Agilite previewed several new products including their upcoming K-Zero plate carrier, the new Warfighter Cummerbund, new Flank side armor carriers as well as new pistol versions of their patented Pincer pouches.
The machine ran only on Israeli 1 shekel coins that the Agilite team were handing out.
Holosun was all the talk last week with their new DRS (Digital Reflex Sight) line consisting of Night Vision (designated NV) which offers Image Intensification (I2) for low light conditions and Thermal (designated TH) with thermal sensing.
In both cases, the sensors are integrated with Holosun’s LED MRS (Multi-Reticle System) with two digital reticle options.
DRS-NV offers a 1024×768 resolution digital night vision sensor with up to 60fps, 8x digital zoom, digital image and video recording with on-board storage, and is powered by an 18350 rechargeable battery. An on-board USB-C connector enables charging and downloading of recorded images and video.
DRS-TH features a 1024×768 resolution display at 50fps, 8x digital zoom, digital image and video recording with on-board storage, and is powered by an 18350 rechargeable battery. DRS-TH models feature five thermal image modes, including White Hot, Black Hot, Highlight, Outline, and Fusion modes. DRS-TH is also available in a DRS-TH Pro version that increases the thermal sensor resolution by 33%.
The big question is, when will they introduce a fused version of the sight, integrating both I2 and Thermal vision into a single red dot sight?
Coming Q4 2023.
B&T showed me a couple of new suppressors which are compatible with SureFire’s family of muzzle devices.
Manufactured from Thermax / Inconel, the 5.56mm ROTEX-X is 20% lighter than the previous ROTEX-V.
The RBS line offers Reduced Back Pressure using a “flow through” design in order to reduce gas pressure at the charging handle and ejection port.
They are so new that they came straight from the factory in Tampa, right to the show floor at SHOT.
The full line of new suppressors includes:
Rotex-X Full Size & Compact
RBS 556 Full Size & Compact (17 oz & 19oz)
RBS 762 Full Size & Compact (21 oz & 23 oz)
MARS 556 14 oz
MARS 762 15 oz
Pricing starts at $675 with the SureFire attachment and is inclusive of the ROTEX-X’s and MARS suppressors. RBS suppressors are $875.
Aside from the lack of an industry standard for suppressor performance measuring, the other thing that irks me about suppressors is the myriad attachment methods. Hopefully, more companies will adopt common standards.
Australia’s global munitions company NIOA has today unveiled a corporate reorganisation, together with several key appointments to its future leadership team and a consolidation of its advisory board.
NIOA Australia, NIOA New Zealand, the Australian Missile Corporation, joint venture company, Rheinmetall NIOA Munitions and newly acquired Barrett Firearms now come under the umbrella of the NIOA Group.
The companies include:
• NIOA Australia and NIOA New Zealand which consolidates the defence, law enforcement and sporting markets in those countries as the largest privately-owned supplier of firearms, weapons, munitions and accessories.
• US-based Barrett continues to supply long-range weapons systems to the US military and its allies as well as products to law enforcement agencies and civilian markets.
• The Australian Missile Corporation is the independently operated enterprise partner for the Australian Government’s Guided Weapons and Explosive Ordnance enterprise.
• The Rheinmetall NIOA Munitions artillery shell forging plant in Maryborough, Queensland is a joint venture with Rheinmetall of Germany.
Ben James, the new CEO of NIOA Australia and New Zealand, heads up a number of executive appointments announced by NIOA Group CEO Rob Nioa under a corporate restructure.
Group CEO Rob Nioa has simultaneously announced a number of executive appointments:
• Former NIOA Weapons and Munitions General Manager Ben James has been promoted to the position of CEO for NIOA Australia and New Zealand.
• Current NIOA Chief Operating Officer Nigel Everingham to serve as Group Chief Operating Officer.
•Jackson Nioa, formerly Corporate Development Manager for NIOA, becomes Group Chief Financial Officer.
•Lee Goddard continues in his current position as CEO of the Australian Missile Corporation.
•Sam Shallenberger to serve as CEO of Barrett with Bryan K. James the new President.
Under the restructure, the NIOA advisory board and former Australian Missile Corporation board become one NIOA Group board chaired by former Australian Defence Minister the Hon. Christopher Pyne.
The board includes former US Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment, the Hon. Ellen Lord, former Australian Government MP, Senator for Victoria and past Parliamentary Secretary of Defence, the Hon. David Feeney, former Australian Army soldier Mark Donaldson VC, US Army Brigadier General (Ret’d) and former Commander Picatinny Arsenal, Alfred Abramson, Dr Ken Anderson, former Chief of the Aerospace Division in the Defence Science and Technology Group (DSTG), and Tom Seymour, CEO of PwC Australia.
The restructure announcement comes on the heels of NIOA’s news last week that it has expanded its global reach with the acquisition of US-based rifle manufacturer and designer Barrett.
Mr Nioa said the family-owned NIOA was at an inflection point as it celebrated 50 years in business.
“This restructure streamlines our operations and sets us up for future growth as we expand geographically, enhance our capabilities and continue to deliver outstanding results for our customers,” Mr Nioa said.
“NIOA has been built on a foundation of hard work, loyalty and a can-do attitude. Those values continue to unite us. As always, wherever we operate our people are our greatest capability.”
The company has also released a new brand line and video reflecting the group-wide purpose while paying homage to its Queensland and Australian heritage.
“Mission Ready” captures the NIOA ethos and comes with an inspiring video launched across the company’s refreshed website and social media channels.
It features Mr Nioa reflecting on the company’s journey – from humble beginnings serving the sporting shooter and rural community to small firearms wholesaler and its extraordinary growth over the past decade as a major defence contractor.
NELLIS AIR FORCE BASE, Nev. (AFNS) —
U.S. and international combat air forces senior leaders participated in the Weapons and Tactics Conference and C2 Summit at Nellis Air Force Base, Jan. 2-13.
WEPTAC is Air Combat Command’s annual pinnacle of tactics and warfare with a charge to accelerate the modernization and development of solutions for the joint employment of forces across the range of Air Force core warfighting functions.
“There is a common saying of ‘As goes Nellis, so goes the Air Force,” said Maj. Gen. David Lyons, ACC director of operations, in a speech to an audience of nearly 1,400 U.S. and allied service members. “The primary focus of WEPTAC is the National Defense Strategy and therefore the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command. We are here at the nexus of airpower to advise and shape our nation’s warfighting prowess.”
Gen. Ken Wilsbach, Pacific Air Forces commander, gave the keynote address to this year’s summit and WEPTAC attendees, emphasizing a need for constant forward motion with innovation as a requirement for mission success.
“Innovation will be the key to ultimately winning the next fight,” Wilsbach said. “Improvements in innovation talked about at previous years’ WEPTACs can be seen in PACAF today.”
Lyons added that while focus on emerging technologies and processes like the Advanced Battle Management System are critical to the Air Force maintaining competitive advantage in the Indo-Pacific, effective employment of warfighting constants like mobility and logistics capabilities also remain vital to success in conflict in the region.
“Do not wish away logistics. There is no room for error when we look at the tyranny of distance in the Pacific,” Lyons said. “You cannot overlook tanker plans, logistics and sustainment, weapons, communications and mission-type orders. Think about and talk about these things, including swap-out plans, rejoin plans from disparate locations, and comm-out mission planning – there is nothing we can’t tackle when we put our minds to it.”
Along with the tyranny of distance in the Pacific, fiscal and political constraints limit the establishment of new enduring air bases. To address these challenges, the Air Force introduced Agile Combat Employment, or ACE: a proactive and reactive operational scheme of maneuver executed within threat timelines to increase survivability while generating air-combat power.
“ACE will expand the envelope in the next fight; it will be a highly contested environment,” Wilsbach said. “ACE needs to be exercised in every squadron, every day.”
The National Defense Strategy states that to enable our military advantage in the air domain for the long term. We must shift away from legacy platforms and weapons systems that are decreasing in relevance today and will be irrelevant in the future.
Addressing the Air and Space Force senior leaders in the audience, Lyons highlighted the multi-disciplinary specialists conducting WEPTAC’s various working groups.
“We have provided you experts of multiple disciplines to inform your solutions and outputs across multiple programs and resources to provide tangible, feasible decisions to support our conclusions,” he noted.
WEPTAC’s scope and purpose brings the future faster and accelerates change in the United States Air Force. In its 23rd year, WEPTAC continues to provide feedback from warfighters directly to general officers and decision-makers that lead to substantive enhancements and improvements across the Joint Force, both from tactics development and science and technology advancement recommendations.
Wilsbach concluded his speech with a straightforward charge, “It’s not going to be easy, but we must put in the work. No shortcuts.”
Story by Michael J. Hasenauer, Nellis Air Force Base Public Affairs
Photo by Airman 1st Class Josey Blades
SOUTH FORK, Colo. – If you have spent much time on military-related social media platforms, you’ve probably seen some of the memes featuring a seasoned U.S. Army sergeant major with a Master Explosive Ordnance Disposal Badge and Combat Infantry Badge.
The Army EOD technician behind those memes is retired U.S. Army Sgt. Maj. Mike R. Vining, one of the founding members of the 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment-Delta (Airborne) and one of the unit’s first EOD technicians.
The reason his Army career has gained so much attention is because Vining has participated in many of the American military operations that defined the latter part of the 20th century, as an Explosive Ordnance Disposal technician and an elite Special Forces Operator.
Growing up in Howard City, Michigan, Vining was interested in science and mountain climbing. He received chemistry sets for Christmas every year and earned the Grand Prize in a High School Science Fair for a Wilson Cloud Chamber. Vining was also a member of the Science Club and Chess Club and participated in wrestling and track.
Vining then watched a movie that changed the trajectory of his life.
“I saw a World War II movie about a British soldier disarming a large German bomb in an underground chamber in London, England,” said Vining. “I thought, wow, that must take a lot to disarm a large ticking bomb.”
At 17, not long after the Tet Offensive in the Vietnam War, Vining went to an Army recruiting office and signed up to be an Ammunition Renovation Specialist with the plan of volunteering for EOD as soon as possible. After graduating from basic training camp at Fort Knox, Kentucky, he went to Ammunition Renovation School on Redstone Arsenal, Alabama, where he learned how to destroy unserviceable Code H ammunition during a course that was taught by EOD technicians.
He attended EOD training on Fort McClellan, Alabama, and Indian Head, Maryland, and graduated in May 1969.
While serving with the Technical Escort Unit at Edgewood Arsenal, Maryland, he volunteered to serve in Vietnam and he spent 11 months with the 99th Ordnance Detachment (EOD) in Phuoc Vinh, Vietnam, in an area west of Saigon and near the Cambodia border.
Two of the most memorable EOD operations of his career happened in 1970 when he participated in the destruction of the Rock Island East and Warehouse Hill enemy weapons and ammunition caches in Cambodia.
Vining was part of the seven-man Army EOD team that supported the 1st Cavalry Division mission to secure and destroy the largest weapons and ammunition cache discovered during the U.S. military’s involvement in the Vietnam War.
Named “Rock Island East” after the Rock Island Arsenal in Illinois, the enemy weapons cache had 932 individual weapons and 85 crew-served weapons as well as 7,079,694 small arms and machine gun rounds. The enemy cache also contained almost a thousand rounds of 85mm artillery shells that were used for the D-44 howitzer and the T-34 tank.
Vining and the EOD techs had to dodge enemy fire and endure biting red ants while working on the cache. After setting up “scare charges” to keep enemy forces out of the security perimeter, Vining made it on the helicopter in time to watch the explosion and see the mushroom cloud that was visible from 50 miles away. The seven Army EOD technicians at Rock Island East used 300 cases of C4 explosives to destroy 327 tons of enemy munitions.
During the operation to seize the cache site, 10 American Soldiers died and 20 were injured.
Later at the Warehouse Hill operation in Cambodia, the EOD team had to disarm booby traps and crawl into underground tunnels to place C4 explosives on 14 cache sites. Vining had to contend with large cave crickets, poisonous centipedes, spiders, bats and scorpions in the narrow tunnels. The teams used 120 cases of C4 explosives to destroy hundreds of thousands of enemy rounds.
After completing his tour in Vietnam, Vining left the Army and returned home to Michigan. He got a job at a plant that stamped out automotive body parts for Ford Motor Company and then became the lead employee on the third shift of the largest press in the plant, a 500-ton press.
“Although it was very good pay, I did not see myself doing this for 20 to 30 years,” said Vining. “In October of 1973, I saw my Army recruiter and asked to go back into the Army.”
The U.S. Army recruiter told Vining that he would have to serve as an EOD technician again, which was exactly what he wanted. He was assigned to the 63rd Ordnance Detachment (EOD) on Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri.
Vining was serving on a U.S. Secret Service support mission when his EOD supervisor, Sgt. Maj. Kenneth Ray Foster, Sr., was killed by an improvised explosive device at the Quincy Compressor Division Plant in Illinois, in 1976. Afterward, Vining thought it was time for a change.
“I decided to take Emergency Medical Technician training and following that I decided to volunteer to be a Special Forces medic,” said Vining. “I was getting out of EOD when my control sergeant major told me that they were forming a new Special Forces organization at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, and that they were looking for six EOD techs.”
Vining called the number and flew to Fort Bragg, North Carolina, for an interview with Col. “Chargin’ Charlie” Beckwith, the founder of the 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment-Delta. Beckwith envisioned the concept that the U.S. Army should have a counterterrorism unit like the British Special Air Service.
“Two weeks later, I was one of four Army EOD techs to start the Operator Training Course 1,” said Vining. “Only two of us made it through. The second person was (retired Sgt. Maj.) Dennis E. Wolfe.”
One of the unit’s first operations was the clandestine mission to rescue 53 American hostages at the U.S. Embassy in Tehran, Iran. Known as Operation Eagle Claw, the rescue mission was cancelled after the loss of three helicopters during a sandstorm at the staging site known as Desert One. While the aircraft were leaving the Desert One staging area, a RH-53D helicopter crashed into the transport aircraft that Vining and his team was on.
The helicopter rotor chopped into the top of the fuel-laden aircraft and a fireball shot by Vining and his team. As the EC-130E “Bladder Bird” was engulfed in flames and munitions cooked off around them, Vining and his teammates made it off the aircraft. Vining and his team got on another aircraft with faulty landing gear and just enough fuel to make it across the water to safety.
During the Desert One aircraft collision, eight American troops were killed and both aircraft were destroyed.
Joint Special Operations Command was created as a result of the investigation that followed the ill-fated rescue mission.
In October 1983 during Operation Urgent Fury, when U.S. forces invaded the Caribbean Island of Grenada following the pro-Cuban coup there, Vining was on a rescue team sent to free political prisoners at the Richmond Hill Prison.
His Blackhawk helicopter came under intense enemy anti-aircraft fire on approach to the prison facility and the mission had to be delayed.
The political prisoners were released before a second mission was launched.
After seven years of serving with distinction in Delta Force, Vining accepted an assignment with the 176th Ordnance Detachment (EOD) on Fort Richardson, Alaska. He made the move to be more promotable within the EOD community and to be close to the mountains of the 49th state.
While in Alaska, he maintained his proficiency for EOD missions and later came back to twice climb the 20,310-foot Mount Denali, the highest mountain in North America.
Within one year, he was back at the 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment-Delta, where he would serve in Operation Desert Storm. Although his EOD duties didn’t change, Vining switched to infantry during this time to make himself more promotable within the elite Special Forces unit.
During this second 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment-Delta tour, Vining also participated in Operation Pocket Planner during a Federal Penitentiary prison riot in Atlanta in 1987.
Vining would later serve at the Joint Special Operations Command as an exercise planner and J-3 Special Plans sergeant major. He was the Joint Special Operations Task Force senior enlisted advisor aboard the aircraft carrier USS America (CV 66) during Operation Uphold Democracy in Haiti.
The sergeant major also served as an explosive investigator on the task force that investigated the 1996 Khobar Tower bombing in Dharan, Saudi Arabia, and he used the lessons learned from that attack to help hardened U.S. installations around the world.
During nearly three decades in uniform, Vining earned the Combat Infantry Badge, Master Explosive Ordnance Disposal Badge, Parachutist Badge, Military Free Fall Parachutist Badge and Austrian Police High Alpine “Gendarmerie-Hochalpinist” Badge.
Vining racked up a huge stack of medals and ribbons that include the Legion of Merit Medal, Bronze Star Medal, two Defense Meritorious Service Medals, Army Meritorious Service Medal, Joint Service Commendation Medal, Army Commendation Medal, two Joint Service Achievement Medals and the Army Achievement Medal. He also earned his Bachelor of Science Degree in Sociology from the University of the State of New York.
Vining said he was glad when the U.S. Army established the 28th Ordnance Company (EOD) (Airborne) to support U.S. Army Ranger and Special Forces missions around the world, as well as the two Airborne Platoons of the 722nd Ordnance Company (EOD) and 767th Ordnance Company (EOD) to support the 82nd Airborne Division’s Immediate Response Force mission.
The Fort Bragg, North Carolina-based companies are all part of 192nd EOD Battalion, 52nd EOD Group and 20th Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear, Explosives (CBRNE) Command, the U.S. military’s premier all hazards command.
Vining said that the Kirtland Air Force Base New Mexico-headquartered 21stOrdnance Company (EOD WMD) was another welcome addition to the U.S. Army EOD units. The highly specialized company is part of the 71st EOD Group and 20th CBRNE Command.
From 19 bases in 16 states, Soldiers and U.S. Army civilians from 20th CBRNE Command take on the world’s most dangerous hazards in support of joint, interagency and allied operations.
“In my time, Army EOD was viewed as Combat Service Support, but in reality, Army EOD is Combat Support and has always been that way and that means supporting Special Operations and Airborne forces,” said Vining.
Vining said the key to success in the EOD profession is noncommissioned officer (NCO) leadership and mentorship.
“Mentorship is one of the duties of a senior NCO,” he said.
The Army EOD community marked its 80th anniversary in 2022 and NCOs have played a critical role in the EOD profession since its inception. Led by noncommissioned officers, EOD teams often serve on their own in austere environments, covering vast operational areas.
Vining also encouraged EOD techs to seek help for both the seen and unseen scars of war that come with the profession.
“I believe if you spend a career in EOD that you will witness severe injuries and death,” he said. “EOD is an inherently dangerous career but it is also a very rewarding career knowing you have eliminated a hazardous situation.
“If you are suffering from events that you were involved in, you are not alone in dealing with this kind of trauma. I encourage you to open up and just talk about it to a fellow EOD tech or an EOD veteran,” said Vining. “From World War II to the present, we have all witnessed the horrors of war and even the dangerous job we do in peacetime.”
In January 1999, Vining retired from the U.S. Army and married his wife Donna Ikenberry, a hiking guidebook author, professional wildlife photographer and freelance photojournalist. They were engaged at the top of Mount Rainer in Washington and exchanged wedding vows on Mauna Kea, the highest mountain in Hawaii.
Today, they live together in South Fork, Colorado, where Vining continues to enjoy spelunking, skiing, rock climbing and mountaineering. He also remains active in the veteran’s community.
Vining was inducted into the U.S. Army Ordnance Corps Hall of Fame in 2018.
When he hung up his highly decorated uniform after nearly three decades of service, Vining said he never knew that his storied career would later launch a tidal wave of memes.
“I do not know how any of the memes got started,” said Vining. “One of my grandchildren saw that someone even did a Pokémon card on me.”
By Walter Ham
New jammer finding function and expanded threat mapping features enable dismounted soldiers to proactively respond to navigational warfare (NAVWAR) attacks.
NEON PT-MIL Jammer Finder Capability
GREENBELT, Md.
TRX Systems, developer of NEON® GPS-denied location solutions, announced today the availability of expanded NAVWAR capabilities for its NEON PT-MIL solution that enable warfighters to proactively mitigate threats in contested environments. NEON PT-MIL now includes an automated jammer finder function that empowers warfighters to uncover the direction of NAVWAR threats using a low SWaP solution optimized for dismounted soldiers.
NEON PT-MIL helps warfighters maintain effective mission execution, even when they are operating in environments where GPS/GNSS signals are unreliable or intentionally denied. By fusing inputs from inertial sensors, GNSS signals, ultra-wideband (UWB), and other constraints, NEON PT-MIL can detect and eliminate unreliable or compromised GNSS data while providing an alternative source of positioning information for dismounted soldiers.
NEON PT-MIL can also be equipped to rapidly detect and map jamming and spoofing attacks. TRX Systems initially developed these advanced features through a U.S. Army Rapid Capabilities and Critical Technologies Office (RCCTO) program designed to extend NAVWAR functionality to the dismounted warfighter. NEON PT-MIL now accepts assured GPS as well as GNSS data from external devices, such as the widely deployed Defense Advanced GPS Receiver (DAGR) and the Orolia Defense & Security (ODS) BroadSense Nano, to compute and deliver a fused position and, when detected, a NAVWAR threat indication.
Dismounted soldiers can readily leverage the NEON PT-MIL NAVWAR capabilities through standardized interfaces with the DAGR. And with access to the DAGR’s PLI data, NEON PT-MIL can now propagate DAGR military-grade positioning information to other warfighters on the team via its embedded UWB ranging and communications interface.
The new release of NEON PT-MIL includes an automated jammer finding function that allows warfighters to proactively respond to jamming threats. Using the GPS jamming indications available from a connected GNSS or GPS source (e.g., connected DAGR, ODS BroadSense NANO), NEON PT-MIL can derive a line of bearing (LOB) to an enemy jammer and display it within the warfighter’s ATAK user interface.
“Our NEON PT-MIL solution delivers threat information for warfighters and an alternative for effective positioning that enables them to stay on mission even in situations where adversaries have corrupted GNSS signals through jamming or spoofing attacks,” said Carol Politi, CEO of TRX Systems. “With its new jammer finder capabilities and standardized interfaces to DAGR devices, warfighters can further leverage PT-MIL to locate and mitigate those NAVWAR threats.”
NEON PT-MIL with the jammer finding function is available in beta versions for field testing now and will be generally available in Q2 2023.
Latest technologies enable compact design for signals intelligence
Taufkirchen/Germany, 20 January 2023 – Sensor solutions provider HENSOLDT is developing sensor equipment that can be integrated into a pod to give the recently commissioned Eurodrone a signals intelligence (SIGINT) capability. The sensor technology for reconnaissance of radio and radar signals is based on a combination of the latest technologies in digitisation, electronic beam steering and metallic 3D printing, some of which HENSOLDT has already developed in its “Kalaetron” product family. The contract for the implementation and testing of a SIGINT demonstrator worth approximately 15 million euros has now been awarded by the Federal Office of Bundeswehr Equipment, Information Technology and In-Service Support (BAAINBw).
“From our experience with other SIGINT projects and our own technology programmes, we are in a position to offer a flexible SIGINT solution for the Eurodrone that can be integrated into a pod, but can also be used networked with other platforms,” says Christoph Ruffner, Head of the Spectrum Dominance & Airborne Solutions Division at HENSOLDT. In addition to the sensor suite itself, HENSOLDT is also developing a system architecture for integrating the SIGINT capability into the future mission system of the Eurodrone as part of this contract.
The “Kalaetron” product family is already being used in self-protection and signals intelligence systems by the German Armed Forces, among others. On its own initiative, HENSOLDT has already demonstrated its communications reconnaissance capabilities (C-ESM) in ground and flight tests. The core elements of the system are a fully digitalised, broadband receiver, an electronically controllable antenna and a condensed structure of the electronic components that was only made possible by metallic 3D printing. In combination, these elements allow the SIGINT equipment to be incorporated into a compact pod system that can be easily integrated into flying platforms, but also scaled for sea and land applications.
