The Latest from Cactus Tactical: Weapons of the War in Afghanistan: Surveillance/Reconnaissance and Targeting Systems, Part I

Weapons of the War in Afghanistan

In the world of war, weapons and technology are ever changing, each war is characterized by the weapons and tactics used to fight it. As new environments and enemies are encountered, the parties to those wars develop new - more effective tactics, technologies, and weapons to counter and defeat their adversaries. The ingenuity seen in war has existed since (and most certainly before) the first wars of recorded history and continue to this very day.

Keeping with that theory, let’s take a look at the weapons that have characterized the wars and conflicts that the United States has been a party to over the course of it’s history. During the course of this series, I aim to breakdown the weapons used in each conflict by their classification, and to which party they were employed by. Having served in combat operations in Afghanistan’s Korengal Valley, I would like to start our series with the War in Afghanistan.

For our twentieth installment let's take a look the most common Surveillance/Reconnaissance and Targeting Systems used in the War in Afghanistan.

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Part I - The United States

LRAS3

The LRAS3 is a long range multisensor system designed for use by the US Army platforms in surveillance and reconnaissance missions. It provides real-time, day and night, in adverse weather conditions the capability to detect, recognize, identify, and pinpoint far target locations. The LRAS3 consists of a second generation FLIR, TV camera, GPS interferometer, and an eyesafe laser range finder. It can be mounted either on armored ground vehicles such as the HMMWV, M1, M2 and Stryker or used on a tripod for dismounted missions.

The LRAS3 can establish a target location coordinates at 10 kilometers with an estimated CEP of 60 meters. The laser rangefinder is capable of range measurements with 5 meters accuracy.

The US Army and the US Marine Corps are the largest customers for LRAS3 second generation forward looking infrared (FLIR) system.

Provides Soldiers in Armored, Infantry, Stryker Brigade Combat Teams and Battlefield Surveillance Brigades with a long range surveillance and reconnaissance capability 24 hours a day in all weather conditions.

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Laser Target Locators

The Laser Target Locators (LTL) are handheld or tripod-mounted, lightweight laser target locators. They deliver target data to the fire support, and maneuverCommand, Control, Communications, Computer and Intelligence system (C4I).

The Vector 21 is a Binocular Laser Rangefinder (BLRF) with an embedded digital compass. Soldiers can connect the Vector 21 to the Precision Lightweight GPS Receiver (PLGR) or a Defense Advanced GPS Receiver (DAGR) to provide target grid coordinates. When used in conjunction with an AN/PVS-14 Monocular Night Vision Device, the Vector 21 provides a limited night capability.

The Mark VII integrates a monocular direct-view optic, an image intensifier, a laser rangefinder and a digital compass into a day/night target location device. The Mark VII connects to the PLGR or the DAGR to provide grid coordinates to distant targets. The Mark VII provides a limited night capability.

The Mark VIIE is an integrated target locator module with a more powerful 8x day optic. It has an uncooled thermal sight for increased night performance and an embedded GPS receiver for stand-alone targeting operations.

The Target Reconnaissance Infrared Geolocating Rangefinder (TRIGR) is an integrated target locator module with a 7x direct view optic, an improved uncooled thermal sight for significantly increased night performance, a laser rangefinder, digital compass and embedded GPS receiver for stand-alone targeting operations.

Specifications:

Weight (handheld):

Vector 21: 3.8 pounds (not including the cable and PLGR or DAGR)
Mark VII: 4.2 pounds
Mark VII E: 5.5 pounds
RIGR: 5.5 pounds

Weight (total system):

Vector 21: (daylight), 5.9 pounds; (night), 9.2 pounds (including cables and batteries for day and night and Night Vision Goggles and adapter for night operations)
Mark VII: 6 pounds (Including cables and batteries)
Mark VII E: 5.5 pounds
TRIGR: 5.5 pounds

Target Recognition Ranges:

Vector 21 and Mark VII: >4.2 kilometers day, > .5 kilometers night (to a NATO standard vehicle target)
Mark VIIE and TRIGR: >4.2 kilometers day, >1.2 kilometers night (to a NATO standard vehicle target)

Target Location Error: <45 meters at 5 kilometers in a magnetically benign environment

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