Although it has been reengineered many times over the past 60 years, the Army’s Special Forces Qualification Course, four components have remained constant. Some form of selection, whether pre-phase, SFOT or SFAS along with individual tactical skills, MOS specific training and collective team training culminating in an FTX, commonly referred to as “Robin Sage”. This is the current version of the Q Course.
Carbondale, PA, October 11, 2019. Gentex Corporation, a global leader in personal protection and situational awareness solutions for defense forces, emergency responders, and industrial personnel announced today that its new Ops-Core® FAST SF Carbon Composite Helmet System has been chosen by the U.S. Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) to fulfill their contract for Special Operations Forces Personal Equipment Advanced Requirements (SPEAR) Family of Tactical Headborne Systems (FTHS) — Coxswain Helmet System. The five-year Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) Firm Fixed Price (FFP) production contract carries a maximum value of $95M.
Gentex Corporation has been supplying products to USSOCOM since its activation in 1987 and is focused on designing and delivering solutions driven by end user input. Just recently, the company was awarded contracts for the USSOCOM SPEAR FTHS Ballistic and Non-Ballistic Helmets, as well as the USSOCOM Communication Accessory Suite Land (CASL) program for it’s Ops-Core Adaptive Mission Platform (AMP™) Communication Headset.
“We’re extremely pleased to have been chosen to provide the Coxswain Helmet System for USSOCOM,” said Tom Short, vice president of Ground Systems, Gentex Corporation. “The FTHS Coxswain contract validates our design process and helmet system innovations while bringing the FTHS Ballistic/Non-Ballistic and FTHS Coxswain Helmets together as one family of headborne systems with interchangeable accessories, common parts and simplified logistics.”
The FTHS Coxswain Helmet System consists of the Ops-Core FAST FTHS Carbon Composite Helmet with modular Ops-Core accessories: Step-In Visors with clear and tinted lenses, NVG Snap Shields, FAST Ballistic and Carbon Composite Mandibles, and FAST Low Profile Ballistic Appliques. Additionally, the helmets will come with a variety of Ops-Core VAS shroud options, helmet covers, ARCTM rails, pads, exterior Velcro and will be available in four sizes with various color/camouflage options. The Ops-Core FAST FTHS Carbon Composite Helmet is available today and commercial versions of the Coxswain Helmet System accessories will be available later this year.
Part of Gentex Corporation’s portfolio of helmet systems for defense, emergency response, and security forces, the focus and dedication of the company’s Ops-Core brand remains the same – protecting elite forces. The modular, scalable, open-architecture design of Ops-Core products allows for the seamless integration and true system level performance.
shop.gentexcorp.com/ops-core-fast-sf-carbon-composite-helmet
Below, a 7th Special Forces Group (Airborne) NCO rides horseback while leading a mule through Humboldt Toiyabe National Forest during the SOF Horsemanship Course at Marine Corps Mountain Warfare Training Center.
The purpose of the horsemanship course is to teach SOF personnel the necessary skills to enable them to ride horses, load pack animals, and maintain animals for military applications in remote and dangerous environments.
Photos by USMC LCpl William Chockey
The newest of United Special Operations Command’s components, Marine Corps Special Operations Command was founded in 2006, following an experiment with MCSOCOM Detachment-One.
Despite not having a long history in SOF, they also weren’t burdened with an organizational structure created during the Cold War. Instead, they leveraged capabilities found within the Corps and stood up a command with multiple disciplines including traditional Special Operators, Terminal Attack Controllers, Intelligence specialists, EOD and K9. Just like with standard Marine Corps units, medical support is provided by selected and trained Navy Corpsmen. Furthermore, MARSOC developed specialized training for all of their personnel l including logistics and communications. They have done a fantastic job at operationalize all of these capabilities.
If I were in one of the other components, I’d read this. They are coming for your missions.
MARSOC continues to evolve. This document shows us what they bring to the fight. Download it here.
Special Operations teams benefit from Indago 3 unmanned quadcopter on Wave Relay® MANET
NEW YORK, N.Y. – October 01, 2019 – Persistent Systems, LLC (“Persistent”) announced today that Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT) Procerus Technologies (LMPT) joined the Wave Relay® Ecosystem, an industry alliance of unmanned platform and sensor manufacturers using Persistent’s Wave Relay® mobile ad hoc network (MANET).
LMPT will now offer special operators a version of the Indago 3 unmanned aerial system (UAS) that runs on Persistent’s Wave Relay® MANET, including the MPU5 radio.
“This is a big win for users in the Special Operations community,” said Shane Flint, Vice President of Business Development for Persistent. “The users understand that, to truly network the battlefield, you need a robust, scalable solution that allows for unmanned systems and sensors to operate on a common network, empowering the whole team, and reducing weight on the operator. LMPT’s integration of Wave RelayÒ makes this possible.”
In a MANET, each radio — whether on the ground or in the air—acts as both a receiver and a relay station. So, in true peer-to-peer fashion, users can share voice, video, text, sensor and location data without having to depend upon fixed communications infrastructure or a vulnerable central hub.
“The Indago 3 not only provides full motion video to the SOF team, but also extends the MANET through its advantaged airborne position over the team,” Flint added.
Persistent’s MPU5 radio connects to the Indago 3 controller, while the lightweight Embedded Module is integrated inside the UAS. The system is available with either an S-Band or L-Band RF module depending on the needs of the user.
The quiet, all-weather Indago 3 UAS weighs less than five pounds and can be folded for compact transport and unfolded for rapid deployment, getting airborne in just two and a half minutes. It can also stay in the air for up to 40 minutes while carrying a 250-gram payload.
The equally tough Wireless Hand Controller comes loaded with a Virtual Cockpit™ user-friendly mapping interface and powerful mission-planning tools.
The Wave Relay® enabled Indago 3 is available now. For more information visit: www.persistentsystems.com/ecosystem-overview
Everyday marks an anniversary of a significant event in American military history, but today stands out among them.
On this date in 1993, US service members were engaged in what is now known as the Battle of Mogadishu. Elements of TF Ranger, a joint organization, had deployed to Mogadishu, Somalia. Already having conducted operations for some time, on this day, they raided the city’s Olympic Hotel in order to capture key leaders of the Aidid Militia.
Unfortunately, during the exfil portion of the raid, a battle ensued which claimed the lives of 18 Americans and wounded another 73. Additionally, CW3 Michael Durant was captured by the Aideed militia. Fortunately, Durant was later repatriated and went on to retire from the 160th.
Of the men killed that day, two would be awarded the Medal of Honor, Delta Operators Gary Gordon and Randy Shughart, for their selfless efforts to protect Durant after his aircraft, callsign Super 64, was shot down.
If you are unfamiliar with the events, one of the best accounts of the battle is contained in the book, “Blackhawk Down” by author Mark Bowden. Much of the information was serialized prior to the book’s publication in the Philadelphia Enquirer. Later this was made into a movie bearing the same name.
Please take a moment to remember these men and their sacrifice.
Additionally, the 75th Ranger Regiment was created on this day in 1984, with the stand up of its 3rd Battalion. Thirty-five years later, the Ranger Regiment boasts boasts five battalions of some of the most elite warriors on the face of our planet.
Like all commands, USSOCOM has unique requirements and it needs industry’s help solving them. The SBIR program is an opportunity for small businesses to conduct federally funded research.
See the list of topics and instructions at www.acq.osd.mil/osbp/sbir/solicitations. For additional details, visit www.sofwerx.org/sbir.
The event will be held at SOFWERX in Tampa, 19 – 20 November. Submit by 23 October 2019.
Jankel, a world-leader in the design and manufacture of high-specification defence, security and NGO protection systems, will be launching their new Light Tactical Transport Vehicle (LTTV) at DSEi 2019, taking place at Excel London 10-13 September 2019.
The unveiling of the LTTV at DSEi follows on from the recent contract award for Belgium which will see Jankel deliver 199 of the Mercedes UNIMOG based vehicles to the Belgium Ministry of Defence (BeMOD). This contract follows the earlier production contract to supply the BeMOD with over 100 FOX Rapid Reaction Vehicles (RRV), based on a modified COTS Toyota chassis system.
Jankel’s LTTV is designed to provide a modular and configurable tactical support vehicle that benefits from unique, removable mission modules that enable the vehicle to be re-rolled rapidly for operational platform versatility. With a payload of over 3 tonnes, dependant on the final vehicle specification, the LTTV has 3 core variants for Special Operations support, including an ambulance variant. Alongside a user-configurable, fully integrated suite of military sub-systems that includes a removable ballistic protection kit, a Roll-Over-Protection-System (ROPS), weapon mounts and communications fit, the platform will provide full interoperability with the Fox fleet of tactical vehicles.
The LTTV’s versatility already promises to be a world-leader, literally able to plug and play between rear bed configurations. Combining the strengths of a trusted OEM platform with militarised and mission specific tactical enhancements, Jankel’s LTTV has already attracted the attention of several other countries and is of particular interest to those already operating with the Mercedes Benz UNIMOG platform.
Dan Crosby, Commercial Director at Jankel said: “Our team is very excited to be showcasing the LTTV at DSEi this year. Having achieved Mercedes Benz Direct Partnership certification, the LTTV is a great example of Jankel’s ability to offer armoured, tactical and utility vehicles based on modified Mercedes Benz chassis systems.” He added: “We believe that the exceptional modular functionality of the LTTV will allow us to build on the significant milestone successes that Jankel has achieved in recent years”.
At DSEi Jankel will be exhibiting at Stand N6-350. As well as the LTTV, Jankel will have on display a Fox RRV and a wide range of BLASTech specialist seating solutions.
