The Trojan Ballistics Suit of Armor is a protection suit designed by Troy Hurtubise for Canadian soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan, respectively. Troy claims that it is "the first suit of its kind in the world, it is the first ballistics exoskeleton body suit of armor." Despite efforts to promote the suit, the inventor has experienced personal and financial hardship.
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Development
Troy Hurtubise spent two years and 15,000 dollars developing the Trojan suit. When worn, the Trojan provides 97% coverage of the body and 95% flexibility. The suit also weighs 50 lbs maximum. He claims that it could be suited to a soldier for 2,000 Canadian dollars if it were mass-produced. It was originally designed to stop Improvised Explosive Devices like the kind used in Iraq. However, he has yet to test the suit against a live IED.
The suit uses a bullet-resistant foam of his own design to repel bullets and knives.
Features
The Trojan Ballistics Suit of Armor's main weapons are dual pistols on magnetic holsters. There is a sheath on the wrist that contains a knife for close-quarter combat. The suit also contains a Pepper spray capsule for emergency situations. Troy stated that this could be used to incapacitate 40 insurgents. This is supposedly made possible because his capsule will contain 3% oleoresin capsicum. However, it would be illegal to use in a combat situation as it is banned for use in war by the 1997 Chemical Weapons Convention.
The helmet utilizes both an intake fan and an exhaust fan to keep the soldier from overheating in countries like Iraq and Afghanistan. It also includes a perfectly centered laser targeting system to mark a target to be taken out by a sniper or assault vehicle. Troy integrated a voice-activated radio into the helmet for easy communication. Two high-power lights are integrated into the side of the helmet. Troy also included a voice-changing mechanism into his helmet.
A compartment on the left arm contains a small vial of salt for the soldier and the inventor stated that each Trojan suit would contain one dose of morphine. Also, a "last-words" recorder can be taken off of a soldier and given to the family of the soldier. A transponder chip is included that can be swallowed by a soldier so that he can be extracted. A light transponder on the chest can also be activated to signal a helicopter.
On the right leg is a small remote-controlled surveillance robot. The soldier watches the robot on a small fold-out screen on the left leg. A military time world clock is integrated into the groin protector that he claims is "where it's got to be." One of the shoes also has a small handheld shovel locked in.
Raffle
Troy held a raffle for his Trojan suit to raise funds to continue development. The winner was Sara Markis but who agreed to let Troy keep the suit.
Media coverage
The Trojan was featured on a Discovery channel special where he explained the features of his suit in detail.
Similarities
The Trojan suit bears a striking resemblance to the MJOLNIR battle armors from the Halo video game series. Troy confirmed this in an interview, saying "I did look at Star Wars. I looked at Halo, the video game."