Force Protection Equipment Demonstration (FPED) to show off anti-terrorism technology May 17-19

FPED VIII site in Northern VA

More than 3,000 commercial off-the-shelf items of equipment and systems for countering terrorism will be demonstrated during a federally produced demonstration at the Stafford Regional Airport in Northern Virginia this May 17-19.

The Eighth Force Protection Equipment Demonstration (FPED VIII) venue is located 40 miles south of the Pentagon and 10 miles below Quantico, VA, just off Interstate-95. A collaborative effort between government and more than 575 exhibitors from U.S. and allied nations, it will present only items that can be available for procurement and testing within the 90 days immediately following close of the event.

The demonstration is not open to the public. It serves leaders and other decision-makers in defense, homeland security, nuclear security and first-response, as well as officials in state and local law enforcement, physical security and first-responder organizations, and defense and homeland security media.

Sponsored foreign personnel may also attend. Military and civilian personnel in command, physical security and first response positions are encouraged to attend and see the latest in integrated force protection, anti-terrorist and first-response solutions presented in 20 equipment categories.

Online registration for FPED VIII is available at this Web site.

The Department of Defense Physical Security Equipment Action Group administered by the Office of the Assistant to the Secretary of Defense for Nuclear and Chemical and Biological Defense Programs / Nuclear Matters will direct and sponsor the demonstration. Additional sponsors include the U.S. Department of Energy and the Technical Support Working Group. The demonstration is coordinated and executed by the U.S. Army Product Manager, Force Protection Systems.

The Force Protection Equipment Demonstrations have been held every two years since 1997. Due to increasing terrorist strikes against U.S. forces and diplomatic posts at that time, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff determined a need for frequent reviews of potential solutions for countering the expanding array of weapons and delivery methods being developed and employed by terrorists. In the years since the first FPED, increases in acts of terrorism and attempted terrorist attacks have been directed toward U.S. and allied troops and civilians in combat zones and domestic settings, both in their homelands and abroad, explains a news release issued by FPED on Feb. 28. The most deadly was the use of commercial airliners as weapons on September 11, 2001. In counter-terrorism planning, authorities now have to consider improvised explosive devices (IEDs), car bombs, explosives emplacement aboard cargo and commercial passenger aircraft, suicide bombers and direct assaults with small arms or heavy weapons.

FPED VIII attendees will have opportunities to examine the best available force protection equipment and systems for countering those types of weapons and attacks. Focus of the event includes reducing vulnerabilities to threats such as IEDs and conventional explosives, weaponized chemical and biological agents, and nuclear materials, among others. Security systems and equipment demonstrated for counterterrorism and first-response authorities at earlier editions of the Force Protection Equipment Demonstrations are now in use by U.S. and allied agencies around the world.

The FPED VIII theme, Force Protection Through Integrated Physical Security Solutions, reflects a growing emphasis on mutually supporting resources to meet current and evolving force protection needs, anti-terrorist requirements, and the demands of an increasingly broad range of security challenges.