ADS Inc announced earlier today that it has withdrawn its Initial Public Offering of common stock due to “adverse market conditions.”
ADS Withdraws IPO
July 27th, 2011For the Ladies – Sniper Girl
July 27th, 2011
The Women’s Tactical Association has introduced a line of Shirts, Hats, and Accessories featuring Sniper Girl. They are now available at their Cafe Press store.
“The primary mission of the WTA is to promote and encourage training and education among female Law Enforcement in an effort to enhance and refine skills in the areas of firearms, combat mindset, tactics and fitness.”
www.cafepress.com/WomensTactical
Just a Reminder
July 27th, 2011Here, we see Soldiers from the US Army’s 1/158th Long Range Surveillance and Australian 51st Far Queensland Regiment, Norforce and the Pilbara Regiment as a joint Australian/U.S. surveillance unit at Shoalwater Bay Training Area, Queensland, Australia, during Exercise Talisman Sabre 2011.
Australian Defence Force photo by ADF Lance Corporal Mark Doran/Released
Since it looks like PEO Soldier programs are on the chopping block, we thought this photo would be a great reminder to all as to why there is a Army Camouflage Improvement Effort. All we see these days are photos out of Afghanistan with Soldiers sporting the effective OCP. Don’t forget, it’s a big world out there and in most of it, UCP is still the uniform of the day.
Stay the course. Select and field effective camouflage for our troops.
Revision to Develop Next Gen Helmet
July 27th, 2011Recently, Revision was awarded a three-year contract with the U.S. Army’s Natick Labs Soldier Systems Center worth $1,990,340 to develop a next generation helmet. Although you probably consider Revision just an eye pro company, they have been hard at work developing other protective products. For example, take the Eye Shield and Maxillo Facial Protection they showed at the 2009 AUSA conference.
According to a press release from the office of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT), “The new helmet will integrate both ballistic impact protection and blast protection from rotational forces that are believed to contribute to the relatively high number of brain injuries suffered by soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan. The helmet will have built-in communications systems, include enhanced chemical protection for the wearer, and will integrate a protection for the jaw and lower face.”
Breaking News – Nett Warrior Purchase Cancelled
July 27th, 2011
Nett Warrior was the Army’s latest, in a long line of digitization efforts designed to increase the situational awareness of the Soldiers. But, earlier today we received reports that Nett Warrior, the culmination of over 20 years of development and testing, has been cancelled in favor of a Commercial-Off-The-Shelf (COTS) based handheld device combined with a Soldier radio. Numerous reports have recently mentioned experiments using the Android operating system on board the Joint Battle Command-Platform, developed by MITRE Corp. Apparently, they’ve paid off. Look for an RFQ on this piece soon.
This decision will come as a blow to three major defense contractors who have not traditionally participated in the Soldier Systems industry: Rockwell Collins, Raytheon, and General Dynamics. All three were contenders for the production version of Nett Warrior and all three invested a great deal of capital in preparing for this program. What’s just as bad are the countless small business vendors who had partnered with these companies who will have to make some tough decisions in the coming weeks.
One question comes to mind. Is this the first casualty of the new defense budget environment or a preemptive move by new PEO Soldier BG Camille M. Nichols to cut some chaff and protect the rest of her portfolio of programs from the budget axe?
While it’s not really all that surprising from an operational standpoint that Nett Warrior was cancelled, there has been a great deal of Congressional interest in the concept as it has transitioned from one program to the next over the past 20 years beginning with Land Warrior. You can go back a few more if you include SIPE (Soldier Integrated Protective Ensemble). It will be interesting to see if Congress once again breathes life into this program considering the number of jobs it represents.
BushHawk Shoulder Mount
July 26th, 2011
Turn your camera into a weapon. Think of the BushHawk Shoulder Mount as a buttstock for your camera that really steadies your shot. While this is more of a figurative sense, a photograph can be very powerful, so why not get it right. According to the user who recommended the BushHawk to me, it is great for use with large lenses and for focusing on the action. It is also lightweight and can be put into action more quickly than a tripod. The downside? It looks like a rifle so be careful.
Spec4ce Series 2 Has Arrived
July 26th, 2011While it’s been a long time coming, Hyperstealth Biotechnology Corp has just announced the arrival of their new Series 2 Spec4ce patterned clothing.
Urban Light on the Left and Woodland on the Right
Pre-orders will begin to ship Wednesday July 27 with all pre-orders expected to be shipped by next Friday, August 5. Once the pre-orders are shipped out and they’ve been able to deal with any size issues, they’ll open the site for sales for a limited time in late August to early September.
There are actually 17 patterns in Series 2 but two cannot be shown here. According to a statement from Guy Cramer of Hyperstealth, “The 17 color schemes are the most ever done for a commercial order or even a country order (that we are aware of), add the three other patterns we didn’t run from S1 (Urban, Tropical and Forest [Forest was licensed to Afghanistan]) and the Sierra pattern for the ANCOP and that puts the total Spec4ce color schemes that have gone into production at 21.”
Here you can see the pocket layout for their uniforms. Every Jacket has one of their Patented Passive Negative Ion Generators embedded in the collar. Additionally, every Ball Cap has the generator embedded into the underside of the brim of the cap. While I remain skeptical about Negative Ion Generators, a few people I trust are convinced. To learn more, check this out: www.hyperstealth.com/beckett/index.html
I do wish Hyperstealth had dispensed with the button on the top of the ballcaps and replaced it with Velcro. At this point, that is the industry standard for a “tactical” cap.
Keep your eye on their website for more info on open sales of the Spec4ce patterns.
FirstSpear Platform Combinations
July 26th, 2011By now most of you have already checked out FirstSpear’sâ„¢ website or catalog and you will have noticed that they have worked hard to develop a system. Three of their platforms are designed to work alone or in concert with one another: The Sleeperâ„¢, The Beat Upâ„¢, and OAGREâ„¢.
The Sleeperâ„¢
Designed in conjunction with Crye Precisionâ„¢, the Sleeperâ„¢ is designed to wear over or under garments and can be worn alone or in conjunction with the other platforms featured in this article. It gets its name from
The Beat Upâ„¢ PC (Plate Carrier) – SAPI/ESAPI/SPEAR
The Beat Up gets its name from WW II’s Long Range Desert Group (LRDG). They referred to a raid as a “Beat Up†and FirstSpearâ„¢ developed it for just this sort of operation. It can be worn alone or in conjunction with the other platforms to beef up their protection level.
Operational Assault Ground Reconnaissance Exploitation (OAGREâ„¢) Tactical Vest
The OAGREâ„¢ was actually first conceived for use by Recce elements but the Assaulters saw it and recommended a few changes. It is great for those who need a more traditional load bearing or assault vest. It can be worn alone or over The Sleeperâ„¢. That you can add The Beat Upâ„¢ allows it to be instantly uparmored for the task at hand.
Here are some shots of various combinations. The Beat Upâ„¢ attaches to the other platforms via ITW G-hooks that attach to a discreet tab system.
Beat Upâ„¢ / Sleeperâ„¢
– shoulder straps and padding removed from Beat Upâ„¢
– Beat Upâ„¢ cummerbund attached to Sleeperâ„¢
– optional Beat Upâ„¢ attachment kit connects Beat Upâ„¢ to discreet tabs on Sleeperâ„¢
OAGREâ„¢ / Sleeperâ„¢
– Plate and soft armor inside sleeper
– Foam shoulder and waist pad removed from OAGREâ„¢
– Assaulters Gun Belt attached to OAGREâ„¢
Beat Upâ„¢ / OAGREâ„¢
– cummerbund, shoulder straps, and padding removed from Beat Upâ„¢
– optional Beat Up attachment kit connects Beat Upâ„¢ to discreet tabs on OAGREâ„¢
FirstSpearâ„¢ has gone to great lengths to incorporate the latest material technologies such as printed Velcroâ„¢ into their designs. Additionally, their products are Berry compliant and offered in Black, Coyote, Khaki, Ranger Green, and MultiCam.
