In Afghanistan, Marines might soon be able to snap together a 6.5-feet tall wall of armor for themselves in under ten minutes, using no tools or equipment. Inside, they'll be safe from bullets and frag from grenades, mortars, and rockets. Badass.


The Marine Corps has already spent $800,000 to buy 14 kits of McCurdy's Armor, the portable wall system developed by Dynamic Defense Materials. The kits are named after Ryan McCurdy, a Marine who was killed in duty in 2006 while pulling a wounded friend to safety.

The walls are also stackable, making them as easy to transport as they are to assemble. Once in position, four soldiers can assemble an individual panel in less than ten minutes, after which multiple panels can snap together in a U-, V, or J-shape, depending on what's preferable for the situation. The walls also feature ballistic windows that open and close, allowing Marines to fire back when necessary.


It's not clear if and when these will be deployed widely in the field, but given that the current alternative is stacking a bunch of sandbags, hopefully Uncle Sam's ready to put in another order. [DDM via National Defense via PopSci]