Defense Review

Caladiom Long-Range Smart Sensor/Camera for Perimeter Security Ops

By David Crane
defrev at gmail dot com

While we're on the subject of perimeter security hardware/technology, we should perhaps mention a very interesting rapidly-deployable "long-range sensor for detection and identification of mobile targets" developed in France called Caladiom. A joint project between Bertin Technologies, CEA/LETI, the National Institute of Advanced Technologies (ENSTA) and the DGA (D�l�gation g�n�rale pour l’armement, or “General Delegation for Ordnance”, which is the French defense procurement agency), Caladiom is essentially a wireless/remotely-operated autonomous (40,000-pixel, each with its own processor) digital electro-optical sensor a.k.a. smart sensor/camera system that can detect, identify and track mobile targets while utilizing only 1.8 watts of power in the process. Caladiom can detect human targets out to 350 meters (approx. 1,148 ft.) and vehicles out to 1,000 meters (approx. 3,281 ft.) without having to make or transmit an image.

Utilizing a programmable digital retina of 200x200 pixels, Caladiom can actually...

G-NIUS Guardium UGV: World's First Operational Autonomous Security Robot

by David Crane
defrev at gmail dot com

While we were reading through the June 2008 issue of Defense Technology International (Dti) magazine, we came across an ad for the Guardium UGV (Unmanned Ground Vehicle), which is made by G-NIUS Unmanned Ground Systems (GUGS) Ltd. out of Israel.

The Guardium UGV, being billed as "the world's 1st operational autonomous UGV system", is a high-speed perimeter-security ground robot designed for protecting high-value targets like...

'Shoot for the Troops' Celebrity Shoot Being Held in L.A. on August 16, 2008

by David Crane
defrev at gmail.com

On Saturday, August 16, 2008, the Stars and Stripes Foundation (SASF) is holding a “Shoot for the Troops” shooting event at the Moore-N-Moore Sporting Clays range in San Fernando, CA (Los Angeles area). The SASF shoot will include clay target shotgun shooting, handgun and rifle shooting, military vehicle displays and a great American BBQ lunch.

The event is the brainchild of champion shotgun shooter Dan Reeves (of Hip Shot Productions) and U.S. Army Special Forces (Ret.) soldier Mark Christianson, who are holding it to raise funds for the Wounded Warrior Project (WWP), while promoting the safe sport of pistol, rifle and shotgun shooting. The Wounded Warrior Project helps wounded American servicemen and their families, and is designed to honor and empower America’s wounded warriors.

There will be a number of celebrities (actors, specifically) participating in the event, including, but not limited to,...

Flexible Biological Scalar Body Armor for Future Soldiers?

By David Crane
defrev at gmail dot com

July 31, 2008

MIT materials science and engineering researchers are studying the flexible biological scalar armor system a.k.a. flexible dermal armor system utilized by Polypterus senegalus a.k.a. Senegal bichir a.k.a. Gray bichir a.k.a. "dinosaur eel", a "living fossil" fish, for its potential applicability for developing more advanced military body armor, vehicle armor (vehicular armor), etc. The eel's overlapping armored scales reportedly "first dissipate the energy of a strike, then protect against any penetration to the soft tissues below and finally limit any damage to the shield to the immediate area surrounding the assault", according to an AFP article.

This unique fish scale body armor simultaneously dissipates the energy of the bite and prevents actual tooth penetration, thus attenuating/mitigating (i.e. reducing) trauma to the animal from a bite. This is accomplished via...

Stag Arms 6.8mm SPC Tactical Carbine with Samson STAR-C Tactical Rail

By David Crane
defrev at gmail dot com

All photographic images contained in this article were taken by DefenseReview.com at SHOT Show 2008, and they are the exclusive property of DefenseReview.com. DefenseReview.com owns the copyright on these photos.

July 27, 2008

DefenseReview has been been writing about 6.8mm cartridges, lately, so it's only appropriate that we mention Charlie Cutshaw's article on the Stag Arms 6.8 SPC (6.8x43mm SPC a.k.a. 6.8mm SPC) 16-inch (16")-barreled carbine in the July 2008 issue of Guns & Weapons for Law Enforcement (GWLE). The Stag 6.8 SPC 16" carbine Cutshaw writes about is actually the cover gun of the issue. If you've already got a 5.56x45mm NATO (5.56mm NATO)/.223 Rem. carbine (a Stag Model 1, Model 2, Model 2T, or Model 3, for instance) you can convert to 6.8 SPC by simply swapping out the upper receiver. And, if you're a lefty, Stag Arms has you covered. They can either supply you with a complete Stag Arms 6.8mm SPC lefty (left-handed) carbine, or just a lefty 6.8 replacement upper. When you go from 5.56mm to 6.8mm, you're going to take a magazine capacity hit of 2-5 rounds, since 6.8mm SPC mags hold anywhere from 25-28 rounds, instead of 30 rounds. Defense Review has used Precision Reflex, Inc. 6.8x43mm SPC mags, which hold 25 rounds.

DefenseReview spent some time at the Stag Arms booth at SHOT Show 2008, and talked to them about the Samson STAR-C Tactical Accessory Rail System free-float Mil-Standard-1913 "Picatinny" rail system/forend rail tube for tactical AR rifles that Stag offers for some of their "T" models (Stag Model 2T and Stag Model 2TL). The Stag personnel we spoke with stated that…

Springfield Armory XDM Pistol: 16+1 Rounds of .40 S&W Firepower

By David Crane
defrev at gmail dot com

July 26, 2008

For the last few years, DefenseReview has received some pretty glowing feedback on the Springfield Armory XD45 (eXtreme Duty 45) .45 ACP pistol. One of the primary aspects of the XD45 pistol that the professionals we've interviewed appreciate is its fully-supported chamber which allows them to fire high-pressure +P and/or +P+ ammunition through it, which they can't do through a Glock 21 (G21) / Glock 21SF (G21SF) or Glock 30 (G30) / Glock 30SF (G30SF) .45 ACP pistols, since they do not have fully-supported chambers. One of these rounds is the LeMas Ltd. BMT APLP 85-grain (85gr) .45 CQB round, which has a muzzle velocity of well over 2,000 FPS out of a 5-inch (5") Government Model 1911 pistol, and will penetrate NIJ Level IIIA body armor (bullet-resistant vest) with no problem and devastate the tissue immediately behind it. "BMT APLP" stands for "Blended Metal Technology Armor-Piercing Limited-Penetration".

The reason we bring all this up is that we recently read about the new Springfield Armory XD(M) .40 S&W pistol a.k.a. Springfield Armory eXtreme Duty Mega-Capacity/M-factor .40S&W pistol (a.k.a. Springfield Armory XDM or Springfield XDM pistol, for short), which holds an impressive 16+1 rounds thanks to its "Mega-Capacity Magazine" and sports a "Minimal Reset Trigger" (quick-reset trigger) that, according to the marketing literature,...

Elbit Systems and ATK Developing Laser-Guided Advanced Tactical Rocket (GATR-L)

by David Crane
defrev at gmail dot com

July 17, 2008

Elbit Systems Ltd. (Nasdaq: ESLT) and Alliant Techsystems (NYSE: ATK) announced on July 09, 2008 that they'll be teaming up on the development of a laser-guided 2.75"/70mm Hydra rocket called the Guided Advanced Tactical Rocket-Laser (GATR-L).

GATR-L is being designed and developed to provide an affordable and cost-effective precision-strike/precision-kill capability for fixed-wing aircraft, rotary-wing aircraft (i.e. helicopters), and unmanned aircraft system (UAS) a.k.a. unmanned aerial system a.k.a. unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) platforms.

The GATR-L 70mm rocket (2.75" rocket) utilizes...

Sabre Defence Industries Awarded M16 Rifle Contract (M16A3 & M16A4 Rifles)

The following is a Saber Defence Industries press release:

NASHVILLE, TN (July 15, 2008)- Sabre Defence Industries, LLC (SDI), a government contractor for the manufacture of machine gun parts and accessories and commercial XR15 rifles, is proud to announce that Sabre Defence has been awarded an IDIQ contract for a minimum of 4,952 M16A3 and 702 M16A4 rifles to support the U.S. Navy, U.S. Marine Corps, and foreign military customers. Nine bids were received with Sabre being only the third company in the 45-year M16 history, besides Colt and FN, to be awarded a contract to supply a Mil-Spec M16 to the U.S. government.

The M16 project will take place at Sabre Defence’s Nashville, Tennessee facility and is expected to be completed by end of December, 2010. Sabre’s growing reputation as a top quality manufacturer of XR model rifles in the commercial market will not be affected by the military contract. Production continues to meet demand of the highly accurate XR15A3 series rifles and new models are...

The 6.8 Remington SPC as an Animal Control or Patrol Rifle Cartridge...

By Captain D.

July 15, 2008

Usually, a police agency does not spend a lot of time utilizing unusual calibers or cartridges in its rifles for animal control. My town, which is a first ring suburb of a major mid-west city, is in an area known for record class whitetail deer. To protect my administration, I will not identify myself or the location. My department has allowed me to cull three problem whitetail deer with my 6.8 Remington SPC (6.8x43mm Remington SPC a.k.a. 6.8 SPC) chambered custom bolt gun. From that brief experience, I have been able to formulate a few opinions on its suitability as a patrol cartridge. In addition to being an avid prairie dog shooter, I have also hunted big game in several states from New York to Montana to Texas and have taken over thirty-five head of big game in South Africa and Namibia.

The 6.8 Rem. SPC bullets used to date on all three deer have been Hornady’s factory loaded 110gr V-max load that measured right at 2600fps from my 20” barreled custom rifle. The unique thing about this bullet is that it is designed for varmints and a starting velocity of over 3000fps. By starting out much slower than its original design, it performs much like a standard Sierra GameKing or Hornady Interlock bullet and gave through and through penetration on all three animals.

The first deer, a 140 pound yearling buck, was shot at...

Baghdad: Improvised Rocket-Assisted Munitions (IRAMs) Arrays Can Kill over Walls

By David Crane
defrev at gmail dot com

July 11, 2008

U.S. troops are having to contend with new improvised weapons known as Improvised Rocket-Assisted Munitions a.k.a. Improvised Rocket Assisted Mortars, or IRAMs for short. IRAMs a.k.a. "aerial IEDs" are configured in linear arrays in the backs of tractor-trailer trucks and are comprised of metal cannisters that contain the 107mm rocket-assisted munitions, and from which they're launched. IRAMs are launched via remote control.

Since an IRAM is ground-launched in an arced trajectory, it can be launched over barrier walls that surround security zones and U.S. military bases. This aspect, combined with the relatively large explosion and barrage capability, make IRAMs...