XC3 Weaponlight

Archive for the ‘International’ Category

4-14 Factory Adaptive Plate Carrier

Thursday, March 10th, 2022

Italy’s 4-14 Factory is a relatively new company founded by former Italian SOF.

I am quite impressed with their Adaptive Plate Carrier developed based on mission requirements. It is a modular and scalable system which relies on their CAGES system of Tegris panels. These can be preconfigured and attached to the front and back carriers which carry the armor.

The Adaptive Plate Carrier system consists of:

Front Carrier – Made from Durastretch, it accommodates a wide variety of soft and/or hard armor. It presents a slick appearance.

Back Carrier – Made from Durastretch, it accommodates a wide variety of soft and/or hard armor. It presents a slick appearance.

Harness – It can be used in conjunction with the Front Carrier to suspend the weight of armor. Used while parachuting or when a rear plate isn’t warranted.

Front CAGES – Very easy to attach to Front Carrier. Made from Tegris, it can be configured for a variety of loads.

Back CAGES – Very easy to attach to Back Carrier. Made from Tegris, it can be configured for a variety of loads.

MOLLE Front Flap – PALs compatible, we would call it a placard in the US.

The different components can be used together to create the right configuration for different missions.

4-14factory.com

Carinthia Introduces Combat Clothing

Wednesday, March 9th, 2022

Granted, I saw a lot of cool things at Enforce Tac and IWA, but this is one of the most surprising, and most welcome. In what is an obvious evolution of Carinthia’s successful line of outdoor and tactical clothing.

May I introduce Carinthia Combat Clothing. Carinthia told me that the uniforms were developed in cooperation with special operations forces and have already seen operational use. The line consists of four pieces:

Carinthia Combat Shirt -> CCS 

Carinthia Combat Trousers -> CCT 

Carinthia Combat Jacket-> CCJ 

Carinthia Combat Hood-> CCH

Manufactured from fast drying material, they will also be offered in flame retardant and/or equipped with vector protection. There are slots for both elbow and knee pads which will accept many currently available as well Carinthia’s new pads developed in conjunction with Komperdell.

They will be offered in three colors: MultiCam Pattern, 5 color Flecktarn, and Olive Green.

Coming autumn/winter 2022 from www.carinthia.eu.

NATO Allies Train in Poland for Exercise Saber Strike

Wednesday, March 9th, 2022

BEMOWO PISKIE TRAINING AREA, Poland — The United States and Polish militaries held a closing ceremony for the Polish phase of exercise Saber Strike on Feb. 26.

Including approximately 13,000 participants from 13 nations, exercise Saber Strike is a U.S. Army Europe and Africa multinational training exercise in Eastern Europe held bi-annually since 2010. Saber Strike demonstrates how U.S. Army Europe and Africa can deploy combat-credible European-based units to Poland, the Baltics and Central Europe. Saber Strike provides training in a winter environment and increases air defense-interoperability within the Baltic Region, while increasing the host-nations’ ability to integrate U.S. capabilities and reinforces the alliance.

“During Saber Strike we’re conducting air and missile defense training with our NATO Allies,” said U.S. Army Col. Patrick Thompson, 164th Air Defense Artillery Brigade commander. “This training helps build inoperability among our NATO Allies and partners.”

U.S. presence in Europe and the relationships built throughout the past 70 years provide the U.S. strategic access critical to meet NATO commitments. Saber Strike is designed to ensure that U.S. forces and participating allied forces are trained, able to operate together and are ready to respond to any threat from any direction.

Saber Strike 22 was also the exercise debut of four prototype Maneuver Short Range Air Defense platforms. The M-SHORAD defends maneuvering forces against unmanned aircraft systems, rotary-wing, and residual fixed-wing threats.

“The unit is conducting combined arms training strategy tied with their new equipment training to ensure the system is fielded as fast as it can to get it out to the force,” said U.S. Army Maj. Gen. Greg Brady, 10th Army Air and Missile Defense Command commanding general.

The 5th Battalion, 4th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, a part of 10th Army Air and Missile Defense Command, is the first unit in the U.S. Army to field, test and receive the M-SHORAD weapons system.

“We’ve been testing the capabilities of the M-SHORAD and U.S. link capabilities to be able to transmit data from our systems and sharing that to the Polish Army,” said U.S. Army Sgt. Brandon Anthony, a vehicle commander assigned to 5-4 ADA.

“We’re sending data links back and forth with the Polish so we can get air pictures and be able to track aircrafts in the sky,” said Jack Potter, a gunner for 5-4 ADA.

On March 10, 5-4 ADA is scheduled to conduct a live fire exercise demonstration on the Baltic Sea coast of Estonia.

Training events like Saber Strike 22 are planned well in advance and are not connected to any current or ongoing operations.

Follow all Saber Strike content on the Saber Strike DVIDS page.

Follow U.S. Army Europe and Africa on Facebook.

Story by SPC Olivia Gum

Photos by SSG Clinton Thompson

IWA 22 – Durabo

Saturday, March 5th, 2022

Durabo is a Polish company that specializes in work and casual wear with military design cues like this Super 65 Field Jacket they launched awhile back. They also use Cordura fabrics in their clothing.

At IWA they gave is a sneak peek of their upcoming Combat Uniform.

It’s an interesting design with more of a field or Recce-style jacket than a combat shirt. As you can see, they anticipate use of Crye Precision knee pads.

IWA 22 – GLOCK French Army Pistol System

Friday, March 4th, 2022

So far GLOCK has delivered around 80% of the almost 75,000 Pistolet Semi-Automatique examples of the new which the French military selected in 2019 to replace their aging MAC 50 and MAS G1 9mm NATO pistols.

At IWA they showed us what the package looks like.

As you can see the system consists of a G17 with three extra magazines, an extra upper with mounted Aimpoint ACRO RDS, and B&T suppressor.

The French Army, Navy and Air Force are included in the contract along with some other French agencies.

Sneak Peek – ProApto Ghillie Helmet Cover

Sunday, February 27th, 2022

Coming soon, the ProApto Ghillie Helmet Cover is adjustable to fit most helmets, IR compliant and you can attach vegetation to it.

XTEND Brings the Metaverse to the Modern Battlefield, as it Launches its Next Generation XTENDER Tactical sUAS system, with Resilient Indoor-Outdoor Navigation Capability and Integrated, Proprietary Drone-Teaming Technology

Friday, February 25th, 2022

For the first time, the system’s unique capabilities enable combat soldiers to perform entire missions remotely, with just a few hours of training, actively affecting the operational scenario, with zero contact with hostile forces.

17 Feb. 2022, Washington. XTEND – a company specializing in human-guided autonomous drone operating systems for military forces and law enforcement agencies – is launching the second generation of its indoor tactical sUAS system – the XTENDER.

The revolutionary micro-tactical ISR platform, with built-in resilient indoor-outdoor navigation and AI capabilities, enables remote completion of missions. Powered by “Skylord”, XTEND’s unique human-centric operating system, the XTENDER features complete localization and situational awareness, using the most advanced virtual and augmented reality (VR/AR) technologies, coupled with advanced AI and machine learning flight algorithms, bringing the metaverse to the modern battlefield.

The new XTENDER boasts powerful edge computing capabilities, providing onboard sensor fusion and localization that enable the drone to easily fly in any environment. The new onboard mission computer also enables the drone to run AI-driven applications, providing the operator with real-life actionable intelligence, such as target classification, verification, and tracking.

Using patented Drone-Teaming and Mark & Fly technologies, both integrated into the operating system, the new generation of the XTENDER enables multiple drones to enter a remote target site carrying various payloads, perform the required tasks with extreme precision, and seamlessly exit, regardless of any indoor-outdoor transition limitations or GNSS-denied locations.

With the second-generation XTENDER, any operator – even with zero flight experience – can perform accurate recon and data collection tasks – such as close-quarters combat (CQB) clearance, IED and tripwire identification, and enemy detection – in complex urban environments, without any physical contact with hostile forces.

Made in the U.S., the small, wearable lightweight XTENDER has a natural hand-gesture controller and is affordable, versatile, and easy to use, with minimal training and maintenance.

“Having deployed UAS in combat for 20 years, we are excited about XTENDER because, for the first time, forces can now carry out indoor missions without approaching the combat arena, and without putting themselves at risk,” says Steve Ball, Sales Operations Manager of XTEND. “This platform applies the wealth of knowledge held by our team, which is 100% comprised of army and Special Operations Forces veterans. It is this authentic insider view of forces’ experience in the battlefield that makes our solutions so successful.”

The XTENDER has already been operationally deployed by the US DoD, the Israeli MOD, and in other countries. XTEND is now expanding its activity in the United Kingdom as well, another major market for its innovative, combat-proven systems.

www.XTEND.me

British Tactical – Mad Jack Sheath for the SA80 Bayonet

Thursday, February 24th, 2022

Not long until the launch of the first sheath in British Tactical’s re-designed range of Mad Jack sheaths, this one is specifically for the SA80 Bayonet.

www.britishtactical.com