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In the past several years, the U.S. Army has developed an advanced generation of protective ballistic plates for soldiers in what it calls the “X-Sapi” (Small-Arms Protective Insert) program. But, despite buying 120,000 plates from Ceradyne and BAE Systems, it has yet to issue the gear to troops in the field—and it may not ever do so. The Army’s product manager for Soldier Protective Equipment, Lt. Col. Jon Rickey, says the plates are designed to defeat an “X-threat” that hasn’t yet fully emerged, but delivery of the plates began late this year. “We are in the middle of doing lot-acceptance...

Note: The following text is a quote: Weapons smuggler sentenced to 57 months in prison ICE investigation tied Mexican national to more than 200 illegally exported weapons EL PASO, Texas - A Mexican man was sentenced to nearly five years in prison Wednesday after an investigation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) tied him to more than 200 firearms smuggled illegally into Mexico. Begmar Ivan Ruiz-Zuniga, 31, a Mexican citizen, was sentenced to 57 months in prison by a U.S. district judge. Ruiz-Zuniga must also forfeit 11 AK-47 assault rifles, one upper receiver for an AR-15 assault rifle, two...

Engineers at the Univ. of Leeds are working on a new type of body armor made from cement. The new vests will combine super-strong cement with recycled carbon fiber materials to make a material tough enough to withstand most types of bullets. The cement vest project, still at the early research stage, is being carried out the School of Civil Engineering at the Univ. Dr Philip Purnell, who is leading the team, said: “By using cement instead of alumina we are confident we can deliver a cost-effective level of protection for many people at risk. It should be good enough...

WASHINGTON — The Army has promised to lighten the soldier’s load, and nowhere more urgently than in eastern Afghanistan, where the unforgiving terrain tests the stamina of troops whose weapons, body armor, rucksacks and survival gear can weigh 130 pounds. But an experiment to shave up to 20 pounds off a soldier’s burden — much of it by reducing the bulletproof plates that protect the chest and back — has stalled, leaving $3 million in new, lightweight equipment sitting in a warehouse in the United States instead of being sent to the war zone where it was to have been...

The gunman who killed 13 people in a rampage at an immigrant community center and then committed suicide was wearing body armor, indicating he was prepared to battle with law enforcers, the Binghamton police chief said today.

IBM has filed a patent (US 7484451) for Bionic Body Armor, that could essentially allow us to dodge bullets like Neo in The Matrix. The armor would scan areas for incoming projectiles and when one is detected the system would deliver a shock to the muscles causing a swift reflexive action away from the projectile. Here's what the patent describes the body armor as: A method of protecting a target from a projectile propelled from a firearm comprises detecting an approaching projectile, continuously monitoring the projectile and transmitting an actual position of the projectile to a controller, computing an estimated...

WASHINGTON, Jan. 30, 2009 – Soldiers should have full confidence in the quality of a particular series of Army-issued body armor plates that has come under recent scrutiny, Army officials said. Scores of Army tests and an independent evaluation have determined the effectiveness of three types of ceramic plates manufactured by Armor Works of Chandler, Ariz., said Army Brig. Gen. Peter Fuller, one of the officers who oversees equipment as part of the Army’s Program Executive Office Soldier. “Those plates being worn on the backs and fronts of soldiers all around the world are quality product,” Fuller said in...

Barack Obama was sworn in as the 44th president on Tuesday under tight security. He rode to the Capitol in an armored Cadillac limo, spoke behind a protective glass shield, and wore "bullet-resistant clothing." Is that the same thing as a bulletproof vest? Not quite. The vests familiar from cop shows and news footage of SWAT teams are manufactured to be maximally effective with no consideration for how they might look under a dress shirt. It's unclear what brand of body armor Obama sported at the inauguration, but several companies produce discreet, thinner vests that can be worn underneath clothing,...

Somewhere between carbon fibres and carbon nanotubes, a new material shows its strengths. The colossal carbon tube is relatively stronger and lighter than a conventional carbon fibre.PRL/ H. Peng et al A new form of carbon material, potentially lighter and stronger than conventional carbon fibres, has been discovered by researchers in China and the United States.Huisheng Peng of Tongji University in Shanghai and his colleagues have found that a carbon vapour, made by heating ethylene and paraffin oil, will condense into tubes of pure carbon tens of micrometres wide and up to several centimetres long1.Individual tubes have a tensile strength...

What will soldiers be wearing on the battlefield by the year 2025? According to the 24th Army Science Conference, future warriors will be equipped with high-tech uniforms of "liquid body armor" now under development using nanotechnologies. The battledress would also be equipped with 360-degree situational awareness technology, plus virtual reality screens that enable troops to navigate an environment by projecting maps on the ground—sort of like R2-D2 on Star Wars. The new form-fitting suit is being developed through the wonder of nanotechnology, which involves manipulating atoms and molecules to create things at the nanometer scale. That's about 50,000 times smaller...

Scandalous $10 Million Bat Mitzvah David Brooks of DHB Industries Arrested for Embezzling Company Funds Oct. 27, 2007 — The headliners read like a who's who of music: Aerosmith, 50 Cent and Don Henley of the Eagles. No, it wasn't the Grammys, it was 13-year-old Elizabeth Brooks' birthday party -- a $10 million mega bat mitzvah. Aerosmith alone was paid a $1 million to perform -- flown in on her father's company jet. Her father is David Brooks, who was then the CEO of DHB Industries, the leading body armor provider to U.S. soliders in Iraq. And he had his...

David H. Brooks, the founder of Point Blank Body Armor and former head of its parent company, DHB Industries, was indicted on a variety of financial impropriety charges Thursday after months of investigations by federal prosecutors. Brooks, who led DHB Industries until July 2006, was indicted for insider trading, fraud, obstruction of justice and tax evasion, the U.S. attorney's office for the Eastern District of New York said in a release obtained by Military.com. The former chief operating officer of Point Blank, Sandra Hatfield, was charged along with Brooks in the indictment. She had been served with a previous indictment...

August 14, 2007: The Dragon Skin armor was recently decertified by the National Institute of Justice, adding more controversy to the debate over the value of this armor design for protective vests. This loss of certification will cause many police agencies to reject this armor as a result. This is a serious blow to the manufacturer, which is trying to get the armor adopted by the Department of Defense. Dragon Skin was intended to provide better all-around protection against incoming fire. One problem with most protective vests is that there are places where the protective ceramic plates only cover a...

PFC Brendan Schweigart was helping to retrieve a tank in Iraq when he felt as if he had been hit with a sledge hammer. It was deadly fire from an enemy sniper. But this day called up a miracle for the young soldier who believes in God and the teachings of the Bible. According to a report by NBC affiliate WGRZ, the bullet missed Schweigart's vital organs because over his heart was a Bible. Scott says it's the one he got at boot camp. The Bible acted as a shield, that trapped the bullet. He had promised his mother that...

PPE stops round, saves Marine July 14, 2007; Submitted on: 07/14/2007 05:28:58 AM ; Story ID#: 200771452858 By Lance Cpl. Timothy M. Stewman, 13th MEU NEAR KARMAH, Iraq (July 14, 2007) -- Over the past decade there have been significant advancements in body armor. During that time there have also been heated debates concerning the performance and effectiveness of the body armor being used by Marines. One Marine with Battalion Landing Team 3/1 got to see first-hand just how effective his issued body armor is. “We were out doing a vehicle mounted patrol and we dismounted, that’s when I heard...

Hot Air: NBC's 'Emotional Terrorism' Following 'Bogus' Armor Report Posted by Dave Pierre on July 4, 2007 - 10:43. Via Bryan Preston at Hot Air: On May 17, NBC reported a blockbuster exclusive on the superiority of Dragon Skin body armor over Interceptor, the body armor that the US Army issues to soldiers in combat zones. But NBC’s story has a major flaw: It’s wrong about nearly everything. Watch the latest installment of Hot Air's Vent and actually hear an Army official, Brigadier General Mark Brown, conclude that NBC News possibly committed "emotional terrorism" after airing an "exclusive" segment on...

ONE OF THE RECURRING themes of press coverage of the Long War, and particularly the conflict in Iraq, is that soldiers are victims. According to this trope, soldiers and Marines are sacrificing themselves in a cause already lost, by an administration that cares little for the men and women in uniform. The proof of this last proposition was demonstrated to the media's satisfaction long ago, and confirmed for them in former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld's proclamation that we went to war with the force we had rather than the one we'd liked to have. Exhibit number one in the press's...

The U.S. Army, in a rare move Monday, released a barrage of test results showing that a privately-sold flexible body armor that some families have sought for their soldiers failed extensive military testing. Pieces of the hefty Dragon Skin armor, with ragged holes torn through its yellow inner skin, were propped up on the floor in the Pentagon, as Army officials systematically detailed the battery of ammunition and temperature testing the armor failed. Although the tests were done nearly a year ago, the Army declined to release details until Monday, after recent NBC News reports suggested that the Dragon Skin...

An Israeli company has recently tested one of the most shock-resistant materials known to man. Five times stronger than steel and at least twice as strong as any impact-resistant material currently in use as protective gear, the new nano-based material is on its way to becoming the armor of the future. A year ago IsraCast reported on the development of the first commercial nano-based lubricant which was developed by the Israeli company ApNano materials. A year later we find ApNano working also on a wholly different application of their technology - shielding and protection. In recent research lead by Prof....

Experimental testing has demonstrated that the system 100 is effective to defeat an AP bullet fired from a rifle at point-blank range (e.g. at impact V.sub.p.apprxeq.850 meters/second). Applications include, but are not limited to, body armor for infantry soldiers and law enforcement agencies, integral armor or armor appliques for vehicles such as aircraft, helicopters, and cars. Other uses include military applications, such as used in conjunction with ground vehicles or amphibious assault vehicles. Thus, the system 100 for protection against a projectile 105 having a speed, or velocity V.sub.p, comprises an accelerating layer 110, a plug layer 120, and (optionally)...

See for example this thread first. From the Aberdeen Proving Ground The best armor that can be found It's sort of a gel which when hit by a shell stiffens up, and defeats the round!

It flows like a liquid, but push it with enough force and it will stop you right in your tracks. Research at the U.S. Army Research Laboratory in Aberdeen is at the heart of a new technology that could mean lightweight, flexible armor for U.S. soldiers. The armor would move more like normal clothing while protecting more of the body, including the joints often left vulnerable by traditional body armor, said Eric Wetzel, a researcher in the Army laboratory's Weapons and Materials Research Directorate. The liquid armor is actually traditional body armor soaked in a substance known as shear thickening...

NY Times Reporter Body Armor Vulnerability Analysis Author: Red Square, Location: Karl Marx Treatment Center Post Posted: 7/8/2006, 3:30 pm Earlier this year the New York Times courageously exposed vulnerabilities of US body armor, accompanying the story with a controversial diagram and a leaked Pentagon paper in a PDF file, identifying the best areas to shoot at. Today the Pentagon responded by releasing a diagram that details vulnerabilities of the New York Times journalists, which analysts predict is about to become the focus of a new media fury. "The Pentagon released the results of their secret research despite our strongest...

Now the Department of Defense is evaluating new body armor designs from India. How did it come to this? The U.S. Army has created something of a monster because of its massive purchases of Protective Vests. So far, the army has spent some $300 million on the vests, which triggered another $100 million in purchases from the other services. That large a market has spurred development of new body armor technologies. This created a situation best described by the term, "disruptive technologies." One new design, Pinnacle's Flexible Body Armor, has caused a major ruckus within the army because some Pinnacle...

The U.S. Army is testing a new body armor idea in Iraq. It's the Cupola Protective Ensemble (CPE), and it's a simple idea, which proved turret gunners with better protection. This is done by taking the existing bomb disposal protective suit, and adding the new liquid cooling unit. This provides exposed turret gunners with some more protection. The turret gunners, usually in hummers, are not only exposed to explosions and enemy fire, but are prime targets because they operate a .50 caliber machine-gun, and have the best view of any enemy in the area. But that view works both ways....

Since Front Line Views....No. 1 was posted at FR on 3/12/06, my son in Afghanistan who also served 8 months in Gulf War I in Saudi Arabia and Iraq has emailed additional observations. Subjects include: real casualty rates (KIA) vs. press reports, "appearance" of soldiers vs. actual military skills/performance, soldiers as civil servants vs. being warriors, and official prohibition against unapproved body armor. Remember, he is in Afgh. so some observations may not fit Iraq, but others do. Some of what he says is harsh, he never was one for pussyfooting. Paragraphs in quotes are HIS words. The rest is...

Everyone who’s been following the U.S. Army’s Interceptor body armor program vs. SOV/Dragon Skin body armor is probably already aware that U.S. Army Soldier Systems Center (Natick)/Natick Soldier Center and PEO Soldier (Program Executive Office Soldier) have essentially declared war on Pinnacle Armor. According to Major General Jefferey A. Sorenson, Deputy for Acquisition and Systems Management, not only has Dragon Skin “not yet passed testing”, but it also “isn’t anywhere near” standard Interceptor body armor’s capabilities. Really? That’s interesting, considering that Murray Neal, CEO of Pinnacle Armor, has told us that both Level III/III+ and Level IV (classified) Dragon Skin...

WASHINGTON -- Soldiers will no longer be allowed to wear body armor other than the protective gear issued by the military, Army officials said Thursday, the latest twist in a running battle over the equipment the Pentagon gives its troops in Iraq and Afghanistan. Army officials told The Associated Press that the order was prompted by concerns that soldiers or their families were buying inadequate or untested commercial armor from private companies — including the popular Dragon Skin gear made by California-based Pinnacle Armor. "We're very concerned that people are spending their hard-earned money on something that doesn't provide the...

HUSAYBAH, Iraq: Extra body armor _ the lack of which caused a political storm in the United States _ has flooded in to Iraq, but many Marines here promptly stuck it in lockers or under bunks. Too heavy and cumbersome, many say. Marines already carry loads as heavy as 70 pounds when they patrol the dangerous streets in towns and villages in restive Anbar province. The new armor plates, while only about five pounds per set, are not worth carrying for the additional safety they are said to provide, some say. "We have to climb over walls and go through...

HUSAYBAH, Iraq - Extra body armor — the lack of which caused a political storm in the United States — has flooded in to Iraq, but many Marines here promptly stuck it in lockers or under bunks. Too heavy and cumbersome, many say. Marines already carry loads as heavy as 70 pounds when they patrol the dangerous streets in towns and villages in restive Anbar province. The new armor plates, while only about five pounds per set, are not worth carrying for the additional safety they are said to provide, some say. "We have to climb over walls and go...

<p>Several Marines from Camp Pendleton have been arrested in San Diego on charges of providing stolen body armor — intended for troops in Iraq — that was later sold on the Internet.</p> <p>U.S. Customs officials teamed with the Navy's Criminal Investigative Service to break the ring.</p>

Faulty gear puts troops at risk THE safety of Australian troops in Iraq and Afghanistan, including the elite SAS force, has been compromised by defective body armour, combat jackets and helmets, according to damning Defence Department documents. The faults include combat jackets that glow in the dark, giving enemies an easy target, and body armour that cracks easily. The helmets issued to soldiers have harnesses that are "worn, rusted and damaged" and are shaped in a way that makes it "impossible to sight a live claymore (landmine) in the prone position" while wearing them. The documents reveal that the safety...

Texas: A U-S soldier's wife is launching real and virtual bake sales to raise money to buy body armor for troops -- even though the government has promised to rush more protective gear to those on Iraq's front lines. Tammara Rosenleaf's husband deployed from Fort Hood in December. She said the Bake Sales for Body Armor fund-raiser also will provide medical supplies, communications equipment and other needed gear. Rosenleaf hosts the first bake sale tomorrow in Montana. Beatriz Saldivar of Fort Worth -- whose nephew Daniel Torres was killed in Iraq a year ago -- said she plans to help...

February 07, 2006 Soldier pays for armor # Army demanded $700 from city man who was wounded By Eric Eyre Staff writer The last time 1st Lt. William “Eddie” Rebrook IV saw his body armor, he was lying on a stretcher in Iraq, his arm shattered and covered in blood. A field medic tied a tourniquet around Rebrook’s right arm to stanch the bleeding from shrapnel wounds. Soldiers yanked off his blood-soaked body armor. He never saw it again. But last week, Rebrook was forced to pay $700 for that body armor, blown up by a roadside bomb more than...

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) -- A former soldier injured in Iraq is getting a refund after being forced to pay for his missing body armor vest, which medics destroyed because it was soaked with his blood, officials said Wednesday. First Lt. William "Eddie" Rebrook IV, 25, had to leave the Army with a shrapnel injury to his arm. But before he could be discharged last week, he says he had to scrounge up cash from his buddies to pay $632 for the body armor and other gear he had lost. Rebrook, who graduated from West Point with honors, said he was...

Survivors Praise Body, Vehicle Armor to House Subcommittee By Donna MilesAmerican Forces Press Service WASHINGTON, Feb. 1, 2006 – Three soldiers just back from Iraq -- including two who credit personal and vehicle armor with saving their lives -- traveled to Capitol Hill today to tell Congress that when it comes to protecting troops, more isn't always better. "We're here to say we're pretty happy with what we have," Brig. Gen. Karl Horst, the 3rd Infantry Division's assistant division commander for maneuver, told the American Forces Press Service before appearing at today's House Armed Services Committee's Tactical Air and...

NEW YORK (AP) - 0130dvs-woodruff-update ABC News anchor Bob Woodruff, seriously hurt by a roadside bomb in Iraq, has shown signs of improvement and may be airlifted to the United States as soon as Tuesday, the network's news president said Monday. A hospital official said body armor likely saved the journalist's life. Cameraman Doug Vogt, also hurt in the explosion, is in better shape than Woodruff but doctors were pleased with how both handled the transfer to a U.S. military base in Germany, said ABC News President David Westin. "We have a long way to go," Westin said. "But it...

Three men in a black Chevrolet pickup were arrested following a high-speed chase in the 2400 block of Texas Avenue on Tuesday morning; police said the men were armed with 9 mm weapons and wore body armor. Authorities chased the vehicle after an officer spotted the driver panicking and picking up speed at the sound of police sirens. Police said the sirens were not for the pickup, but rather for another vehicle nearby that was being stopped on a traffic violation. Following the brief high-speed chase, police stopped the pickup and spotted two of the passengers fleeing the scene on...

Some Sanity on the Body Armor Issue The author of... Source: Brainster's Blog - Saturday, January 14 - GO TO THIS WEBLOG » Some Sanity on the Body Armor Issue The author of this piece, who knows what he's talking about, is perhaps a little too kind to Hillary. THIS week Senator Hillary Clinton, citing a secret Pentagon report that suggested some marines killed in Iraq might have survived had they been wearing more body armor, became the latest in a long line of politicians to castigate the Pentagon for a supposed failure to adequately protect our fighting men and...

Two deploying soldiers and a concerned mother reported Friday afternoon that the U.S. Army appears to be singling out soldiers who have purchased Pinnacle's Dragon Skin Body Armor for special treatment. The soldiers, who are currently staging for combat operations from a secret location, reported that their commander told them if they were wearing Pinnacle Dragon Skin and were killed their beneficiaries might not receive the death benefits from their $400,000 SGLI life insurance policies. The soldiers were ordered to leave their privately purchased body armor at home or face the possibility of both losing their life insurance benefit and...

Army Orders Soldiers to Shed Dragon Skin or Lose SGLI Death Benefits By Nathaniel R. Helms Two deploying soldiers and a concerned mother reported Friday afternoon that the U.S. Army appears to be singling out soldiers who have purchased Pinnacle's Dragon Skin Body Armor for special treatment. The soldiers, who are currently staging for combat operations from a secret location, reported that their commander told them if they were wearing Pinnacle Dragon Skin and were killed their beneficiaries might not receive the death benefits from their $400,000 SGLI life insurance policies. The soldiers were ordered to leave their privately purchased...

THIS week Senator Hillary Clinton, citing a secret Pentagon report that suggested some marines killed in Iraq might have survived had they been wearing more body armor, became the latest in a long line of politicians to castigate the Pentagon for a supposed failure to adequately protect our fighting men and women. Well-intentioned as the senator might be, the body-armor issue, like so many in war, is just not that simple. From 2000 until 2004, I was an infantry officer in the Army. I deployed with a light-infantry platoon to Afghanistan in 2002, then with a platoon of Army Rangers...

After Sen. Hillary Clinton went on TV and blamed Bush administration "incompetence" for alleged inadequacies in body armor supplied to U.S. troops fighting in Iraq, Senate Armed Service Committee chairman John Warner agreed to hold hearings. But when Warner gaveled the proceedings into session on Wednesday, body armor expert Hillary was nowhere to be found. "Senator Clinton had a long planned day of events with her constituents in New York and wasn't able to attend the short-notice briefing attended by the chairman and two members of the minority," Hillary spokesman Philippe Reines told the Washington Times. "Her defense aide attended,...

A secret Pentagon study has found that as many as 80 percent of the marines who have been killed in Iraq from wounds to the upper body could have survived if they had had extra body armor. Such armor has been available since 2003, but until recently the Pentagon has largely declined to supply it to troops despite calls from the field for additional protection, according to military officials. The ceramic plates in vests now worn by the majority of troops in Iraq cover only some of the chest and back. In at least 74 of the 93 fatal wounds...

WASHINGTON, Jan. 10, 2006 – The Army will continue to improve body armor issued to soldiers, and will begin manufacturing side-panel inserts to the Interceptor ballistic armor, officials said here today. The side panels, which weigh 3 pounds, will be made of the same material as the small-arms protective inserts. Army Col. Thomas Spoehr is in charge of fielding body armor. He said the Interceptor body armor now issued to servicemembers protects against most of the threats they face in Iraq and Afghanistan today. "It's the best body armor in the world," Spoehr said. And the proof is in the...

U.S. soldiers in the field were not all supportive of a Pentagon study that found improved body armor saves lives, with some troops arguing Saturday that more armor would hinder combat effectiveness. The unreleased study examined 93 fatal wounds to Marines from the start of the Iraq war in March 2003 through June 2005. It concluded 74 of them were bullet or shrapnel wounds to shoulders or torso areas unprotected by traditional ceramic armor plating. Soldiers from the 101st Airborne Division's 3rd Brigade "Rakkasans" are required to wear an array of protective clothing they refer to as their "happy gear,"...

By Will Dunham Fri Jan 6, 11:19 PM ET WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Better body armor could have prevented or limited about 80 percent of fatal torso wounds suffered by Marines killed in Iraq, a report by U.S. military medical experts obtained on Friday said. The report, conducted for the Marine Corps by the Office of the Armed Forces Medical Examiner and not released to the public, examined the cases of Marines fatally wounded from the start of the war in March 2003 through June 2005, and found weaknesses in the torso protective gear. Bullets or shrapnel hit the Marines' shoulders,...

Big news over the weekend, when "Long Island defense contractor David H. Brooks booked two floors of the Rainbow Room, hauled in concert-ready equipment, built a stage, installed special carpeting, outfitted the space with Jumbotrons and arranged command performances by everyone from 50 Cent to Don Henley to Stevie Nicks to Aerosmith..." Brooks got better talent than the NBC Katrina relief benefit.

DAVID H. Brooks, the Long Island bullet-proof vest tycoon who spent $10 million for his daughter's bat mitzvah bash on Saturday, is being investigated by the Securities and Exchange Commission. Brooks gained notoriety when it was revealed he had hired Aerosmith, the Eagles, Stevie Nicks, 50 Cent, Ciara, Kenny G and Tom Petty to play at a party for his 13-year-old daughter, Elizabeth, on both floors of the Rainbow Room. Brooks' company, DHB, a defense contractor that makes bullet-proof vests for the U.S. military, has been the subject of several class-action suits stemming from a government recall of its body...

MARINE CORPS BASE QUANTICO, Va. (Dec. 1, 2005) -- Following the Corps’ recall of more than 10,000 protective vests in November, Marine Corps Systems Command officials are defending the decision to initially field them to leathernecks in combat. Headquarters Marine Corps ordered 10,342 Outer Tactical Vests pulled from the operating forces after media reports indicated some samples tested by the manufacturer and by the Army’s Aberdeen Proving Ground in Maryland failed to fully comply with ballistics standards. The Outer Tactical Vest, together with Small Arms Protective Inserts, composes the Interceptor Body Armor System, which has been credited with saving numerous...