AUSA 2019: Ceradyne 3M F70 new generation of ballistic helmet.

Ceradyne, Inc., a 3M company, announces the launch of a new generation of ballistic helmet with its 3M™Ballistic Helmet F70. Under today’s higher threat levels, operators must be assured their helmet will deliver the protection they need so they can focus on the mission.

New 3M™Ballistic Helmet F70 (Picture source 3M)

Each day, thousands of military and police forces across the world rely on cutting-edge protection to keep them safe. When it comes to equipping these service members with helmets, decision-makers look for ballistic protection they can count on, as well as designs that deliver the right fit, comfort and weight for each end user’smission and operational environment.

The F70 delivers a high level of protection at a lightweight that far exceeds conventional (ACH) ballistic helmet specifications. The helmet geometry creates a comfortable and modular design that is well suited for a wide range of missions and includes a novel no thru-hole construction for mounting the NVG shroud, retention system and rails. The elimination of thru-holes increases the shell’s effective protection area reduces overall system weight by up to 31% (compared to the finished shell of an ACH helmet) and eliminates the risk of bolts becoming secondary projectiles during ballistic events.

The 3M Ballistic Helmet F70 provides V50 fragmentation protection against 17-grain (.22-caliber) fragment-simulating projectile (FSP) at greater than 2,760 feet per second (greater than 840 meters per second). The ballistic shell weight starts at 1.52 pounds in the high-cut version and 1.75 pounds in the mid-cut version. This line of light-weight helmets meets or exceeds all U.S. Army Advanced Combat Helmet (ACH) ballistic fragmentation requirements for 2-grain, 4-grain, 16-grain and 64-grain RCC, and 17-grain FSP when tested in accordance with MIL-STD662F.