FN Herstal’s subsidiary in Washington, United States, FNH USA, won a major contract from the US Customs and Border Protection, Border Patrol for purchase of the FN303 Less Lethal System.
“The Border Patrol testing of the FN303 was comprehensive and exhaustive; it is gratifying to have won this contract,” said
Rick DeMilt, senior vice president of sales and marketing for FNH USA. This was a single source contract awarded to FNH USA, because the FN303 is the only less lethal system with the range requirements specified by US Customs and Border Protection. The Border Patrol has now over 1,000 FN303s for use in training and potential deployment.
It found the advantages of the FN303 to be:
- Use of the FN303 is less likely to cause serious bodily harm or permanent injury
- The FN303 offers the operator three use-of-force options: visual deterrence, area saturation and kinetic impact
- The FN303 has an effective range of 0 to 50m – more than triple the range of the pepper ball launching system currently in use
- The FN303 can also be used for area saturation with PAVA (pelargonic acid
vanillylamid) powder from a distance of up to 100m. - Because of the range of the FN303, operators can increase their personal safety by aiming an accurate projectile at a target from a much greater distance.
Five projectiles are available for the FN303 – clear impact (liquid or powder), indelible paint, washable paint and PAVA.
FNH USA has provided detailed instructor training on the FN303 to US Customs Border Patrol personnel.
The FN303 will first be deployed in the San Diego, Yuma and Tucson sectors because operators in this area have experienced the greatest increase in assaults. A nationwide deployment will follow.