 U.S. Army orders next-gen body armor St. Paul, Minn. (UPI) Oct 14, 2015 - 3M subsidiary Ceradyne Inc. is providing the U.S. Army with ballistic armor inserts for tactical vests. The order for next-generation lightweight enhanced small arms protective inserts, or ESAPI, body armor is a $34 million contract modification, issued under the Army's Soldier Protection Systems Vital Torso Protection program. "We've made it our mission to leverage innovation in advanced materials science to reduce the weight burden carried by soldiers," said 3M's Cheryl Ingstad, business manager of Advanced Ceramics Platform - Defense. "3M's capability to decrease the weight of products, while maintaining or even enhancing performance characteristics, is well-recognized." 3M said delivery of 28,000 low-rate initial production of the next-gen ESAPI inserts will be completed next year. Additional detailsof the contract modification were not disclosed.
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The U.S. Army has obtained APKWS rockets for use in Iraq and Afghanistan from the Navy and is negotiating with BAE Systems for more.
BAE Systems' laser-guided Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System is a mid-body guidance kit that transforms a standard unguided munition into a precision laser-guided rocket. It is in use on Navy and Marine corps aircraft.
"With a long track record of success with the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps, we are confident that the U.S. Army will greatly benefit from this highly accurate, low-collateral-damage system," said David Harrold, director of precision guidance solutions at BAE Systems.
"The cooperation between military branches has been tremendous. Providing these weapons to our soldiers by leveraging a current program of record should be used as an example for other services and allied countries looking for this precision strike capability."
BAE Systems said the Army is acquiring its initial supply of APKWS rockets from the Navy's current inventory and is working with the Navy and BAE Systems for more to meet ongoing demands.
The APKWS has been in production for three year and 5,000 units have been produced.
It is available to international customers through the U.S. Foreign Military Sales program.
U.S. Army places $203 million order for Orbital ATK ammunition
Dulles, Va. (UPI) Oct 14, 2015 -
The U.S. Army has placed $203 million in orders for small ammunition from Orbital ATK as part of the branch's seven-year contract with the company.
The order includes .30 caliber, .50 caliber, 7.62 mm, and 5.56 mm rounds. The orders are produced at the Lake City Army Ammunition Plant in Missouri, where Orbital ATK has been producing the Army's orders for over 15 years. Vice President and General Manager of Orbital ATK's Small Caliber Systems division of the Defense Systems Group Kent Holiday calls the company's commitment to the Army "unwavering."
"It is our proud legacy to be the U.S. Army's leading supplier of small caliber ammunition by continuing to provide reliable, affordable ammunition that warfighters have come to depend on," Holiday said.
Orbital ATK has produced 19 billion rounds of small caliber ammunition in Lake City. The announcement comes as the ammunition producer upgrades its facilities with modern technology to improve their efficiency and cost-effectiveness.
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