US Army picks two companies to provide individual weapon sights

US Army Contracting Command has awarded two five-year deals for the Family of Weapons Sights – Individual (FWS-I).

The DoD announced contracts for DRS Network & Imaging Systems ($579.29 million) and Teledyne FLIR ($500.22 million) on 28 April.

‘Work locations and funding will be determined with each order,’ the DoD added.

Along with the Enhanced Night Vision Goggle - Binocular (ENVG-B), FWS-I is intended to provide US Army troops with the most advanced night vision equipment available.

FWS-I, which would be mounted on a soldier's weapon, wirelessly transmits its sight picture to the helmet-worn ENVG-B. It allows soldiers to see through fog, dust, and smoke, in both day and night environments.

The family of sights is compatible with a range of infantry weapons such as the M16 rifle, M249 Squad Automatic Weapon, the M141 Bunker Defeat Munition, and the M136 AT4 Light Anti-Tank Weapon.

It can be mounted in front of day sights that have already been bore-sighted. Soldiers carrying rifles can add or remove the FWS-I without having to remove their day sights first.

FWS-I was designed with end-user input in a collaborative effort with Program Executive Office - Soldier and the Soldier Lethality Cross Functional Team, using soldier feedback early in the development process to inform design.

Related Equipment in Defence Insight

Leonardo DRS ENVG III/FWS-I