PICATINNY ARSENAL, N.J. (Army News Service, May 8, 2015) - When engineers here looked at the heavy, 17.5-pound M249 carried by Soldiers, they decided to put it on a diet and rearrange some of the components, Kori Phillips said. She said when her team was finished, the M249, formerly known as the Squad Automatic Weapon, went from 17.5 to 9.2 pounds. That is only about 2 … [Read more...]

PICATINNY ARSENAL, N.J. (Army News Service, May 8, 2015) - The Army is using a Vicon-infrared, marker-tracking system to capture performance data of Soldiers using experimental weapons or equipment, John Riedener said. It is the same technique Hollywood uses to capture live video of people and things and turn that into animation. Riedener, who spoke during a media day at … [Read more...]

WASHINGTON (May 6, 2015) - An independent survey confirms the prevalence of sexual assault in the military has dropped, Defense Department officials recently said. Statistics in the 2014 RAND Military Workplace Study show the percentage of active-duty women who experienced unwanted sexual contact during the past year declined from 6.1 percent in 2012 to an estimated 4.3 … [Read more...]

FORT LEAVENWORTH, Kan. (May 6, 2015) - Soldiers can now use smart phones and computer tablets to access the Army's primary website for training information. Previously, they needed a computer with a Common Access Card, or CAC, to find resources on the Army Training Network, or ATN. The Army recently began allowing users to access ATN with a username and password. Army Chief … [Read more...]

WASHINGTON (Army News Service, May 6, 2015) - The Army must be more selective and careful when choosing Soldiers to serve in key positions, such as recruiters or drill sergeants, said non-commissioned officers, or NCOs, at the first-ever NCO Solarium. Master Sgt. Danny Ibarra, 21st Theater Sustainment Command (Operations and Support), said the Army needs to do a better job … [Read more...]