THE GLOBAL DEFENDER     

                      BLAST MITIGATION SYSTEM 

Global Defender Demonstration

Houston, TX  Police Department Bomb Range

October 03, 2003

In Attendance (Agencies Only.  Names withheld for security purposes):

ATF

FBI

Houston, TX  Police Dept.

Corpus Christi, TX Police Dept.

US Army EOD

Weather Conditions:

Temperature:  60 to 80 deg F

Wind:  North 5-7 knots

Humidity:  20%

Sequence of Events:

1. Global Defender overview
2. Range Safety Brief
3. 1993 Ford Crown Victoria Police Cruiser, loaded with 12”x2” galvanized pipe bomb with ¾ pound of smokeless “green dot” powder, 50 grain det cord detonated.  Car was filled to door level with Global Defender foam mitigant.
4. 12”x2” galvanized pipe bomb with ¾ pound of smokeless “green dot” powder, 50 grain det cord placed on ground.  Pipe bomb was covered with a 6’ Global Defender Blast Mitigation bag and detonated.  Bomb was surrounded by a 10’ radius witness fence to demonstrate the effects of system on mitigating blast and fragmentation effects.
5. 1993 Ford Crown Victoria Police Cruiser, loaded with 12”x2” galvanized pipe bomb with ¾ pound of smokeless “green dot” powder, 50 grain det cord detonated.  No Mitigation provided.
6. ¾ pound binary charge with 16 ounces of purple “chalk like” powder attached to charge to simulate dispersible agent such as anthrax, chemical agent, etc. Device was covered with 6’ Global Defender Blast Mitigation bag and detonated.
7. ¾ pound binary charge with 16 ounces of purple “chalk like” powder attached to charge to simulate dispersible agent such as anthrax, chemical agent, etc.  No mitigation provided.
8. 2 pound “Seismic Charge” detonated by use of a “perforator device.”  Charge was covered by a 6’ Global Defender Blast Mitigation bag prior to utilizing “counter charge” for detonation.
9. 12”x2” galvanized pipe with no explosive was placed on ground and covered with a 4’ bag.  A Pan Disruptor was then utilized to disrupt the pipe bomb, attempting to blow the end cap off the device.
10.  12”x2” galvanized pipe bomb with ¾ pound of smokeless “green dot” powder, 50 grain det cord placed on ground.  Pipe bomb was covered with a “Ballistic Prototype” 6’ Global Defender Blast Mitigation bag and detonated.  Bomb was surrounded by a 10’ radius witness fence to demonstrate the effects of system on mitigating blast and fragmentation effects.

Results:

1. Car Bombs:
   1. Identical charges were placed under the driver seats of identical 1993 full size police cruisers.

                                                               i.       The vehicle without Blast Mitigant was heavily damaged.  All windows were blown out, with the front windshield being blown intact over 150 feet from vehicle.  The roof of the car was completely buckled.  Large pieces of frag, some over 2 ½ inches long, were projected outward through both the driver and passenger side doors, as well as the roof.  Many of these pieces were recovered embedded in the earthen burm surrounding the bomb range.  The interior of the car was completely destroyed.

                                                                                click picture to enlarge

                                                             ii.      The vehicle filled with Global Defender Blast Mitigant to door level sustained very little exterior damage.  Only the passenger side window sustained any damage.  All other windows, including the front or rear windshields, were left intact.  No frag escaped laterally through the doors or windows.  The only exterior damage occurred from one of the springs in the driver side seat penetrating the rooftop.  The only interior damage was to the driver side seat and floor pan, where the bomb detonated.  Passenger seat and rear seat were undamaged. 

                                                                                click picture to enlarge

2. Pipe Bombs, covered with our 6’ conventional bag
   1. We conducted one shot covering a 12”x2” pipe bomb with ¾ pound smokeless  powder.  The bomb was surrounded by a 10’ radius witness fence.

                                                               i.      Upon detonation, the bag contained the blast, then gave way, as designed, and allowed foam to be expelled to a distance of approximately 10 feet, barely enough to stick to the walls of the witness fence.  There was no “fireball”, and the foam stopped and contained the majority of the pipe fragmentation.  The furthest piece of fragmentation was discovered approximately 15 feet from the blast.  The witness fence surrounding the blast was completely intact and still in excellent shape.  Due to range restrictions, we were not able to detonate a pipe bomb without mitigation.  However, past results showed that fragmentation was typically projected well over 300 feet from the blast point, and the witness fence was completely destroyed. 

                                                                           click picture to enlarge

3. 1  Pound Binary charge with dispersible agent attached
   1. Two identical shots were performed with a ¾ pound binary charge detonated with 16 ounces of purple “chalk like” substance attached to the device to simulate a dispersible agent.  One shot was covered with a 6’ Global Defender bag, one shot was uncovered.

                                                               i.      The uncovered shot immediately created a large, purple cloud over the point where the device was detonated.  This cloud elevated to approximately 50 feet and drifted downwind until it drifted into a stand of trees bordering the range.  Powder was blown horizontally to a range of approximately 100 feet, and was found in small clumps in all directions from the blast. 

                                                                             click on picture to enlarge

                                                             ii.      The shot covered with our system contained all visible signs of the agent.  The bag was not even destroyed by the blast effects, and only came apart on the bottom area which surrounded the explosive.  Upon post blast inspection, the purple agent was visible within the foam.  There was absolutely no cloud present post blast, as there was in the previous shot. 

                                                                             click on picture to enlarge

4. 2 pound Seismic charge detonated with counter charge
   1. One shot was performed to demonstrate the ability of the system to be used with current disruption techniques, such as counter charges and perforators.  First, a 1 ½ inch x 4 foot PVC pipe, taped at the end to prevent the counter charge from touching the device, was placed perpendicular to the device to be counter charged.  Next, the device was covered with a 6’ Global Defender bag.  Finally, the counter charge was inserted into the PVC pipe and pushed in until it came into contact with the taped end of the pipe.  The device was then remotely detonated utilizing the counter charge.

                                                               i.      This shot was performed solely to demonstrate the compatibility with proven methods of disruption and counter charge techniques.  The system did an excellent job of mitigating the 2 pound seismic charge, resulting in no collateral damage.

                                                                            click picture to enlarge

[ Home ] [ Up ] [ News ] [ Products ] [ Pictures ] [ Contact Us ]

Hit Counter
Last modified: 07/26/05