Welcome to the AUSA 2017 Annual Meeting & Exposition
October 9th, 2017B.E. Meyers & Co. Releases the MAWL-CLAD, a New SWIR Variant of the MAWL Series
October 9th, 2017October 9, 2017 (Redmond, WA) –
B.E. Meyers & Co., Inc. is proud to announce the release of a new variant of the MAWL series of weapon aiming lasers and illuminators: the MAWL-CLAD (Covert Laser Aiming Device).
The MAWL-CLAD distinguishes itself from other MAWL variants through the inclusion of a Short-wave Infrared (SWIR) laser pointer. This laser is undetectable by most common Near Infrared (NIR) night vision systems and other visual augmentation sensors, but is compatible with a variety of SWIR systems (i.e. E-COSI) currently in use with Special Operations Forces.
The MAWL-CLAD retains the NIR wavelength diodes present in other MAWL models to provide both marking and illumination for its primary “IR” function mode. This NIR system is visible with most common night vision systems and provides users with an effective aiming, illumination, and signaling solution for almost any low-light/no-light scenario. With the MAWL-CLAD, users can now seamlessly transition between a full suite of NIR aiming and illumination modes and a SWIR laser pointer for aiming or signaling when necessary, making it compatible with all current night vision systems.
The MAWL-CLAD is part of a greater MAWL (Modular Aiming Weapon Laser) system that allows operators to shoot, move and communicate effectively. Its modular head includes a SWIR option (made possible through replacement of the standard green visible laser pointer found on the MAWL-DA and MAWL-C1+) that can be used interchangeably with any existing MAWL platform. This swap can be done while leaving the main housing attached to the weapon rail. Like the visible green laser on other MAWL models, the SWIR pointer on the MAWL-CLAD is coaligned with the NIR pointer, allowing it to be zeroed without a SWIR sensor.
“The MAWL-CLAD allows us to take advantage of the modular design aspects of the MAWL system, and lets the end-user adjust between pre-boresighted, capability specific laser modules, as needed for special mission sets” said Matt Meyers, President of B.E. Meyers & Co. Inc. “With the increased number of SWIR sensors being fielded to Special Operations Forces, the MAWL-CLAD lets the operator choose between SWIR and NIR capability on the move, and also allows them to revert back to the VIS and NIR capability in a matter of seconds by switching to the MAWL-DA Head without detaching the main body of the laser, or losing zero.”
The MAWL-CLAD is the third variant in the MAWL family of weapon laser systems. For more information about the MAWL-DA, MAWL-C1+, and MAWL-CLAD, including product demonstrations and purchasing options, please contact the B.E. Meyers & Co. team at sales@bemeyers.com.
For more information about the MAWL-CLAD, please visit: www.bemeyers-mawl.us/mawl-clad.
Revision Introduces New ComCentr2 Tactical Communications Headset System at AUSA
October 9th, 2017
Essex Junction, Vermont (October 9, 2017) – Revision Military, a world leader in integrated soldier solutions, is proud to unveil the SenSys ComCentr2TM Tactical Headset System at the Association of the U.S. Army (AUSA) Annual Meeting & Exposition in Washington, D.C., October 9 – 11. Drawing from Revision’s background in operational focused integrated head protection systems and power management solutions, this next-generation communications and hearing protection device represents the newest addition to the Company’s line of integrated soldier system products. The ComCentr2 Tactical Headset System will be commercially available in the first Quarter of 2018.
“This is not a one-off product; this R&D direction represents Revision’s tenacity and long-standing dedication to integrated soldier systems,” said Jonathan Blanshay, CEO, Revision Military. “Revision has worked in parallel with companies in this field, collaborating to seamlessly integrate helmet systems with tactical headsets. Leveraging past successes, our extensive knowledge of this technology, and our considerable capabilities, we are now taking the bold step to set the bar higher in the tactical communications and hearing protection industry, and to take our head systems solutions to the next level of integration. The ComCentr2 Tactical Headset System will integrate with a variety of helmets, hubs and devices, will improve team communication, will keep pace with future technology, and, crucially, will provide unfettered situational awareness for warfighters in hostile, noise-cluttered settings.”
Integrating advanced electronics and software into a sleek, comfortable and user- focused design, Revision’s ComCentr2 Tactical Headset System offers high quality, natural sounding audio and enhanced sensory performance. The fully digital system enables mission critical communication; improving command, control and communication on the battlefield while enabling dismounted close-combat users to detect vital sounds in a noise polluted environment.
The SenSys ComCentr2 Tactical Headset System is designed to integrate seamlessly with modern helmet systems, including Revision’s Special Operations Forces helmet, the Batlskin Caiman Head Systems suite. The headset’s fully digital design allows for advanced electronic features and provides an upgrade path for technological improvements. User customizable, the ComCentr2 is an ideal communications solution for the modern dismounted close-combat warfighter and plug and play with the wider soldier system.
Digital Active Noise Reduction (ANR) technology mitigates low frequency noise generated by military vehicle platforms, protecting hearing, preventing fatigue and improving speech intelligibility. Full 360° situational awareness provided by an array of two forward and two rear facing microphones provides front and back audio detection, enhancing user awareness and closing the gaps left by existing systems. 3D spatial communication enables users to hear radio communications in a three- dimensional listening environment, further decreasing the cognitive burden caused by monitoring multiple nets.
The ComCentr2 System includes the Human Interface Device (HID), an intuitive, hand held control unit designed to fit comfortably in the user’s hand. Buttons on the device enable radio transmission, volume adjustment and switching between radios. Unlike systems containing a fixed number of ports, the HID includes a lower section outfitted with a custom dongle. Supporting a wide variety of system configurations and communication devices, dongle attachments enable mission specific configurations in multi-role and multi-channel environments, while ensuring compatibility with legacy and future systems.
You Never Know Where They’ll Show Up
October 9th, 2017
Thulsa Doom captured this snap of a Norden Bomb Sight in an AT-11 and from the bombardier’s position of B-17G “Aluminum Overcast” in flight over Atlanta, Georgia.
KF Armory to Introduce MIB²S AT THE 2017 AUSA ANNUAL MEETING AND EXPOSITION IN WASHINGTON DC
October 8th, 2017
Alpharetta, Ga. — KF Armory, LLC is proud to present the Modular Interlocking Ballistic Barrier System known as MIB²S at the 2017 AUSA Annual Meeting and Exposition in Washington, DC on 9-11 October 2017. Through innovative design and purposeful development, the MIB²S successfully defeats up to 50 caliber armor piercing incendiary tracer (API-T) ammunition while incorporating easy assembly, disassembly, and extreme durability. The MIB²S is the ideal solution for creating a rapidly deployable and re-deployable ballistic barrier system for military and law enforcement operations, training, and safety requirements. The objective of MIB²S is to provide a highly effective protective barrier for personnel, equipment, buildings, and other critical infrastructure in unlimited applications.
The MIB²S is specifically designed to protect against ballistic projectiles and withstand conventional and improvised explosive devices. The MIB²S absorbs the projectiles and the resulting increase in density amplifies the protective nature of the system. The MIB²S is easily assembled in the field without the need for special tools or formal instruction. The MIB²S are available in three threat ratings: Handgun Block rated for NIJ 0108.01 Threat Level IIIA; Rifle Block rated for NIJ 0108.01 Threat Level IV and UL 752 Level 9; and 50 Caliber Block rated for NIJ 0108.01 Threat Level IV+ Special Threat 50 Caliber API-T and UL 752 Level 10. The MIB²S are also available in custom threat levels and a variety of colors to meet specific mission requirements.
Military and law enforcement now have a Modular Interlocking Ballistic Barrier System advantage, greatly increasing their ability to safely operate in hazardous environments. If you are attending the 2017 AUSA Annual Meeting and Exposition, please stop by Booth #2753 to learn more about MIB²S.
For additional information about MIB²S please visit kfarmory.com/shop/mib2s
US Army’s PEO Soldier, BG Cummings, Speaks Out On 7.62mm Rifle Efforts
October 8th, 2017
In an October 3rd Army News Service article, BG Brian Cummings, who serves as Program Executive Officer Soldier, discusses the Army’s on-again-off-again efforts to identify and field a 7.62 rifle capability.
Reading the extract below, it seems that wires have been crossed somewhere. BG Cummings makes it sound like the Interim Combat Service Rifle effort is still underway. However, we, and others, reported several weeks ago it had been cancelled. Additionally, Deputy Director of the Lethality Branch at the Army’s Maneuver Center of Excellence Matt Walker (CSM, Ret), verified just last week, that they have ceased work on what he now describes as an “evaluation” despite it being issued as a solicitation.
As we posted on September 22nd, the M110A1 Compact Semi Auto Sniper System is still underway, although unfunded, and the directed requirement to field a Squad Designated Marksman variant of the H&K G28, also remains underway.
Without the ~50,000 ICSRs which would have been fielded, the Army will have to rely on the limited number of CSASS/SDMR procured in order to deal with the body armor threat Chief of Staff of the Army, GEN Mark Milley testified about in front of the Senate Armed Services Committee, earlier this year.
Below is the pertinent section of that Army News Service article.
STILL ON TARGET FOR NEW RIFLE
Despite some reports to the contrary, the Army is still looking for a new rifle that uses a 7.62mm cartridge.
“The chief [U.S. Army Chief of Staff Gen. Mark A. Milley] wanted an interim combat rifle, or he was only going to fulfill a requirement to have a squad-designated marksman in each squad, called a squad-designated marksman rifle,” Cummings said. “So, there are two efforts going on to get a 7.62 inside the squad.”
What are those two efforts? Cummings said that course of action No. 1 is to have one Soldier in a squad carrying the Squad-Designated Marksman Rifle, or SDMR. Course of action No. 2, he said, is to have multiple Soldiers in a squad with the Interim Combat Service Rifle, or ICSR. Both are 7.62mm weapons.
The SDMR is already a program of record for the Army, Cummings said, and there is a weapon already identified to fill that role: the M110A1 Compact Semi-Automatic Sniper System, or CSASS. That weapon is undergoing testing now, Cumming said.
But the ICSR and the SDMR do not represent the future for what weapons will be issued to most Soldiers.
“Right now, many are focused on the ICSR or SDMR,” Cummings said. “But that’s not the long-term way ahead. The long-term way ahead is a brand new rifle for all of the Department of Defense called the Next Generation Squad Weapon.”
The Next Generation Squad Weapon, or NGSW, is actually two weapons, he said. It will include one rifle to replace the M249 Squad Automatic Weapon, and then a carbine that replaces the M4. Both the M249 and the M4 use the 5.56mm cartridge. The NGSW will likely use a different caliber cartridge than 5.56mm.
“For the next-generation, we wanted to make one end-all solution,” Cummings said. “With the M4, when you look at it, it’s got all these things hanging on top of it. We keep evolving by putting on things. The next-generation is going to be kind of like what we did with the pistol, with the modular handgun system. It’ll be one complete system, with weapon, magazine, ammo and fire control on it and we will cut down on the load and integration issues associated with it.”
The general said the U.S. Marine Corps is “on board” with development of the NGSW, and the British are interested as well.
Cummings said the Army can expect to start seeing the Next Generation Squad Weapon by 2022, in about five years. That will include the weapon, magazine and bullet. Later, by 2025, he said, Soldiers can expect to see a fully-developed fire-control system.
Until then, Cummings said, the Army is working on an interim solution to get a larger-caliber rifle into the hands of at least some Soldiers. It’ll either be the SDMR in the hands of one Soldier, or the ICSR in the hands of some Soldiers. But, he said, “the final decision has not been made.”
PTX Power Management Solutions at AUSA 2017
October 8th, 2017Protonex Technology Corporation will be showcasing its PTX line of rugged, intelligent, lightweight power management solutions at the 2017 Annual AUSA Expo from October 9-11th, in Washington, DC at booth #3304.
Power Managers are small, portable, multi-function devices that pull power from a variety of power sources, convert the power as needed, and push it out to run connected devices and to charge batteries. They solve the operational power challenges faced by units using equipment such as; radios, satellite phones, GPS receivers, laptop and tablet computers, unmanned vehicles and aircraft, medical equipment, power tools, and more.
The PTX line-up consists of the following products:
• SPM-622 Squad Power Manager – dramatically reduce the number and variety of batteries needed by today’s warfighter
• ABC-812 Adaptive Battery Charger – charge multiple batteries twice as fast, anywhere, and with half the energy
• VPM-402 Vest Power Manager – manage both data and power for military communications and situational awareness systems
The PTX range also features a number of specialist / application-specific kits, including:
• Special Operations Forces
• Dismounted Infantry
• EOD
• Prolonged Field Care
• Fire Support
• SOF SDN-L
• UAV Operators
• Recon, Surveillance and Target Analysis
Protonex is also pleased to announce the release of a new and expanded website focused on the wide range of capabilities, applications and solutions that the company’s power management systems deliver. Visit www.PTXnomad.com for the full story.
2nd MarDiv Developing UONS for Glock 19M
October 8th, 2017According the 2nd Marine Division Gunner, CW5 Christian Wade, they are working on an Urgent Operational Needs Statement for Glock 19Ms to outfit Afghanistan-bound members of the unit.
Gunner Wade posted this image to Facebook on Friday night. Please ignore that the image is of a G17M. Gunner Wade is fully aware.
Few other details are available, such as the basis of issue. However, Gunner Wade has stated that he wants them in Marines’ hands quickly, so they can conduct pre-deployment training with them.
While the Glock 19M is a great sidearm, you have to wonder why M9 pistols won’t work. We know from his past comments that he prefers a compact sidearm, but with deployed Marines in uniform and full Deuce gear, the advantage of the smaller frame is negligible.
Perhaps weight is a concern. But as of right now, few Marines outside of MARSOC carry pistols. If weight is the driving factor, adding a pistol to the load is something that needs to be looked at very critically.
Ironically, Marine tables of organization were changed several years ago to eliminate most of the M9 pistols when the M4 Carbine was fielded as a replacement of the M16A4.
Considering all of those factors, the move isn’t without precedent. The Marine Corps has fielded Glocks. Initially, it was MARSOC, which adopted G19s using MFP-11 funds. While technically not a Marine Corps fielding per se, those are Marines using them. Rumors have floated around in the past that the Corps was considering purchasing off of the USSOCOM contract.
Additionally, the Marine Corps very recently purchased a small quantity of Glock 19Ms off of the FBI contract. Those were for use by members of the Marine Corps’ Criminal Investigation Division. CID has a close relationship with the FBI due to the location of several of the federal agency’s elements on Quantico, so adoption of the FBI’s sidearm isn’t that surprising.
It will be interesting to see how the Marine Corps responds to this UONS.
