The ADS can target crowds from 750 metres away Posted on 11/17/2007 3:50:23 PM PST by BGHater
American commanders in Iraq are urging Pentagon chiefs to authorise the deployment of newly-developed heat wave guns to disperse angry crowds or violent rioters.
But the plea for what senior army officers believe could prove a valuable alternative to traditional firepower in dangerous trouble-spots has so far gone unanswered.
Washington fears a barrage of adverse publicity in the suspicious Muslim world and is concerned that critics will claim the invisible beam weapons were being used for torture.
Now the US military directorate charged with developing non-lethal weapons, which has invested more than a decade developing the Active Denial System (ADS), has launched a concerted effort to convince both the public and its own bosses at the defence department of the device's merits.
"With brand new technology like this, perception is everything," said Col Kirk Hymes, a former Marine artillery officer who heads the directorate.
He added that tests were almost complete and the first ADS, also known as the Silent Guardian, could be deployed early next year if the Pentagon allows. The decision is so sensitive that it is expected to be made personally by the defence secretary, Robert Gates, who sent senior representatives to the demonstrations.
Raytheon, the company contracted to manufacture the prototype, has also received interest from several undisclosed European countries. The machine displayed last week cost about $10 million to build, but the directorate believes that the ADS can be put into production for $2-$5 million (£1-2.5 million) per device.
Col Hymes told observers at a demonstration that the system was a safe and effective alternative to plastic bullets, which can cause injury and sometimes death and are effective only up to 75 metres.
The heatwave weapon can, by contrast, target troublemakers from 750 metres. It works by dispatching high-powered radio waves from a vehicle antenna, similar to a satellite television dish, causing the molecules in a target's skin to vibrate violently, creating a burning sensation.
"We are pretty good at shouting and intimidating people and we have been perfecting the art of lethal warfare since Cain and Abel," he said. "But in places like Iraq we are re-learning that we need a response in the spectrum between shouting and shooting. The ADS provides this."
But he added: "This is not something we want to roll out and deploy and surprise people. We know we need to educate the public."
In fact the development of the weapon only became public after the Sunshine Project - a Texas-based group that campaigns against biological and chemical weapons - pushed for disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act.
The group's director, Edward Hammond, said: "If we are not prepared to use it as a crowd control technique on our own citizens, then we really shouldn't be using it in Iraq either."
Marc Garlasco, a former Pentagon intelligence officer who is senior military analyst for the Human Rights Watch campaign group, was among those invited to feel the device's impact at a recent demonstration.
He said: "If I had the option of being shot by a bullet or this, I would choose this - but still not enough is known about it. This is novel technology. We're talking about bringing science fiction into reality and it's critical to have open discussion."
He added: "People understand what happens when you get shot with a gun, but with the "pain-ray" there's still uncertainty. When it's used, the military is going to have to deal with a public backlash because I'm sure there will be claims of medical problems by the people it's been used upon, real or not."
"We are talking about young soldiers having this in their hands. If we upset the civilian population in Iraq, whether by killing, by torture or by misusing this, it will have a strategic effect on the US's ability to execute effective operations."
Col Hymes said that all ADS operators were given a six-week training course that covered sophisticated crowd control techniques as well as handling the technology.
The ADS can target crowds from 750 metres away
FR post: http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1888917/posts
My guess is Iraq deployment will lag behind US deployment.
I was sitting there, with my fork in hand, Starin' at my lousy Ravioli can. She walked right in and said to me, Is there any way that I can make your day complete. I told her if there’s anyway you can, Could you grease up that old metal roasting pan?
And bake me a country ham, Honey glazed with a side of yams. Leave it in till it’s golden brown; Pineapples all the way around. Let the sweet smell fill the air, Serve it to me in my underwear. I’m tired of eating imitation Spam: Could you bake me a country ham?
I looked at her with hungry eyes. She asked if I needed ketchup for my curly fries. I held my breath: I could hardly wait, For my little slice of Heaven on that Dixie plate. An' I could feel the juices running down my chin, As my stomach started singin' once again:
Could you bake me a country ham, Honey glazed with a side of yams? Leave it in till it’s golden brown; Pineapples all the way around. Let the sweet smell fill the air, Serve it to me in my easy chair. I’m tired of eating imitation Spam: Could you bake me a country ham?
Could you bake me a country ham, Honey glazed with a side of yams? Leave it in till it’s golden brown; Pineapples all the way around. Let the sweet smell fill the air, Serve it to me in my underwear. I’m tired of eating imitation Spam: Could you bake me a country ham?
Even though 750 meters away I AM?
:
“Washington fears a barrage of adverse publicity in the suspicious Muslim world and is concerned..”
On the one hand the Dems are asked if they wish for victory or defeat in Iraq, but on the other hand this administration “fears” and “is concerned” about how our weapons are perceived in the Arab world. Again, what are we trying to accomplish - victory or defeat?
I saw this demonstrated on Futureweapons a few months ago. VEY effective!
Who, George? Who the heck is "Washington," Pentagon panty-waists, the striped-pants set at State, White House eunichs? The MSM bureau chiefs? Who?
Crap, think of the psyops potential of this non-lethal weapon. Build in a speaker system with mp3 files of "Allah commands you to disperse or the fires of hell will start to roast you." Awesome!
Washington?
George Washington? Denzel Washington? Names please. No one of authority in the Bush administration was quoted. Another Telegraph turd.
GMTA
2 megatons. No pain at all.
Oh fine......as if there were any chance the "Muslim world" will come to love us...
FEAR and RESPECT is what we should be focused on gaining...
Currently, all I see is contempt and a strong desire to destroy us..
"Nearby residents to a US weapons test range complain"
“Crap, think of the psyops potential of this non-lethal weapon. Build in a speaker system with mp3 files of “Allah commands you to disperse or the fires of hell will start to roast you.” Awesome!”
It would have been good to clear out the mosques that were being held by terrorists — your sound track would have made it even more effective.
It's not the heat, it's the humidity.
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