September 13, 2005: At a recent public demonstration, a new entry in battlefield surveillance was unveiled: a grenade-launcher fired, parachute-deployed camera for use by troops in the field. Fired by the MLG-140 six-round rotating-barrel shotgun, the High-Altitude Unit Navigated Tactical Imaging Round (HUNTIR) floats down over the enemy as it feeds live images back to a TV-compatible computer monitor on the ground, giving aerial surveillance capability at the platoon level.
The HUNTIR Round is a fixed-type cartridge designed to be fired from the MLG-140 as well as from the M79 and M203 grenade launchers. The round consists of a cartridge case assembly, and a metal projectile body containing a first fire charge, a pyrotechnic delay column, an ejection charge, a camera, and parachute assembly. Upon firing, the projectile assembly is launched approximately 235 meters into the air. The first fire charge ignites the pyrotechnic delay element, which ignites another charge that ejects the camera, which is attached to the parachute. The camera provides up to five minutes of both daytime and nighttime (infra-red), real-time, streaming video to either a standard handheld TV monitor or to a dedicated receiver available from the vendor. The camera provides detailed video up to about 1,500 meters. The HUNTIR camera is enclosed in an aluminum body, broadcasting in US-standard television.
The MLG-140 40mm grenade launcher is designed to fire not only HUNTIR but also a new family of âhyper-lethalâ munitions, in addition to all currently available military rounds. The MLG-140 fires six rounds in three seconds at ranges up to 400 meters, effectively covering a minimum destruction area/zone of 20x60 meters. The primary specialized round for the MLG-140 is the MEI HELLHOUND (High Order Unbelievable Nasty Destructive Series) Round, or HELLHOUND 40mm Low Velocity Multi-Purpose Grenade. First the HUNTIR finds the enemy and then the HELLHOUND vaporizes him. True vertical integration.
Each HUNTIR round costs about $400, with the price per round dropping as order quantity increases. First made available in July, 2005, HUNTIR is already being evaluated by US military units worldwide although the dollar value of current and future contracts remains proprietary. The current value to the US soldier in combat is clear. |