06/02/2004 16:14

Force Protection, Inc. (OTCBB:FRCP) announced today that it has taken steps to have its shares removed from the Berlin Stock Exchange, where it was listed without the company's authorization. "This unsanctioned listing came to our attention a few weeks ago and we have, through our attorney, notified the Berlin Exchange that our stock is to be removed post haste," said CFO Tom Thebes. "While we appreciate any legitimate interest various parties may have in seeing our stock trade in their native country, we will not tolerate unauthorized listing of our stock on any of the world's stock exchanges."
About Force Protection, Inc.

Force Protection, Inc. manufactures and distributes vehicles that protect and save lives and property. Its subsidiary, Technical Solutions Group, Inc., (TSG) manufactures and markets military vehicles that are protected against landmines, hostile fire, and Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs, commonly referred to as roadside bombs). Its mine and ballistic protection technology is among the most advanced in the world. The vehicles are manufactured outside Charleston, S.C.. For more information visit http://www.forceprotection.net.

Strong words too....."we will not tolerate"

Force Protection, Inc. Signs Contract with U.S. Army for 21 Buffalo Mine Protected Clearance Vehicles
6/3/2004 9:01:00 AM
CHARLESTON, S.C., Jun 3, 2004 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Force Protection, Inc. ( FRCP ) announced today that the U.S. Army has signed a contract to purchase 21 Buffalo Mine Protected Clearance Vehicles (MPCVs) from the company's Technical Solutions Group (TSG) subsidiary. The estimated value of this contract is $15.3 million with an initial release of $7.6 million. The balance of the contract is expected to be released by October 2004. In addition to the 21 Buffalo vehicles, the contract provides for the purchase of steel wheels, disc rollers and a wide range of spare parts. The estimated completion date of the contract is year-end 2004.

TSG has previously supplied the Army with 13 Buffalos. "We believe that the Buffalo is the finest vehicle of its kind in the world and the Army's purchase of additional Buffalos appears to corroborate this belief," said Michael Watts, Force Protection, Inc.'s CEO. "The repeat order demonstrates the success of the vehicles deployed in the Middle East."

Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina added, "Our men and women in uniform deserve the best equipment and training available. The Buffalo will help protect our soldiers from landmines and roadside bombs as they carry out their duties in Iraq and Afghanistan. It's an important vehicle helping our soldiers fulfill critical missions."

TSG's Buffalo is a highly advanced Mine Resistant Vehicle with multiple mission configurations and specially designed field reparability. TSG has combined a proprietary capsule design with American automotive expertise to produce a vehicle with superior blast protection, visibility, load carrying capacity, interior space and parts availability.

The unique technology of the Buffalo protects the vehicle and occupants against small arms fire, multiple anti-personnel mines and anti-tank mines. The steel wheels and disc rollers allow the Buffalo to be driven over and detonate anti-personnel mines without damage to the Buffalo. As a result, unusually large numbers of mines can be neutralized in a short period of time.

Mr. Brian Green, from the Office of Project Manager for Close Combat Systems, Countermine Division, stationed at Fort Belvoir, Va., said, "A recent incident, involving a Buffalo vehicle, saw it run over an anti-tank mine. The blast, from the detonation, tore off a wheel and destroyed an axle on the vehicle. There were no casualties to the crew inside the Buffalo. It drove itself out of the minefield, was repaired overnight and was back in operation the following day. This is precisely the result experienced with the Buffalo vehicle when we first tested it and now it is delivering those results under fire in both Afghanistan and Iraq. We just need more of them."

Did you see the excerpt from above?:
Mr. Brian Green, from the Office of Project Manager for Close Combat Systems, Countermine Division, stationed at Fort Belvoir, Va., said, "A recent incident, involving a Buffalo vehicle, saw it run over an anti-tank mine. The blast, from the detonation, tore off a wheel and destroyed an axle on the vehicle. There were no casualties to the crew inside the Buffalo. It drove itself out of the minefield, was repaired overnight and was back in operation the following day. This is precisely the result experienced with the Buffalo vehicle when we first tested it and now it is delivering those results under fire in both Afghanistan and Iraq. We just need more of them."

Issue Date: May 24, 2004

Armored trucks heading to Iraq
‘Cougar’ vehicles going to engineer, ordnance units

By Christian Lowe
Times staff writer

It looks like a cross between a Brinks armored truck and a Light Armored Vehicle, and pretty soon it’ll head to Iraq for some of the Corps’ most dangerous duties.
Late last year, officials with Marine Corps Systems Command signed a deal with Ladson, S.C.-based Force Protection Inc. to build 27 heavily armored vehicles for use by explosive ordnance disposal teams and combat engineers. Those teams dispose of land mines and improvised explosives — common weapons on the Iraqi battlefield.

The trucks, which range in size from seven to 14 tons, are not only built to survive a direct hit from an anti-tank mine, but stand a good chance of driving away — something a fully armored Humvee can’t do. The truck has a compartment encased in thick steel and bulletproof glass.

“This company’s technology and testing [have] proven that their vehicle can drive over a mine and not be dead right there on the road,” said Maj. Bob Gordon, project officer for the hardened engineer vehicle program with Systems Command at Quantico, Va.

So far the Corps has purchased nine “Cougar” four-passenger armored vehicles. These primarily will be used for Marine EOD teams.

The Corps also has purchased five Cougar variants that seat up to 12 — designated for Marine combat engineer teams.

Officials have signed a contract for a total of 27 Cougars — 15 for EOD teams and 12 for combat engineer teams — under an urgent wartime needs statement issued by I Marine Expeditionary Force last year, Gordon said. The Corps spent $4.7 million for the first 14 Cougars but does not yet have funding for the remaining 13, he added.

The first shipment of four vehicles is to be sent to EOD units in Iraq in September, with five more heading over each month through November.

The Cougar has significant advantages over a typical up-armored Humvee in its ability to survive explosive detonations from beneath the vehicle, said Mike Aldrich, vice president for marketing and sales with Force Protection Inc.

“My real gripe with armored Humvees is … from a blast standpoint you’re fighting uphill, you’re just never going to win that battle,” Aldrich said. “The vehicle is too light and too flat. So any significant amount of energy coming up from underneath the vehicle is going to launch the vehicle into the air and flip it over, as we regularly see on the news.”

The Cougar is based on a design that traces its lineage to the South African army and other militaries in land mine-plagued regions.

The armored crew capsule — which has an angular shape designed to deflect blast energy away from the vehicle — is mounted on a frame built by Denton, Texas-based Peterbilt Motor Company, and the truck has the same Detroit Diesel Corp.-built engine as the Army’s Stryker infantry carrier vehicle, Aldrich said.

Gordon, an engineer officer, says the Cougar is a long overdue addition to the EOD and combat engineer community, which in the past had to make do with whatever vehicles it could get.