From: CMSgt Mike Bergman <bergman@afnews.pa.af.mil>
Subject: Improving the Way Infantrymen Are Equipped
Organization: Hq Air Force News Agency/SCC
Date: Fri, 28 Aug 1992 16:27:21 GMT


From CMSgt Mike Bergman <bergman@afnews.pa.af.mil>

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			_____________________

Improving the Way Infantrymen Are Equipped

By Jim Garamone
American Forces Information Service

     Luke Skywalker, look out.  The image and equipment of American
service members will make a quantum leap into the 21st century if
equipment now under development is adopted.
     The Natick (Mass.) Research, Development and Engineering
Center, along with other Army labs and centers, is working on
clothing and equipment that could revolutionize the way
groundpounders of any service perform their mission.
     The equipment marks the first time the military has looked at
the foot trooper as a system.  The new equipment is head-to-toe and
from the skin out.
     In the past, the approach to uniforms and equipment was
piecemeal:  Today's load-bearing equipment was developed in the
1940s, the protective gear in the 1960s. Communications gear and
weapons were tacked onto the outfit, and the soldier had to adapt.
     "No one piecemealed the F-15 fighter together or a main battle
tank.  When engineers designed the F-15, they looked at the pilot
as part of the system," said Army Maj. Dan Fisher, infantry
training operations officer with the project.  "We're doing the
same with the soldier.  We're looking at the soldier as a system.
     "It was a finger-in-the-dike approach," Fisher said.  "If
infantrymen needed something, it was provided and tacked onto
everything else.  It was a short-term approach, there was nothing
long term."
     The Army's Infantry School at Fort Benning, Ga., is sponsoring
the change.  Researchers have developed an advanced technology
demonstration that will show the capabilities of the various
sub-systems making up the ensemble in an operational environment.
The seven-week demonstration is set for September through November.
It will include target detection, engagement, land navigation,
field exercises and mobility events following two weeks of
intensive training.  If approved, soldiers, sailors, Marines and
airmen will see the results by the end of the decade.
     The system is modular.  Infantrymen can take just what they
need for a specific mission.  The equipment can be mixed and
matched depending on the mission, threat expected, weather and any
special details that must be accomplished.  "We like to say
infantrymen can dress up or down for whatever party they're going
to," Fisher said.
     Starting at the skin, researchers have devised an active
cooling vest.  "This is a T-shirt with a cooling vest built in,"
said Cynthia Blackwell, a specialist on the project.  The cooling
system filters and circulates outside air through the vest.  The
T-shirt will be made of material that will wick moisture away from
the skin, and the ambient air vest will capitalize on this process.
     Next is a two-piece chemical vapor undergarment set that
protects soldiers from chemical vapor.  On top of this is the
advanced combat uniform.  "It will be in the same configuration as
the current BDU but with more advanced material that is flame
resistant," Fisher said.  "It will also provide protection against
liquid chemical agent."
     On top is the ballistic protective vest.  The vest will
incorporate ammunition-carrying capabilities and have attachment
points for ancillary gear.  It will also provide flechette
protection in addition to the fragmentation protection provided
today.  "The vest opens at the side, so soldiers can cool off and
still get protection," Blackwell said.  "It will carry the basic
load of an infantryman -- ammunition, hand grenades and whatever --
and it can be modified as needed."
     The outermost layer is the advanced shell garment.  This
garment provides environmental protection as well as liquid and
aerosol chemical protection.  It can be worn over or under the
vest.  Gaiters -- a sleeve fitting over the boot that ends at the
knee -- completes the outer level of protection.
     Researchers also developed two types of gloves for the system.
Infantrymen using the combat glove will be able to feel and pick up
things much easier than today, Blackwell said.  The chemical glove
protects wearers in a high-threat environment.  "For footwear,
we're looking at a new integrated combat boot with steel toes and
speed-lace design," Blackwell said.  The boot will be flame
resistant and include environmental protection.
     Topping this all off is a helmet.  But calling this simply a
helmet is like calling the Grand Canyon a ditch.  It's loosely
based on today's Kevlar helmet and is called the integrated
headgear subsystem.  Its components include a ballistic shell and
electro-optic subcomponent visor, which has a helmet-mounted
display.  In addition, there is communications gear, image
intensification, enhanced hearing and hearing protection.  Also, it
integrates an advanced chemical protective mask with positive
pressure breathing.
     Infantrymen can use two types of sensors with the system.  The
image intensifier is mounted within the helmet system.  The thermal
weapon sight is mounted on the weapon.  Both are wired into the
helmet-mounted display.  Whichever way the weapon points, so will
the thermal weapon sight.  Soldiers, therefore, do not have to be
looking at a target to shoot it.  They will be able to shoot around
corners.  Soldiers use a laser aiming light to help acquire the
target with the image intensifier.  Officials believe all this will
enhance the soldier's ability to engage a target in less than
optimal conditions -- smoke, haze, fog.
     Infantrymen may carry computers into battle.  The computer
will contain an electronic compass, global positioning, digital
mapping -- complete with overlays and unit designators --
information management and already formatted reports.  When used
for global positioning, it allows soldiers to keep track of the
battlefield.  Leaders can get a handle on where their men are, and
when combined with the communication gear, the system expands the
area any unit can cover effectively.  Computer images can also be
displayed on the helmet-mounted display.
     The computer has a video capture capability.  Soldiers can
literally take a picture of the battlefield or significant terrain
features and send it to whoever needs it.  "(Confederate Lt. Gen
Stonewall) Jackson was killed because he was up on the front line
trying to get a clear picture of the battlefield," Fisher said.
"(Army Gen. H. Norman) Schwarzkopf had to get into a helicopter and
overfly the front lines during Operation Desert Storm to understand
what was really happening on the ground.  With this system,
accurate, near real-time information will be available to any level
commander."
     Developers made the system easy to use.  "It's in the language
of the soldier," Blackwell said.  "But (developers) have also been
aware of the dangers of information overload.  We can build in
protocols so those who don't need the information won't get it."
     Both Fisher and Blackwell stress that while everything in the
system is possible, some portions of the system may not enter
production.  "Right now it's just a demonstration of the
capabilities," Fisher said.  "Officials will look at what's offered
and decide which components are needed, are producible and
cost-effective.  We'll move on from there."

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