DTLP: A “Tactical PFD” for law enforcement and military applications

What the heck’s a “DTLP”?!? Turns out it’s a special kind of PFD for law enforcement and military personnel. DTLP stands for Damage-Tolerant Life Preserver. I learned about these during my visit to the Pacific Marine Expo last week.

It seems that maritime law enforcement folks have really embraced the concept of comfortable, compact inflatable PFDs, which permit relatively unrestricted movement. The trouble is that inflatable PFDs are fragile, compared to the bulky foam-vest alternative. When you add the fact that law enforcement and military personnel already carry a lot of bulky gear, the PFD problem becomes even more challenging!

So Mustang Survival has developed the MD4020 Damage Tolerant Life Preserver and the MD4030 Compact Damage Tolerant Life Preserver, shown above (in tan), mounted to MOLLE gear. What’s MOLLE? Read on!

Both are designed to withstand a direct hit from a firearm or ballistic fragment and still inflate when submerged in water. (US Patent 6,453,840, Canadian Patent 2,392,416)

Using Hydrostatic Inflator Technology (HIT™), these DTLPs will automatically inflate within seconds when submerged in 4 or more inches of water and will not inflate prematurely due to rain, humidity or wind-driven sea spray. Both units provide 65 pounds of buoyancy to compensate for nearly all configurations of personal equipment and small arms carried on missions.

The MD4030’s one-size-fits-all design integrates with almost any tactical vest or armor plate carrier that uses Modular Lightweight Load-carrying Equipment (MOLLE) system. The four-point attachment system incorporates side release buckles to permit emergency doffing of the life preserver and allows quick-release vests to fall away.

The MD4020 comes with a harness and can be integrated with most ballistic vests. It contains two inflatable cells. If one cell is compromised prior to inflation, the other cell can be inflated to provide full flotation performance.

The cost? About twice that of a top-of-the-line civilian inflatable PFD.

It turns out Mustang has several lines of industry- and application-specific  flotation products. The Fisheries Supply Emergency Equipment catalog, which I picked up at the show, is a veritable treasure trove of serious safety, rescue, and emergency gear.