Discovery_Future Weapons S3_01of10_Firepower
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00:00On this Future Weapons, bomb busting in the 21st century using the power of water to neutralize
00:09massive terrorist bombs.
00:112, 1, things are still falling right now.
00:19In the skies above, there's a new surface to air missile system that can take out all
00:23kinds of aircraft, even cruise missiles.
00:28And the art of the sniper.
00:30Can this new sniper rifle take fast, precise targeting to a whole new level?
00:36I'm Richard Makowicz.
00:37I spent 10 years as a Navy SEAL, and this is Future Weapons.
00:53In this urban patrol exercise, I'm operating as the automatic weapons gunner in a fire
01:06team.
01:07We're moving through a village where insurgents are known to operate.
01:13The rest of my team is armed with M4s, ideal for urban patrol, while I'm carrying the
01:17SAW M249 light machine gun, designed to put down suppressive automatic fire.
01:26The trade-off?
01:27This weapon can attract a lot of attention.
01:31What you've got to remember is that if you're carrying the SAW, you're carrying the big
01:35stick, and everybody in the neighborhood gets to see it.
01:55Never forget, with a big weapon, you're a big target.
02:09Now I've got to run, get into position, find out where the shot's coming from, and put
02:13down suppressive fire.
02:17The SAW's job is to keep the enemy pinned down.
02:22It has a firing rate of nearly 800 rounds a minute.
02:27It's still a beast of a weapon to carry.
02:30It tips the scales at a mighty 19 pounds, and that's before you add up to 35 pounds
02:36of ammo.
02:37And when it's time to enter the confines of a building, you have to rely on your buddies
02:42to go in first.
02:43In a close-quarter combat situation, a SAW gunner has some critical limitations.
02:51I've come to the Mystic Training Center in New Mexico, the largest privately operated
02:56military training site in the United States.
03:00It's the perfect place to put present and future weapons through their paces.
03:16This is the SAW, Squad Automatic Weapon.
03:22It can put down a lot of firepower very quickly, but it fires a relatively light round, a 5.56,
03:30and it fires from the open bolt position.
03:33So your bolt is going to be open all the time, which means dirt, dust, grime, all that stuff
03:39gets inside your chamber.
03:41Not ideal.
03:43It is belt-fed, which means you've got to really stay on top of where you are with your
03:47ammo.
03:48That it's not getting snagged up when you're walking into buildings, it's getting snagged
03:52up on a wall.
03:53Oops, I just ran out of ammo, just like that.
03:56Things like that you have to take into consideration when using this weapon.
04:00But there is a new alternative.
04:05New from LWRC comes the revolutionary IAR.
04:11Infantry Automatic Rifle.
04:16It combines the devastating power of the SAW with the compact size of the M4 in one weapon.
04:25The company's engineers and designers were initially given a brief by the United States
04:29Marine Corps.
04:32Basically what they wanted, Mack, was they wanted a weapon that a rifleman can use for
04:36his everyday duties.
04:37Darren Mellors helped turn that brief into reality.
04:42But in addition to that, when he's taking care of his little piece of the pie in an
04:45assault or whatever, he can lay down light support fire.
04:49The IAR is laid out like the familiar M4, with a slightly heavier barrel.
04:55It's a multi-purpose weapon that the soldier can use for just about any duties in his fire
05:00team.
05:04The IAR can operate in two modes.
05:08In semi-automatic, the bolt is closed, keeping out dirt and reducing weapon movement, making
05:13it more accurate.
05:15Just like the M4.
05:19In full auto, the IAR fires the first round with the bolt closed, then the rest, like
05:24the SAW, from the open bolt position.
05:28This keeps it cool and minimizes jamming.
05:32It allows air to enter the barrel, and cools the barrel from the inside and out.
05:37Vice President of Engineering, Jesse Gomez, gives me a quick demonstration of the IAR's
05:42bolt mechanism.
05:43It also prevents you from having a live round in a hot chamber.
05:46You pull the trigger, bolt carrier goes forward, fires, and locks back open.
05:52And so the big advantage you get with an open bolt is it cools off much faster.
05:57That's correct.
05:59To show you just how much difference an open bolt can make when you're putting down rapid
06:04fire, I'm comparing the IAR with the standard issue infantry rifle.
06:10This is the M4.
06:12It's a great weapon.
06:13It's very accurate and very reliable.
06:17But there are some things you have to take into consideration when firing this weapon.
06:22First and foremost, it fires from a closed bolt position, which means there's usually
06:27a round in the chamber.
06:30See that?
06:38That round could cook off, and that means basically the round could go off accidentally.
06:44Now let's unleash the IAR in full auto.
06:58Drop that, shift it into semi, okay?
07:01Now check this out.
07:03There.
07:05The bolt is cool, and there's no bullet in the chamber, so there's no risk of a round
07:09cooking off.
07:11I dare you to try that with a lot of weapons.
07:16Another advantage of the IAR is that it's magazine fed, not belt fed, so your rounds
07:22don't get snagged up as you move.
07:27Instead of having to go through all the process of flipping something up like you would with
07:30the saw and throwing another belt in there and trying to lock that down, making sure
07:34it doesn't slide out, now all I have to do is, boom, drop the mag, put another mag right
07:40in, and if I ever ran out of ammo, I could always go over to my brother and say, hey,
07:44hey, give me a magazine.
07:45I can throw his magazine into my weapon, and boom, now I'm back to work.
07:55This weapon is designed to work.
08:00Tom is a member of the Special Forces with first-hand experience of the need for a light
08:05machine gun in urban situations.
08:07Still, on active duty, his identity must be protected.
08:12It's a safe assumption to make that warfare of the future is going to be fought in cities,
08:17and so why not design light machine guns that work effectively in cities?
08:26To check out the new weapons capability, let's run that scenario again.
08:32This time, instead of the saw, I'll be using the IAR.
08:37Now, I blend in like a regular squad member, and to the enemy, I don't look like a bigger
08:44threat, but with the firepower of the IAR, you better believe I am.
08:50Just like that, I have the same volume of fire that the saw does.
09:14I don't have to worry about any of it, and I can lay down major firepower.
09:28Because this weapon uses standard 5.56 magazines, if I run out of ammo, I can always get another
09:35one from my teammate.
09:39And just like the M4, you can easily operate the IAR inside a combined space.
09:45Now I enter the building, just like everybody else, and take down the room, no problem.
09:54Coming up, fighting the war on terror by harnessing the power of water.
10:06There's a global war, and everyone's a target.
10:14A backpack in a lobby, a bag on a train, the trunk of a car loaded with artillery shells.
10:22They explode without warning, with devastating consequences.
10:39I'm being escorted to a secret location in Ontario, Canada, to see the very latest weapon
10:44aimed at defeating terrorists.
10:50Its name is Aquaram.
10:58Improvised explosive devices are the number one threat that the law enforcement and military
11:05agencies around the world face today.
11:08Terrorists are very passionate about using these kind of weapons to cause as much chaos
11:12and mayhem as possible.
11:14What's needed is a weapon that can minimize collateral damage and maximize safety.
11:20Produced by Canada's MREL group of companies, Aquaram is a unique tactical disruptor that
11:27tears bombs apart before they have a chance to go off.
11:34And it works by harnessing the power of the most common liquid on the planet, water.
11:40It's a critical compound in the building blocks of life.
11:43It flows.
11:46It's malleable.
11:48Most importantly, it's uncompressible.
11:51It's a perfect weapon to defeat a terrorist threat.
11:55It gives life.
11:57It saves life.
11:59That's perfect.
12:05Aquaram uses a high-pressure jet of water to destroy bombs before they go off.
12:13And Jet White is going to show me how it works.
12:17With the Aquaram line of tactical disruptors, what we're going to be looking at is firing
12:21a course-focused water jet through here to separate the components and neutralize the
12:28device.
12:29So the game plan is basically disrupt this thing so badly that the explosive chain is
12:34broken.
12:35Yes.
12:36And never has a chance to high-order detonate.
12:38Yes.
12:39Let's go blow it up.
12:40Okay.
12:41I'm ready for this threat.
12:46Bomb technicians are the unsung heroes of the war on terror.
12:56They're on the front line when it comes to destroying explosive devices and protecting
13:01us from the threat of devastation.
13:05For this exercise, we're using the smallest of three tactical disruptors, the Aquaram
13:10Micro.
13:15As Jeff approaches the bomb, he steadies his movement.
13:20If that device has a seismic sensor, even his footsteps could trigger it.
13:2610, 9, 8.
13:29The amount of explosive in this bag could easily devastate an area the size of a typical
13:34subway station.
13:362, 1.
13:39Beautiful.
13:40Simple.
13:41Nice and clean.
13:42I cannot wait to see what we get out there.
13:47The bag bomb is totally and safely ripped apart.
13:53It may look like a big bang, but it's nothing compared to what would have happened if that
13:57bomb went off.
13:58All clear.
13:59I repeat, all clear.
14:00Please return to ground zero.
14:01Perfect.
14:02It's great.
14:03Everything's spread out.
14:09You've got the ammonium nitrate that's spread out across the ground so that you don't have
14:13any secondary explosions going on.
14:16The bag is no longer a threat.
14:19You can see.
14:20Very clean.
14:21Here's the container over here.
14:24Everything's definitely spilled out in all kinds of different directions.
14:31This is no longer a threat.
14:37Bill Bauer is the brain behind AQUARAM.
14:41It is a gigantic shape charge, isn't it?
14:44Kind of keeps the explosive compact as much as possible.
14:47Then you've got the explosive out here and around the back, shape charging this water
14:51into a force that will cut and slice through.
14:54It course focuses that water and directs it so that the bomb tech can actually aim this
15:00to the quite precise location that he wants to attack in the IED.
15:08The central reservoir is filled with nothing more than H2O.
15:13It's turned into a high-speed jet that shreds through whatever's in its path because of
15:19MREL's unique liquid explosive called Fixor.
15:27What we develop the AQUARAM around is our binary explosive Fixor.
15:32Quick to mix.
15:33Easy to pour.
15:35And it's all about the time.
15:36You've got to get it downrange and get it deployed to defeat the IED.
15:40To maximize the explosive force that will drive its wave of destruction into the bomb,
15:46we have to make sure there are no air pockets trapped inside the chamber.
15:50All right, so just confirm that the caps are all tight.
15:55And there's the AQUARAM Mini ready to go.
15:59It's a beautiful day on the range, but we've set up a very deadly situation that military
16:04guys, explosive ordnance disposal technicians, have to solve on a day-to-day basis.
16:10Inside we have a switch which sends an electronic pulse all the way back to a nasty, nasty surprise.
16:18And what they like to use, artillery shells.
16:22These are 105s.
16:24Now what we've done is you take out the fuse and you pack the top with C4.
16:29Then you throw a blasting cap in there.
16:31So your explosive chain basically goes from the switch, through the wire, to the detonator,
16:37to the C4, and that activates the 105.
16:42To handle this threat, you need a special weapon.
16:47This time we're using a robot to deploy the bigger AQUARAM Mini.
16:53Obviously, this is much safer for the operator and allows him to slide the device under the
16:58vehicle for maximum effect.
17:05Remember, this test is with a real IED.
17:10The positioning of the device is critical.
17:14And how these guys decide precisely where to put it, that's classified.
17:19Three, two, one.
17:24Again, the IED is completely destroyed without detonating the explosives.
17:29Things are still falling right now.
17:36No more wire cutting.
17:38No more putting your men at risk.
17:40No more giving the terrorist the satisfaction of success.
17:44The IEDs did not go off.
17:47That blast primarily was the water coming up, pushing all that stuff out.
17:51Now what they're going to do is they're looking around just for safety to make sure there's
17:54no solid pieces, no real danger.
17:56But you can see the 105 shells right there.
17:59So essentially, that's all it did.
18:00The water came up, pushed all those 105 shells out and separated them so that they did not detonate.
18:09And the beautiful thing is, when you think about this, is all the 105 shells,
18:14one, two, three, over there, four.
18:18And then, last but not least,
18:23five, six, seven, right there.
18:28I mean, you've got to remember, these are artillery rounds.
18:30They're designed for suppressing entire areas.
18:34Very deadly.
18:35Very dangerous.
18:38The action replay reveals the full force of the water as it tears through the trunk of the car.
18:46The Fixor in the Aquaram Mini explodes, propelling the jet of water upwards.
18:53The directional force of the explosive is so great, the water soars 50 feet into the air,
18:59tearing the mechanism that controls the bomb apart and lifting the vehicle completely off the ground.
19:07If you look carefully, you can actually see one of the shells spinning away from the car.
19:15But how does Aquaram cope with a terrorist IED that could lay waste to an entire city block?
19:23Find out next.
19:24It would be a catastrophic event.
19:27AQUARAM
19:34Aquaram uses water to tear bombs apart before they do serious damage.
19:39Specifically, it prevents the bomb's explosives from detonating,
19:43keeping the debris field and collateral damage to a minimum.
19:49This preserves evidence that could prove vital in hunting down the bomb builder.
19:55Anthony Clabo is a bomb squad commander with the Erie County Sheriff's Department.
20:03We have post-blast investigators that will come out,
20:06start sifting through the thousands and thousands of little bits and pieces.
20:11Every little piece of glass, every little tiny speck of dirt,
20:15every nut and bolt, everything that we can find.
20:17Put that all together, there's an awful lot of evidence that's there that we can collect up
20:22and then hopefully go after the person that built it.
20:27Time for Aquaram's ultimate test.
20:30IEDs come in all shapes and sizes, but imagine the nightmare scenario
20:35of a container like this, packed full of explosives,
20:39then trucked to a location or shipped to a port.
20:42For the bomb tech that has to handle this threat,
20:45they have to be incredibly careful and absolutely precise.
20:53On this type of material, you're going to be the first to see.
20:56We've never fired multiple containers.
20:58Okay, so this is an exclusive.
20:59It is. It's the first time that we will have fired dual Aquaram Maxes.
21:05Terrorists could use this huge shipping container
21:08to create a horrendous explosion with devastating consequences,
21:12but not if Aquaram gets there first.
21:16How much trouble are we in?
21:18All right, well, you know what? We're in a lot of trouble.
21:22We are.
21:26If this went off, just this right here, if this alone went off,
21:29what kind of damage are we talking about?
21:32I'll just simply state that it would be a catastrophic event.
21:37So catastrophic, it has the potential to wipe out an entire city block
21:42killing thousands of people.
21:45So, let's get rid of the threat.
21:47That's it. Threat will be removed.
21:50This massive bomb is equivalent to over three-quarters of a ton of TNT,
21:56which means we have to withdraw to a safe distance just in case.
22:04Whenever you're ready, Mike.
22:05Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one.
22:14Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one.
22:26That is awesome.
22:34Range is clear?
22:35Yeah.
22:36Range is clear. Come on through.
22:38All right, look at that.
22:39Look how swollen that thing looks right there.
22:42You can certainly see the ammonium nitrate being spread out right there in the back.
22:53All the evidence is left intact, right?
22:55It's in there.
22:56That's great.
23:00But, you never had a secondary explosion with any of the ammonium nitrate.
23:04So, that's exactly what you're looking for.
23:07Look at that. That's fantastic.
23:09If I need to get inside there, no problem.
23:14Look at this. This is great.
23:16You've got two of those big Aquaram maxes going off, and this is it.
23:22You've got water.
23:24Essentially, all that came out of here was water.
23:26I mean, compared to what would have happened if those things would have gone off,
23:29all of this stuff would have been shredded.
23:31All of this stuff would have been sent flying in all kinds of different directions.
23:39The two Aquaram max tactical disruptors are fired.
23:44The water rips through the container and out the other side.
23:51The bomb mechanism is destroyed so quickly, the explosives don't have time to detonate.
23:59It's fast, it's clean, and the evidence is preserved with minimal collateral damage,
24:04so you can see why it will save lives.
24:07This weapon system is designed to defeat a terrorist at one of his worst weapons that he's created.
24:12Absolutely.
24:13And with tools like these, we're putting them into the hands of bomb technicians
24:18and EOD specialists in the military, and hopefully we can take a bite out of this increasing terrorism.
24:28Coming up...
24:29The Army is buying thousands of them.
24:31So just how good is this new sniper rifle?
24:38The last thing the enemy wants to face on the battlefield is a highly trained sniper
24:44with the latest state-of-the-art weapon.
24:48So I'm on my way to Titusville, Florida, to take on a new sniper.
24:54And I'm going to be using the new Titan.
24:56So I'm on my way to Titusville, Florida to take a look at the most recent sniper rifle to be adopted by the U.S. Army.
25:06Knight's Armament has been developing and manufacturing weapons for over 25 years.
25:16Their latest contract, supply the U.S. Army with more than 3,000 sniper rifles of the future.
25:27Snipers are a special breed of soldier. We demand a special kind of weapon.
25:36This is the M110.
25:39It will support U.S. military operations for many years to come.
25:44And best of all, it's semi-automatic.
25:48It reaches out and touches the enemy at 800 meters and gives the enemy a bad day.
25:52Brigadier General Mark Brown fully supports the U.S. Army's decision to make the M110 operational.
26:01It's a 10-round or a 20-round magazine. It doesn't require the sniper to pull off the target.
26:07He can engage in a target-rich environment or a fleeting target environment in a much faster way.
26:14So snipers can engage the target and, more importantly, stay on target.
26:20It's semi-automatic fire capability, rapid reload capability.
26:24The rail system allows you to put on aiming devices, lasers, clip-on night sights.
26:29You don't have to remove your day-optic sight. It always stays on.
26:32And you simply use thermal or night vision, whatever you need, to snap on it.
26:36This is the tried-and-trusted M24, the main sniper rifle currently in service with the U.S. Army.
26:43Also known as the Remington 700, it's a bolt-action weapon that fires a 7.62-millimeter round.
26:52There are many great rifles that have seen service in the U.S. military.
26:59And nearly all of them are here at Knight's Armament.
27:03This would be about 1942, 1941. So it was World War II, our main battle sniper rifle.
27:13Reid Knight is the mastermind behind the M110.
27:17He draws on his historical collection of firearms to learn lessons for his modern designs.
27:24This was a battle rifle, which is an 03. So it was World War II, our main battle sniper rifle.
27:31For the U.S.
27:32What kind of range are we talking about?
27:33Probably 1,100, 1,200 meters.
27:35Wow.
27:36So it had good range.
27:37That's incredible. What about the optics, though?
27:39Well, the optics were hurting. I mean, you know, you certainly could not tell if it was friend or foe at those kind of ranges.
27:46This is the M21. But this was of the Vietnam era, in the 70s. That was a good gun.
27:55Absolutely. And it was effective. It was accurate.
27:58Semi-automatic.
27:59Knew they needed it and everything else. But none of these semi-automatics were as good as the bolt-action guns.
28:06The bolt-action guns always had more accuracy, always had more reliability.
28:10So we haven't really changed the technology of the weapon.
28:13What we have changed in our battles is our target acquisition, our fire controls.
28:18I'm about to find out how well the U.S. Army's new sniper rifle performs.
28:23But first, let's see what the M24, the most common bolt-action sniper rifle in the field, is capable of.
28:32I've teamed up with former U.S. Army sniper Chuck Olson.
28:37Send him when you're ready.
28:43You ready?
28:44I'm going to fire five rounds at the targets as quickly as I can.
28:53Target.
28:56Target.
29:01Target. Hold three o'clock, one inch.
29:06Target.
29:08Send him in.
29:09Good to go. Good shoot.
29:10I hit all five targets in just over ten seconds.
29:15Not too bad on the time.
29:16But the disadvantage is, it is one round at a time.
29:19I have to use my muscles to adjust that, which changes my firing position just a little bit every time.
29:26So I've got to be really quick, and you've got to train to get your eye back on that target very quickly.
29:34Next, I take the test again to see if the M110 can do it any quicker.
29:47The bolt-action M24, though incredibly accurate, has significant limitations in terms of its rate of fire.
29:55The U.S. Army wanted something faster, but just as lethal.
30:06The M110 is a very powerful sniper rifle.
30:09The Army came out for a requirement for a rifle that they wanted that would be a semi-automatic, as accurate as possible,
30:16had to weigh under 15 pounds, had to have an intricate silencer to it,
30:20it had to have an adjustable buttstock, it had to have ambidextrous controls on it,
30:26and it had to have a bipod.
30:31It doesn't work.
30:32Ambidextrous controls on it, and it had to have a bipod.
30:39It does a very good job, and we're excited about doing it.
30:44Time to put the M110 to the test.
30:48I'll fire five rounds at five targets.
30:52Distance to the target is 220 yards.
31:02Fire.
31:09Shooter ready?
31:10Ready.
31:11Send it.
31:16Target.
31:18Target.
31:19Center, stay there. Target.
31:25Just like that.
31:26That's nice. Nice group.
31:29Five targets in five seconds.
31:33Half the time it took the bolt-action M24.
31:41And that could be all the difference in the world for you guys to get out of there, isn't it?
31:45Oh, definitely.
31:47The attachment of a suppressor brings some big advantages.
31:50It reduces muzzle flash, which makes me less visible to the enemy.
31:55Essential for a sniper.
31:59The suppressor's main function, though, is to dampen the sound of the shot.
32:03That's why I don't need to wear ear protection here.
32:06On a sniper mission in hostile territory, that reduction in sound could save more than just my hearing.
32:14Plus, I have a rapid reload from my magazine, so I've got plenty of rounds if I need to get my guys out of trouble.
32:22But how does the M110 perform when the battlefield is covered in smoke?
32:28They designed their own long-range thermal optical sight.
32:32It is really simple. You just click it into place, lock it there, so my scope and all my sights stay exactly the same.
32:42Now I have the capability to see day or night out to 800 meters, maybe even beyond, with this.
32:49I just hold the power button for a few seconds. Boom.
32:52If I need to get even closer to make sure I'm getting the right target, it gives me double magnification.
32:58So I have everything I need now.
33:00If there's smoke down there and it's hard for me to see the target, no problem.
33:04The thermal capability allows me to see through that smoke and take out the target.
33:09Brilliant design, set up perfectly, and it's ready to do some business.
33:17While patrolling in an urban environment, my reconnaissance can take me in and out of buildings, from light to pitch black in the blink of an eye.
33:26With the night sight clipped onto the gun, I have the flexibility to engage the enemy without having to change my optics.
33:34A great operational advantage.
33:39The M110 has the potential to take sniping to a whole new level.
33:44So how has it performed in the field?
33:48We fielded it actually in Afghanistan with the 10th Mountain Division, and it came back to rave reviews.
33:53And so we're still completing the testing and wrapping up the testing, and we should expect to have it start fielding to the first unit equipped in 2009.
34:02I was definitely impressed. When you know how it's manufactured and the tolerances they're taking into consideration for a semi-automatic weapon, it's really incredible.
34:11Right.
34:15I've just seen how the Sniper has a new weapon that can engage more targets with speed and accuracy.
34:24Now, thousands of miles away, ground-to-air missile defense operators want to do the exact same thing.
34:36I've come to Sweden, where the Army has granted me access to a restricted firing range on the edge of the Baltic for a first look at their very latest missile system.
34:47This is the RBS-70, a portable missile system developed by Saab Bofors Dynamics.
34:56The basic system has been around for a number of years, but it's recently been upgraded to transform it into a true future weapon.
35:04Now it's effective against a much bigger range of ground and airborne targets, day or night.
35:09Today's fighter aircraft are multi-million dollar supersonic technological wonders.
35:16As they become smarter, so too must the countermeasures.
35:23That's why the RBS-70 has to be able to take out anything from a tank to another missile.
35:30You can use it in the middle of a city, deploy on rooftops, you can use it in the field.
35:36The key to this new missile system is the longer-range, higher-altitude Bolide missile.
35:43Its extra-striking range allows it to take out any target in a single shot.
35:49It's also the most powerful anti-aircraft missile in the world.
35:52The longer-range, higher-altitude Bolide missile.
35:56Its extra-striking range allows it to take out more airborne threats, even cruise missiles.
36:04Aki Söderlund has been working with Swedish air defense systems for more than 30 years.
36:12Over the years, things have changed a lot.
36:14From the original 5 kilometers, today we have 8 kilometer range with the Bolide.
36:20And you also raised the ceiling too, that you can collect targets up to 15,000 feet in the air.
36:25The most important thing is the capability of Bolide also to engage the very small targets,
36:33such as cruise missiles, UAVs.
36:37It's adapted itself for the changing environment that it's actually going to have to confront.
36:42Yes.
36:45The portable system uses sophisticated laser tracking.
36:48First, the operator trains the beam onto the target.
36:51Once the missile is fired, it tracks this beam all the way to the target.
36:58Because it's a one-way laser-based communication, it's impossible to jam.
37:04Not only does the Bolide missile have a longer range,
37:07but its proximity fuse can detonate in three different modes,
37:10effective against a wide range of targets.
37:13Coming up, a live test of the RBS-70 missile system.
37:28Today, I'm a guest of the Swedish Army,
37:30and we're taking a closer look at their latest ground-based missile system, the RBS-70.
37:44A three-man team is all that's needed to transport and set up the system.
37:51Because the RBS-70 is so light, these three-man units can easily slip behind enemy defenses.
38:02But on their own, they are only effective against targets within visual range.
38:14If your target is coming in fast, you need a little help.
38:21How do you stack the advantages in your favor?
38:23You add this beast right here. It's a radar system.
38:26Now you can tell several RBS-70s exactly what's happening in that area,
38:31and pick a target and take it out.
38:34The giraffe radar system can detect a target up to 25 miles away,
38:39long before it's within visual range.
38:43An Identification Friend or Foe, or IFF, system automatically interrogates the target.
38:49Flashing lights indicate if it's friendly.
38:52If not, the launcher operator fires and directs the missile toward the target.
38:57Several giraffes can combine to cover many square miles,
39:00and give the guys in the field a clear picture of all aerial threats.
39:06But it doesn't stop there.
39:08In fully automatic mode, once it's identified the threat,
39:11it can work out which unit is in the best position to engage the target.
39:16Today, the RBS-70 is taking part in a live-fire training exercise
39:20for the Swedish soldiers who will operate it,
39:23and must deliver that capability on the battlefield.
39:28For these men and women, this test is not just about graduation.
39:33It's also a test of teamwork.
39:35It's a test of teamwork, and it's a test of teamwork.
39:38It's a test of teamwork, and it's a test of teamwork.
39:41For these men and women, this test is not just about graduation.
39:46Some of them will soon be serving in Afghanistan with the United Nations.
39:53After 1,500 test firings in the simulator,
39:56it's time for their very first live firing at a real airborne target.
40:03This is also my first chance to see it in action.
40:06This is it. This is the real bad boy.
40:09It feels really comfortable to be able to use.
40:12So you use the front side here, kind of see where it's at,
40:15lock that front side into the place, see it,
40:18and then you would come right to the eye relief from there.
40:20So once you're here, my eye goes from here,
40:22seeing it generally in that place, then I come to this,
40:25and that kind of represents the circle I see inside.
40:31Each launch tube contains a laser.
40:34Each launch tube contains a live missile ready for firing.
40:40Okay, and now I come over here, and this is my safety release, right?
40:44You have the safety catch.
40:45That's the powers of the system.
40:51Now over here, this is how I stay on target with the laser.
40:54That's actually the control joystick for the gyro-stabilized mirror,
40:58and that helps you track the target.
41:01And essentially, that's how I'm guiding in the laser and the missile into the target.
41:06Yeah, exactly.
41:07Wherever you have the crosshairs, the missile will go,
41:10and if you are looking at the aircraft with the crosshairs in between,
41:14you will hit the target, absolutely.
41:19Today's target is a simulated enemy missile,
41:22a nine-meter-long tube towed a mile and a half behind a plane.
41:31Each soldier has only one chance to get this right.
41:35If this was a real cruise missile and they missed it,
41:38the warhead would hit its target.
41:4510, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, fire.
41:54Engage.
42:02Fire.
42:08The missile tracks the laser target line.
42:11The gunner just keeps his crosshairs on the target
42:14for the beam-riding missile to automatically zero in on that target all the way to impact.
42:23You did a brilliant job, man.
42:25Yeah, how did it feel?
42:26At least it went down.
42:27It definitely went down. You sunk it right out of the sky.
42:30You blew it up.
42:32It's a really smart system, right?
42:33It is. It's very simple, easy to handle.
42:37When you think about what you have to do to be able to line that sight up,
42:40kind of just take me through the process.
42:42Well, our radar will give me tones in my ear, a dark and a light tone,
42:48so I know what way to move my sight.
42:52The command inside the vehicle gives me permission to fire when the target is at range.
42:58I think you did a fantastic job. Congratulations, man.
43:00Thank you, sir.
43:01You were brilliant.
43:07Very impressive system.
43:09Very accurate.
43:12Pretty much the last thing an aircraft wants to see.
43:28NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology