Saft Ships Large Li-ion to Army

Advanced Battery Technology, Dec 2004

The first production Li-ion batteries in support of the U.S. Army's upgraded Tube-Launched, Optically Tracked, Wire-Guided (TOW) Improved Target Acquisition System (ITAS) have been shipped by Saft. The company was awarded the battery contract by Raytheon Co. under a program managed by the U.S. Army's Close Combat Weapons Systems Office at Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, Alabama. The shipment, to the 172nd Brigade at Fort Wainwright, Alaska, marks the first in a series of deliveries of Li-ion batteries for the ITAS.

"Saft's Li-ion batteries' improved performance will enable the U.S. Army to realize a multimillion dollar lifecycle cost savings over the previously installed silver-zinc battery," says Glen Bowling, director of defense sales at Saft's Space and Defense Division in Cockeysville, Maryland. "In addition, the batteries meet a demanding MIS-PRF specification and provide a reliable, long life power source for the Army's ITAS."

TOW ITAS is designed to defeat threat armored vehicles at extended ranges and provide a long-range surveillance system for the light infantry in all battlefield conditions.