US Army details FWS-I, ENVG III capabilities
The US Army has detailed the improved target acquisition capabilities two new systems will bring dismounted soldiers as they are introduced over the coming 18 months. The systems will allow soldiers to see targets in darkness, through fog and smoke.
The army expects to deploy the Enhanced Night Vision Goggle III (ENVG III) in the second quarter of 2018 and the Family of Weapons Sights-Individual (FWS-I) technology in the first quarter of 2019.
The FWS-I, mounted on a soldier’s weapon, will wirelessly transmit its sight picture to the ENVG III, which is mounted on a soldier’s helmet. The ENVG will combine thermal imaging with more common night vision image intensification technology.
A variety of modes will allow soldiers to see in their goggles only the image from the ENVG III itself, only the image from the FWS-I, or a combination of the two. Using a ‘picture-in-picture’ mode, the image from the FWS-I is displayed at the bottom right of the image that is coming from the goggle.
Another mode is possible when the FWS-I on the rifle and the ENVG III on the soldier’s helmet are both pointed in the same direction and seeing essentially the same thing; in this mode the image from the FWS-I can project a reticle into the goggle. The soldier can see the full image of what his goggle normally sees, but a circle representing the reticle from the FWS-I is overlaid onto that image, letting the soldier know where his rifle is pointed. This allows the soldier to acquire a target without needing to shoulder his weapon, while also allowing him to acquire a target while maintaining situational awareness of what else is going on around him.
The FWS-I is designed for the M4 and M16 rifles, and can mount on those rifles in front of day sights that have already been bore-sighted. The FWS-I will also work with the M249 Squad Automatic Weapon, the M141 Bunker Defeat Munition, and the M136 AT4 Light Anti-Tank Weapon.
Both the FWS-I and the ENVG III are currently in low-rate initial production. The army hopes to buy 36,000 of the FWS-I, and about 64,000 of the ENVG III. A crew-served variant and a sniper variant are also under development.
Related Equipment in Defence Insight
You may also like
More from Land Warfare
-
![Eurosatory 2026 roundup: uncrewed, counter-uncrewed and new vehicles define direction]()
Eurosatory 2026 roundup: uncrewed, counter-uncrewed and new vehicles define direction
Uncrewed and counter-uncrewed systems were a major feature of this edition of Eurosatory 2026 along with programme updates and first sight of new main battle tanks.
-
![Eurosatory 2026: As MGCS stalls, has Europe’s new MBT been unveiled?]()
Eurosatory 2026: As MGCS stalls, has Europe’s new MBT been unveiled?
Eurosatory 2026 saw a number of main battle tanks on display, including two new platforms which could be the future of European tanks.
-
![Eurosatory 2026: MARSS and parent company EOS expand air defence capability]()
Eurosatory 2026: MARSS and parent company EOS expand air defence capability
MARSS became part of EOS Defence earlier this year, bringing together the former’s C2 NiDAR and Nation Shield air defence products with the latter’s suite of effectors and sensors.
-
![Eurosatory 2026: Pearson Engineering to send AI mine detecting systems into Ukraine]()
Eurosatory 2026: Pearson Engineering to send AI mine detecting systems into Ukraine
Pearson Engineering’s Threat-Sense system is designed to use imaging from drones to geolocate scattered mines and support uncrewed systems in defeating the threats.
-
![Is motorisation set to be the next evolution of towed artillery?]()
Is motorisation set to be the next evolution of towed artillery?
Artillery remains a key tool on the modern battlefield. Artillery platforms, however, are increasingly at risk from enemy fire, whether from other artillery or uncrewed …
-
![Eurosatory 2026: Milrem expands partnerships as it outlines NATO eastern flank defence plans]()
Eurosatory 2026: Milrem expands partnerships as it outlines NATO eastern flank defence plans
In the past three months Milrem Robotics has signed cooperation agreements with Hanwha, EOS Defence Systems and Polska Grupa Zbrojeniowa (PGZ) and at Eurosatory 2026 with CNIM Systèmes Industriels and Frankenburg Technologies. The deals come as the company develops its Eastern Flank Deterrence Initiative.
