The LRSS LAV 6.0 will replace the Coyote LAV vehicle providing the Canadian Army with state-of-the art technology for advanced target detection, recognition and identification.

The Light Armoured Vehicle (LAV) 6.0 with state-of-the-art surveillance system. Photo courtesy of General Dynamic Land Systems-Canada.

Galvion’s Silent Watch battery solution consists of ten (10) Li-Ion Swatpack™ 160Ah/4KWh battery modules in a custom-designed ballistic enclosure which is mounted on the LAV 6.0. The 40Kwh system will provide the power to run the mounted surveillance system including cameras, thermal imagers, laser range finders, and other on-board electronic equipment. The robust bespoke solution can power these demanding electronics over extended periods of time, in all conditions, with no thermal or aural signature, preserving the batteries for engine starting.

Galvion’s Silent Watch Battery Pack (SWBP), containing ten (10) Symbasys SwatPack™ modules, will be mounted on the Canadian Army’s LAV LRSS military vehicles. The 40Kwh system will provide the power to run the mounted surveillance systems with no sound or thermal signature. The image on the left illustrates the system in custom enclosure, and image on the right is a top-down view.

“Our experience integrating Li-Ion batteries into military applications, and our long-standing partnership with Kokam, a world leader in lithium-ion cell manufacturing, were key in successfully engineering the optimum balance of technology, performance and safety required to meet all of the operational needs for this program,” said Peter Rafferty, Galvion’s V.P. of Platform Power. “Many years of development and a rigorous qualification program carried out over the past two years culminate in Galvion being able to deliver a unique set of capabilities for the LRSS LAV 6.0 program.”

Galvion looks forward to delivering the balance SWBP systems to GDLS Canada and is proud to be a part of this ground-breaking program for the Canadian Army.

Posted in International, Power, Press Release | Comments Off on Galvion Delivers First Silent Watch Battery Packs (SWBP) for Use in Canada’s LRSS LAV 6.0 Program

SIG SAUER Unveils U.S. Army Best Ranger Competition M17 Trophy Pistols

Thursday, April 15th, 2021

NEWINGTON, N.H., (April 15, 2021) – SIG SAUER is honored to announce the creation of the U.S. Army Best Ranger Competition M17 Trophy Pistols for the upcoming 2021 Best Ranger Competition being held at Fort Benning, Georgia, April 16-18, 2021. The custom M17 pistols were designed and built by SIG Custom Works and beginning this year, the custom M17 pistols will be presented as the official Best Ranger Competition Trophy pistols to the two-man team that earns the Best Ranger title annually.

The U.S. Army Best Ranger Competition is a grueling competition that identifies the best, two-man U.S. Army Ranger buddy team on a course that is designed to place extreme demand on each team’s physical, mental, technical and tactical skills. The competition is open to all Ranger-coded positions within the U.S. Army and each year competitors from across the globe come to compete with the hopes of earning the prestigious Best Ranger title.

“The Best Ranger Competition is the ultimate physical challenge that puts any operational and traditional skills to test, under extreme circumstances, for sixty straight hours of punishing, non-stop, endurance competition,” said Jason St. John, Director, Government Products, SIG SAUER, Inc. and Sergeant First Class (Retired), U.S. Army Ranger. “It’s an incredible honor for SIG SAUER to be afforded this opportunity to present this custom M17 pistol as the official trophy pistol of this prestigious competition to recognize the elite Ranger competitors and their sacrifice.”

The unique distinguishing features of the SIG Custom Works, U.S. Army Best Ranger Competition M17 Trophy Pistols are:

• M17 Pistol: The official sidearm of the U.S. Army with a custom black nitron engraved slide and black AXG metal grip and a gold trigger.

• Right Slide Engraving: Best Ranger Competition (to include competition year)

• Left Side Engraving: Rangers Lead The Way

• Sight Plate: Engraved with Best Ranger competition logo (to include the name of competition winner)

• Pistol Grips: Black G10 Grips with a Ranger Tab Medallion inset

The U.S. Army Best Ranger Competition M17 Trophy Pistols will be presented, for the first time as the official trophy pistol, at the 2021 competition trophy presentation on Monday, April 19, 2021.

A full series of photos of the U.S. Army Best Ranger Competition M17 Trophy Pistols are available for viewing at: sigmedialibrary.com/c/5yi7dm3p

Posted in Advertiser, Press Release, weapons | Comments Off on SIG SAUER Unveils U.S. Army Best Ranger Competition M17 Trophy Pistols

WARNORD – CP x TD Desert Tiger Stripe G3 Field & Combat Uniforms Go Live Tomorrow @ Noon EDT

Thursday, April 15th, 2021

Tactical Distributors is dropping the exclusive Desert Tiger Stripe Crye G3 Combat pants & tops and G3 field bottoms and tops. This limited release will go live at 12 noon eastern time, Friday, Aril 16.