ADS “Pain Ray” Headed to Iraq
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Back in May 2005, DID covered the Active Denial System “riot breaker,” a microwave transmitter installed on a Humvee whose focused beams create burning sensations that force targets to flee in order to escape. Despite the pain, however, the beams reportedly cause no real injuries. A follow-up DID article in August 2005 noted that testing on human volunteers was underway, and a September 2005 article noted the role of the Pentagon’s Office of Force Transformation in creating the ADS (aka. “Project Sheriff”) as an alternative to sometimes-lethal plastic bullets or even live ammunition in order to control hostile crowds.
Now DefenseTech notes that Iraq may soon have a new Sheriff in town….
UPDATE: As of January 30, 2006, ADS still has not been deployed. An article in US Air Force AIM Point expresses general puzzlement at the failure to release the system, despite the US Army’s requests.
