2RHPZ
06-30-2004, 09:15 AM
Vehicle Arresting Device Provides Nonlethal Capabilities
(US Marine Corps; June 28, 2004)
CAMP HANSEN, OKINAWA, Japan --- Marines armed with a nonlethal spiked-netting system during military operations in Haiti recently brought a group of Haitians fleeing in their car at a Marine Corps checkpoint to a screeching halt. Now, military policemen will use this rapidly deployed device here.
The Vehicle Lightweight Arresting Device is positioned flat on asphalt or gravel roads, and it is designed to puncture tires and seize a vehicle’s axel with tungsten spikes and nylon netting. The nonlethal device, developed by the United Kingdom-based technology company QinetiQ, is capable of disabling vehicles without using deadly force.
“It has a low profile and is designed to lay flat across the road,” said Staff Sgt. Robert Otero, staff noncommissioned officer in charge, military police, Headquarters and Service Battalion, 3rd Force Service Support Group. “The driver won’t see it until he’s on top of it.”
Marine Corps Combat Development Command, based in Quantico, Va., delivered 12 VLADs to the III Marine Expeditionary Force to demonstrate and test the device’s capabilities here June 15.
When a vehicle runs over the spikes, they puncture and grab the tires and the net wraps around the axel, stopping the vehicle, said Ray Grundy, deputy director of the nonlethal weapons program, MCCDC. Once this occurs the VLAD must be thrown away.
Military policemen and Marines will have the disposable spiked nets to provide force protection during deployments. Force protection is the collective term for security measures and policies implemented in foreign countries to ensure the safety of U.S. service members.
Used VLADs are replaced on a case-by-case basis to meet the unit’s force protection needs, costing them $5,000 a piece. Units may also order additional VLADs to meet their checkpoint requirements in providing force protection.
“The device can be used in the field and on base,” said antiterrorism force protection officer Master Sgt. Gregory Mitchell, 1st Marine Aircraft Wing. “This device could be used if someone commits a crime on base or if we need to stop someone at a checkpoint.”
Other portable stopping devices available are spike strips and arresting barriers, but these systems have their limitations. Spike strips only puncture tires allowing drivers to continue driving on steel rims, and arresting barriers are used to block off roads, but they are large and heavy, Grundy explained.
“The VLAD has its advantages because it is portable and disposable,” Mitchell said. “Vehicles can be stopped anywhere with the device.”
To demonstrate the potential of the VLAD to Marines of III MEF, Grundy drove a Marine Corps-owned vehicle over the spiked-nylon netting. The first try was unsuccessful because the net did not seize the truck’s axels and tires. Determined to prove the device’s capability, Grundy deployed a second VLAD, successfully bringing the truck to a screeching halt.
“The weight of the vehicle looked like it may have been a factor in not working correctly the first time,” Mitchell said. “A heavier vehicle probably would have tangled the entire net.”
Otero said the VLAD was still able to stop the vehicle, and although it wasn’t pretty, it is an effective tool.
(US Marine Corps; June 28, 2004)
CAMP HANSEN, OKINAWA, Japan --- Marines armed with a nonlethal spiked-netting system during military operations in Haiti recently brought a group of Haitians fleeing in their car at a Marine Corps checkpoint to a screeching halt. Now, military policemen will use this rapidly deployed device here.
The Vehicle Lightweight Arresting Device is positioned flat on asphalt or gravel roads, and it is designed to puncture tires and seize a vehicle’s axel with tungsten spikes and nylon netting. The nonlethal device, developed by the United Kingdom-based technology company QinetiQ, is capable of disabling vehicles without using deadly force.
“It has a low profile and is designed to lay flat across the road,” said Staff Sgt. Robert Otero, staff noncommissioned officer in charge, military police, Headquarters and Service Battalion, 3rd Force Service Support Group. “The driver won’t see it until he’s on top of it.”
Marine Corps Combat Development Command, based in Quantico, Va., delivered 12 VLADs to the III Marine Expeditionary Force to demonstrate and test the device’s capabilities here June 15.
When a vehicle runs over the spikes, they puncture and grab the tires and the net wraps around the axel, stopping the vehicle, said Ray Grundy, deputy director of the nonlethal weapons program, MCCDC. Once this occurs the VLAD must be thrown away.
Military policemen and Marines will have the disposable spiked nets to provide force protection during deployments. Force protection is the collective term for security measures and policies implemented in foreign countries to ensure the safety of U.S. service members.
Used VLADs are replaced on a case-by-case basis to meet the unit’s force protection needs, costing them $5,000 a piece. Units may also order additional VLADs to meet their checkpoint requirements in providing force protection.
“The device can be used in the field and on base,” said antiterrorism force protection officer Master Sgt. Gregory Mitchell, 1st Marine Aircraft Wing. “This device could be used if someone commits a crime on base or if we need to stop someone at a checkpoint.”
Other portable stopping devices available are spike strips and arresting barriers, but these systems have their limitations. Spike strips only puncture tires allowing drivers to continue driving on steel rims, and arresting barriers are used to block off roads, but they are large and heavy, Grundy explained.
“The VLAD has its advantages because it is portable and disposable,” Mitchell said. “Vehicles can be stopped anywhere with the device.”
To demonstrate the potential of the VLAD to Marines of III MEF, Grundy drove a Marine Corps-owned vehicle over the spiked-nylon netting. The first try was unsuccessful because the net did not seize the truck’s axels and tires. Determined to prove the device’s capability, Grundy deployed a second VLAD, successfully bringing the truck to a screeching halt.
“The weight of the vehicle looked like it may have been a factor in not working correctly the first time,” Mitchell said. “A heavier vehicle probably would have tangled the entire net.”
Otero said the VLAD was still able to stop the vehicle, and although it wasn’t pretty, it is an effective tool.