US Army picks two companies to provide individual weapon sights
Family of Weapons Sights – Individual (FWS-I). (Photo: US Army)
US Army Contracting Command has awarded two five-year deals for the Family of Weapons Sights – Individual (FWS-I).
The DoD announced contracts for DRS Network & Imaging Systems ($579.29 million) and Teledyne FLIR ($500.22 million) on 28 April.
‘Work locations and funding will be determined with each order,’ the DoD added.
Along with the Enhanced Night Vision Goggle - Binocular (ENVG-B), FWS-I is intended to provide US Army troops with the most advanced night vision equipment available.
FWS-I, which would be mounted on a soldier's weapon, wirelessly transmits its sight picture to the helmet-worn ENVG-B. It allows soldiers to see through fog, dust, and smoke, in both day and night environments.
The family of sights is compatible with a range of infantry weapons such as the M16 rifle, M249 Squad Automatic Weapon, the M141 Bunker Defeat Munition, and the M136 AT4 Light Anti-Tank Weapon.
It can be mounted in front of day sights that have already been bore-sighted. Soldiers carrying rifles can add or remove the FWS-I without having to remove their day sights first.
FWS-I was designed with end-user input in a collaborative effort with Program Executive Office - Soldier and the Soldier Lethality Cross Functional Team, using soldier feedback early in the development process to inform design.
Related Equipment in Defence Insight
More from Land Warfare
-
Australia invests $1.4 billion in additional AMRAAM buy
Some of the missiles ordered can be used on the F/A-18F Super Hornet, EA-18G Growler and the F35-A Lightning.
-
Armies turn to armour and self-defence as support vehicles near the frontline
Combat losses of support and logistics vehicles in recent conflicts have highlighted the need for greater protection and even self-defence capabilities. What options are available to turn a basic truck into a survivor on the battlefield?
-
German Army to receive third-generation Dingo protected patrol vehicles this year
More than 1,200 Dingo 1 and Dingo 2 models have been built and deployed by some 10 countries. The latest Dingo 3 pulls through from user inputs and, like earlier versions, is also based on a UNIMOG chassis.
-
Hungary’s Gamma Technical expands vehicle range
The company’s new variants of 4×6 and 6×6 vehicles are designed to be modular for a greater variety of missions and also flexibility at a subsystem level, for example transmission and engine.
-
US Army seeks nearly $900 million to accelerate development and acquisition of CUAS capabilities
The branch plans to speed up the building and procurement of kinetic and non-kinetic systems for fixed, semi-fixed and on-the-move operations.
-
Large 10×10 vehicles go in search of a role
Wheeled vehicles ranging in size from 4×4 to 8×8 provide high-speed at a good level of mobility compared to tracked. However, tracked can be larger and have a higher level of mobility in marginal terrain with a smaller turning circle. What are the possibilities for a 10×10?