$7.5M for Directed Energy ADS2 Riot-Breaker
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Raytheon Missile Systems in Tucson, AZ is being awarded a $7.5 million cost-plus award-fee contract to design, fabricate, test rapidly field and support a fixed Active Denial System (ADS) referred to as System 2 and ADS2.
Active Denial Technology exploits the body’s natural defense mechanism that induces pain as a warning to help protect it from injury. It uses a transmitter producing energy at a frequency of 95Ghz and an antenna to direct a focused, invisible beam to a subject at the speed of light and penetrate the skin to a depth of less than 1/64 of an inch. This produces an escalating heating sensation that becomes intolerable in seconds, and forces the subject to flee. The sensation immediately ceases when the individual moves out of the beam or when the system operator turns it off. Despite this sensation, the beam does not cause injury because of the shallow penetration depth of energy at this wavelength and the low energy levels used.
The idea behind ADS is that U.S. forces will be able to stop, deter, and/or turn back an advancing adversary without applying lethal force or causing permanent injury, before a deadly confrontation develops. Non-lethal technologies can be used for protection of defense resources, peacekeeping, humanitarian missions and other situations in which the use of lethal force is undesirable. ADS is designed to provide these capabilities close in as well as at longer standoff ranges.
The technology was originally developed by the Air Force Research Laboratory and matured under the sponsorship of the Department of Defense’s Joint Non-Lethal Weapons Directorate. Approximately $51 million has been invested over the past eleven years.
System 2 is an autonomous millimeter-wave directed energy unit capable of being transported via C-130 or truck and operated either from the ground or from military vehicle. The DoD news release did not properly specify performance locations or the contracting authority; however, the contract number is FA8728-05-C-0001.
