Move over Tony Stark, the U.S. Military are developing their own version of Iron Man’s armour called the Talos suit, and hope to have it ready for combat by 2018.
The Tactical Light Operator Suit (Talos) is being developed by the Department of Defence and can do all sorts of futuristic stuff. It can repel bullets, help lift heavy loads, and provide life saving oxygen if the wearer gets themselves into a bit of a pickle.
According to CNN, military top brass decided to work on the suit after hearing of a soldier in Afghanistan who sadly died when he was first to enter a room during a raid.
Gen. Joseph Votel, Head of U.S. Special Operations Command said:
This is a program that we started after we lost an operator on a mission. The first guy coming into a particular building was engaged and unfortunately was mortally wounded. And in the wake of that, we asked ourselves, ‘Couldn’t we do better in terms of protecting him, of giving him a better advantage when he’s at the most vulnerable point that we put our operators?’
The Talos suit will be a wearable exoskeleton that weighs in at just over 13 pounds, but will help the wearer lift an additional 33 pounds – that’s the same weight as a cinder block. The suit will also come complete with ‘liquid body armour’ that will mold to the wearer on command via triggered electrical impulses.
It’s not clear how much the suits will cost, but estimates put it in the region of £52million. Unfortunately though, it won’t be able to fly. Yet.
Mark is the Gaming Editor for UNILAD. Having grown up a gaming addict, he’s been deeply entrenched in culture and spends time away from work playing as much as possible. Mark studied music at University and found a love for journalism through going to local gigs and writing about them for local and national publications.