Iron Curtain Outperforms in Government Testing; Active Protection System Ready for Deployment

HERNDON, Va., April 29, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- The head of a growing technology development firm announced today that one of its premier products, the active protection system (APS) known as Iron Curtain, successfully defeated all threats during recent U.S. government testing.

"After this latest round, where the system hit and killed 100 percent of the shots in a very demanding test series, the only rational conclusion is that the system simply works," said Keith Brendley, CEO of Artis, LLC, developer of Iron Curtain.  "We proved not only that Iron Curtain defeats threats and saves lives, but the risk from collateral damage is minimal, especially when compared with the alternative."

Brendley said that the system protects military vehicles and other assets by intercepting threats such as rocket-propelled grenades inches from the vehicle and rendering them inert, even if the threat was fired from extremely close range.  Iron Curtain uses two independent sensors, radar and optical, high-speed computing, and tightly controlled countermunitions to minimize the false alarm rate and provide extraordinary system effectiveness and reliability.

"In addition to these compelling test results, Iron Curtain has an approved safety architecture as unanimously recommended by the Joint Services Weapons Safety Review Board.  These accomplishments along with our cost studies show that this system is affordable and ready to integrate today," said Brendley.

The system's radar was developed by Mustang Technology Group in Plano, Texas.  BAE Systems integrated the system onto a combat vehicle as a system demonstrator for government testing.

Mark Signorelli, a BAE Systems executive, said, "We evaluated many active protection systems.  Iron Curtain was selected because of its test history, maturity, robust capability against many types of threats, and safety to personnel outside the vehicle.  Clearly, the outstanding result from these tests vindicates our decision.  The BAE protection systems team picked the best APS in the market, and then did an excellent job in integrating it with our platform."

Retired Army Gen. Walter "Skip" Sharp, former head of U.S. and U.N. forces in Korea, said, "The threat posed by small rockets and missiles is very real in places such as Korea and around the globe.  When I first heard how Iron Curtain shoots down threats just inches from the vehicle, my reaction was, 'No way!'  But after I examined the data and witnessed a live fire demonstration, I was convinced.  It defeats a real threat, and I can't see any technical, safety or affordability reason why this shouldn't be deployed today and save lives."

Former Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Expeditionary Warfare, Brian Detter, said, "This is clearly a life-saving technology, and the testing demonstrates it is ready to be included in existing ground vehicles and those under development, such as the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle.  Currently, there is no plan to include APS, and modifications can be made which preserves this capability at very little cost."

About Artis, LLC

Artis is privately held and a partially owned subsidiary of Plasan U.S.  Founded in 1999, the company specializes in advanced concept development of technology supporting defense and security markets.  Its focus includes advanced real-time information systems, with an emphasis on distributed sensor and actuation networks operating at extremely high speeds.

SOURCE Artis, LLC