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Thyrm – PyroVault 2.0 – Vice Edition

August 20th, 2023

Thyrm is paying tribute to the 80s with the ‘Vice’ edition of their PyroVault 2.0 Lighter Armor. The same great PyroVault, just in a two-tone Cyan and Magenta colorway that wouldn’t look out of place in an undercover Miami narcotics detective’s EDC.

The PyroVault 2.0 features include:

-Dual-wall, dual-color exoskeleton design
-Full gasket seal to keep fuel in and water out
-Full-size lanyard hole for retention in the field
-Stainless torsion spring and axle for reliable one-handed opening
-New low-profile latch for easy striker-wheel access
-Hidden Tinder-Quik™ fire starter included
-Designed and Made in the USA

Get yours at thyrm.com/vice

Tags: Thyrm
Posted in Advertiser, EDC, Gadgets | Comments Off on Thyrm – PyroVault 2.0 – Vice Edition

Challenge Fuels Transition for Army’s Newest Infantry Soldiers

August 20th, 2023

FORT BARFOOT, Va. — A few times each year, the Virginia National Guard’s 1st Battalion, 183rd Regiment, Regional Training Institute, conducts an 11B Infantry Transition Course.

Some of the Soldiers who attend the course, all junior Soldiers and noncommissioned officers, want to test themselves. Others are fulfilling childhood dreams or chasing promotion opportunities. Whatever their reason, their goal is singular: to earn the 11B military occupational specialty and leave Fort Barfoot with a blue infantry shoulder cord.

“It is not an easy MOS, but it is a very rewarding one at the same time,” said Sgt. 1st Class Brian Cook, a long-time cadre member at the 183rd RTI.

During the course, Cook and the rest of the cadre put Soldiers, who arrive as engineers, medics, intelligence analysts and mechanics, through three rigorous weeks of infantry training. Soldiers gain proficiency on weapons, improve their land navigation skills, learn how to communicate and move effectively across a battlefield. The days are long and often made more challenging by sweltering heat and humidity.

The challenge of becoming an infantryman motivated many of the students as they worked their way through the course.

“The reason I wanted to become an 11B is because I like to put myself to the test,” said Staff Sgt. Patrick Powers, a 91B wheeled vehicle mechanic in the Virginia National Guard. He said the course would also help prepare him for his next challenge, U.S. Army Ranger School.

Sgt. Allison Stanton, assigned to the 82nd Airborne Division as a 35F intelligence analyst, was also there to challenge herself.

“I wanted to become at 11B because it’s really the only MOS that I felt was out of my comfort zone,” she said. “I felt like the whole job would be very challenging for me, so that’s why I chose it.”

Spc. Alexander Wyatt started his military career as an infantryman in the U.S. Marine Corps. He was discharged due to an injury but rehabilitated himself and worked on an ambulance while out of the military. When he joined the Army, he returned as a 68W combat medic but felt pulled toward the infantry.

“I wanted to become an infantryman because it’s always been a dream of mine. I just always had the itch to still be an infantryman, and I finally scratched that itch,” Wyatt said. He’s now assigned to the 75th Field Artillery Brigade at Fort Sill, Oklahoma.

Spc. Steven Schmidt drove across the country to attend the infantry transition course. He started his military career as a medic.

“During my time in the military, I’ve met all sorts of people with different MOSs, but the 11Bs stood out to me in their brotherhood,” Schmidt said. “I’ve always believed that going through difficult times is what brings people together, and I think 11Bs go through that more than any other MOS. I just wanted to be a part of that.”

As the most recent course came to a close, after the Soldiers hauled themselves, their gear and their weapons through the forests, roads and fields of Fort Barfoot, after they tested their endurance with a timed 5-mile run and sent thousands of rounds down range from a variety of weapons systems, they gathered near a small pond. The cadre, decorated with an assortment of badges, tabs and scrolls, formed a corridor through the water. Tired and dirty from days spent in the field, the students were called forward into the water, guided through the protected passage formed by the cadre. Then, dripping pond water and steaming in the midday sun, they worked their way to the top of a hill.

The immersion and ascent served to mark the transition from what they were before to what they had become.

On top of a Fort Barfoot hill on July 26, 2023, 22 Soldiers received their blue infantry cords and officially became the newest infantry Soldiers in the U.S. Army.

By SFC Terra C. Gatti, Virginia National Guard Public Affairs Office

Posted in Army, Guest Post, Training | 8 Comments »

USAF Special Warfare Physical Training Preparation Manual

August 19th, 2023

www.specialwarfaretw.af.mil/Portals/69/Pre-accessions%20manual_1

Posted in AFSW, Training | Comments Off on USAF Special Warfare Physical Training Preparation Manual

Introducing The Dread and Fear of Kings

August 19th, 2023

It’s not often that I get to share something truly exquisite. Let’s face it, as many cool fabrics and features as we see on “tactical” clothing, they are all mass produced and to a certain degree, are compromises. The Dread and Fear of Kings is a new clothing brand that doesn’t compromise because it doesn’t have to. It’s a brand dedicated to small runs of very well made garments.

Up front, this is a men’s clothing line, but it’s not for the gentle man. The owners define the brand as “Mission Tailored Luxury.” It’s not tactical per se, but if there really was a John Wick, he’d be wearing DFK.

As for the brand’s name:

The Dread and Fear of Kings is both a nod to the line from Shakespeare’s play, The Merchant of Venice–and a standard we hold ourselves to. The true Dread and Fear of Kings is not the power politicians wield against the population, but rather a capable and thinking population that is not easily misled by opportunists. A scepter is only a powerful weapon against a population who doesn’t know otherwise.

The team really put a lot into this project. Over the span of two years they created multiple iterations of each product, leveraging decades of field experience from men who have served their nation at the tip of the spear, both in uniform and out. All the while, DFK dealt with supply chain issues due to COVID and its aftermath. Eventually, all the stars aligned and here we are.

I’ve been writing about this market for over 15 years and before that, I was intimately familiar with it for decades. I’d say I’m pretty jaded and don’t get excited very often anymore. But when I heard about this project, my ears perked up. When I saw the initial renderings of this jacket I started asking when it would be available. I waited for what seemed like forever, but when I finally saw the finished garment I knew I had to have one. I started saving for it. Once I tried it on, the deal was sealed and I paid for it via invoice a few days later.

I don’t want to steal their thunder by going over the entire line here. Instead, I’ll concentrate on my experience with DFK and the item I own, the Envoy Jacket (seen below).

The Envoy is made from an Italian ripstop waxed cotton canvas and crafted in San Martino, Milan by generational craftsmen, proud to deliver pieces built to a standard usually exclusive to made-to-measure designer clothing. The fabrics and findings aren’t compromises. In many cases, they are bespoke for this project.

Features are mission driven and include sleeve pockets with two-way invisible zippers, deep front pocket compartments, and interconnected and discreet internal pockets. Pockets are where you need them and closures are easily manipulated. It’s not waterproof, but between the waxed cotton and seam taping, it will get you through a sustained drizzle up to a light rain.

The team knows story of every fiber and item they source. They also know the people who take these materials and craft them into the collection.

There’s another big difference with DFK. You don’t go to a website and order a jacket. Instead, you let them know of your interest and they come to you. You receive an in-person, full line review and fitting. You walk out of the fitting with your new jacket. Some items are custom made and may take a few weeks to deliver.

Even though these are made in Italy, they feature American sizing and are cut for action. I wear a Large. The fit is great for me and it makes me look good. You can see the quality. I wore it one day during Modern Day Marine and got a lot of questions about the jacket. The most common comment was that they had never seen anything like it before. They were all correct. They hadn’t. This is something completely new, combining fashion and function.

The line is very focused and quantities are limited, but they’ve got more designs in the hopper and will be rolling them out over time. One thing they want to do is get everything just right before they offer anything for sale.

To sum up The Dread and Fear of Kings I’d have to say that they don’t compromise on anything, combining the best designs, materials, and construction to create truly unique clothing.

You can check out The Dread and Fear of Kings’ offerings here. You’ll also see some details on IG @thedreadandfearofkings.

Posted in Clothing | 14 Comments »

Combat Support Training Ranges Proof of Concept Tests Defender Unit-Led Training, Equipment Delivery

August 19th, 2023

TYNDALL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. (AFNS) —

The Air Force Installation and Mission Support Center moved another step forward in establishing combat support training ranges across the enterprise with a security forces-focused proof of concept exercise at the Silver Flag site on Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida, July 17-28.

As part of the CSTR concept, the exercise tested the delivery of Defender unit-led combat skills training using low-density, high-demand equipment at a new site.

Florida’s 801st RED HORSE Training Squadron Silver Flag site is primarily used for civil engineer combat training.

Currently, security forces deployment training is only available at the Air Force Security Forces Center’s Desert Defender Ground Combat Readiness Training Center at Fort Bliss, Texas, because it uses equipment categorized as low density, high demand, meaning it’s only at select overseas locations or the Fort Bliss training site because of cost-effectiveness, said David Clifford, AFIMSC expeditionary and readiness training lead analyst and CSTR action officer.

The Tyndall proof of concept exercise involved two squads of 13 Defenders from the 78th Security Forces Squadron at Robins Air Force Base, Georgia, and the 96th SFS from Eglin Air Force Base, Florida.

It is one of several beta tests organized and funded by AFIMSC this summer as the center builds out a CSTR plan for fully equipped, multi-functional installation and mission support training sites across the Department of the Air Force. Its goal is CSTR training sites within 400 miles of most installations, giving commanders the flexibility to conduct unit-led training without having to travel long distances with troops and equipment. Thus far, nine sites are proposed in the continental U.S. and three overseas at Andersen Air Force Base, Guam; RAF Feltwell, England; and Ramstein Air Base, Germany.

Helping commanders maintain readiness and ensuring Airmen are prepared to deploy and win future wars is the focus of the CSTR initiative, said Col. Lance Turner, director of AFIMSC Expeditionary Support and Innovation Directorate.

“We don’t get to win wars because of what the previous generation of Air Force leaders did,” Turner said. “We win wars because of what we are doing today and how we are preparing Airmen today. That’s what this is all about.”

Leaders use the terms “sets and reps,” Clifford said. “The CSTR locations will allow our agile combat support Airmen to complete unit-led training … sets and reps … on low-density, high-demand equipment unit type codes in austere field conditions.

“That’s what this is about … prepping our ACS Airmen for the next high-end fight against near-peer competitors in distributed operations and theaters,” Clifford said.

Previous and planned proof-of-concept events allow units to create scenarios that cover the full range of military operations, said Pervis King, counter improvised explosive device integrator at the Air Force Security Forces Center.

The exercise began with cadre from Desert Defender transporting equipment from Fort Bliss to Florida, setting it up and standing ready for security forces to begin training July 17.

The equipment, like a Base Defense Operations Center and tactical radios normally only found at Fort Bliss or in a deployed environment, allowed security forces teams to receive deployment training on mounted and dismounted patrols, base defense scenarios involving land navigation, night vision goggles, intelligence, prepping the battlespace, formations, troop movements, battle drills, urban operations and mission planning. The event ended with a field exercise and evaluation.

“Access to this equipment allows Defenders to come out and practice their full scale of operations using equipment not readily available at home station,” King said. It’s also an opportunity to train in austere, simulated operational environments before they are deployed to permissive or non-permissive hostile locations.”

The security forces-focused event “went very well, as we’d hoped it would,” he said.

“Each unit sent well-trained Airmen to oversee the training and develop lesson plans and timelines, and the squads supporting it executed it with excitement and vigor even though the heat and elements were harsh at times. They were still excited and executed at a high level,” King said.

This exercise and others like it this summer serve as beta tests that allow CSTR planners to gather data and lessons learned from after-action reports.

“All of this data will allow AFIMSC to select sites, gather cost data, build our requirements and resources needed, and eventually submit that information into a program objective memorandum, or POM, to allocate future funding,” Clifford said.

A final proof of concept is set for next month at Desert Defender site at Fort Bliss. The AFIMSC team will then hold a CSTR lessons-learned conference in mid-September in San Antonio to capture and discuss the data and after-action reviews.

“From there, our CSTR working group will meet sometime late May 2024 to transition the program with final site selection and a fiscal year 2026 POM build,” Clifford said.

Story by Debbie Aragon, Air Force Installation and Mission Support Center Public Affairs

Photos by Emily Mifsud

Posted in Air Force, Guest Post, Training | 1 Comment »

Mercury Completes Delivery of Critical Hardware for the U.S. Army’s Next-Generation LTAMDS Radars

August 18th, 2023

ANDOVER, Mass., Aug. 09, 2023 — Mercury Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: MRCY, www.mrcy.com), a technology company that delivers processing power for the most demanding aerospace and defense missions, today announced it has completed delivery of the processing hardware for the U.S. Army’s first six Lower Tier Air and Missile Defense Sensor (LTAMDS) radars, being built by Raytheon, an RTX business.

LTAMDS is the Army’s newest air and missile defense sensor that will operate on the Army’s Integrated Air and Missile Defense network. LTAMDS is a 360-degree, Active Electronically Scanned Array radar that provides significantly more capacity and capability against the wide range of advanced lower-tier threats, including hypersonic missiles.

Mercury has provided radar processing systems to Raytheon for Patriot® radars since 2009. In 2019, Raytheon was chosen by the Army to deliver the first six LTAMDS radars, and Raytheon tapped Mercury to develop an expanded suite of advanced electronic systems that included the radar processing platform, the beamforming platform, ethernet switching hardware, and high-power amplifiers for the antenna array. In May, Mercury delivered the last of more than 160 hardware units that fulfilled its obligations under the proof of manufacturing contract.

“We are extraordinarily proud to meet our initial commitments to the LTAMDS program, which will play an enormous role in the safety and security of the United States and our allies for years to come,” said Mitch Stevison, EVP and President of Mercury’s of Mission Systems division. “The leading-edge processing technologies we pioneered for this program represent a major step forward for integrated air and missile defense.”

Mercury envisions, creates, and delivers innovative technology solutions purpose-built to meet its customers’ most pressing high-tech needs. For more information, visit mrcy.com.

Posted in Contracts, Press Release, Sensors | Comments Off on Mercury Completes Delivery of Critical Hardware for the U.S. Army’s Next-Generation LTAMDS Radars

Introducing the Forward Controls Design Nautilus Variable Timing System

August 18th, 2023

The NVTS Nautilus Variable Timing System is a meticulously designed and machined muzzle timing device that offers users the ability to time their muzzle device quickly and easily. NVTS consists of 2 interworking components: a base and a disc. The base has 12 tick marks, each tick mark corresponds to 30 degrees of rotation of the muzzle device.

NVTS is precision-machined in 4140 steel and finished with a patent pending QPQ process that protects it against corrosion, and is extremely durable, and can be reused. Installation is an easy process: Seat NVTS on the barrel, hand-tighten the muzzle device to determine the amount of timing required, then dial in that timing required by adjusting the disc in the base.

NVTS is patent pending and is developed and manufactured by Swiss CNC in Montgomery, TX, with input from Forward Controls Design on ergonomics and user friendliness. As always, proudly made in the USA. The NVTS Nautilus Variable Timing System is available now from Forward Controls Design, Big Tex Ordnance, Revival Defense, and Primary Arms. Installation video can be found on FCD’s product page.

Forward Controls Design

Big Tex Ordnance

Revival Defense

Primary Arms

Posted in Press Release, Suppressors | 2 Comments »

GBRS Group Announces Lerna Mount Kit

August 18th, 2023

The new Lerna Mount Kit from GBRS Group is going live this weekend.

Developed at the request of end users who preferred the 2.91 optic centerline for its fast target acquisition and heads up posture but didn’t need an IR laser, the team created the Lerna Mount.

This stand alone option is intended for those who operate with gas masks, those dealing with a cross eye dominant issue and those who seek a more natural position when transitioning from pistol to rifle.