Review: Blackfolium – ISKIT und GTAS Kit

Introduction

Blackfolium is an Italian company that offers a wide range of tactical gear, from small panels to large backpacks and bag kits. They also produce essential survival kit items, including the GTAS and ISKIT signalling panels. In this review, I will provide a brief overview of these items and demonstrate how they can be useful to users in outdoor and military settings.

Overview

The GTAS (Ground-to-Air Signalling) Kit contains a signalling panel made of two high-visibility 40D nylon sheets, a chem-light and a dedicated Cordura pouch to carry these items. The ISKIT (Individual Signalling Kit) is a smaller version designed for lightweight personal carry.

Specs

• Pouch made of 500D Cordura (DWR and NIR treated)
• Signal panels: 40D nylon, ripstop
• Shock cord
• Paracord type 1

GTAS

• VS-17 panel: 180 x 60 cm / 24″ x 70″
• WxHxD: 9 cm / 3,54″ x 13 cm / 5,12″ x 4 cm / 1,57″
• Weight: 180 gr / 6,35 oz.

ISKIT

• H70 Signal panel: 70 x 70 cm / 27,5” x 27,5”
• WxHxD: 7 cm / 3″ x 10 cm / 4″ x 2,5 cm / 1″
• Weight: 60 gr / 2,1 oz.

The Blackfolium GTAS and ISKIT

Both the GTAS and the ISKIT kits operate on the same principle. They both contain a foldable Cordura pouch with two slip pockets and an elastic webbing loop for carrying a high-visibility signalling panel for daytime use, as well as a chemlight for night-time signalling. The slip pocket in the lid also provides room to carry an optional signal mirror or compass.

While the ISKIT is an extremely lightweight, small package that can be carried in an upper arm pocket, the GTAS is slightly bigger but still compact enough to fit in your cargo pockets.

The GTAS Kit is designed to comply with military signalling protocols and is based on the VS-17 panel. Blackfolium uses 40D Ripstop Nylon fabric in two bright colours, orange and magenta, to create a large 180 x 60 cm signal panel that can be used to mark one’s position. The overall weight has been reduced to 180 grams, and thanks to the small packing size of the 40D nylon, the GTAS kit can easily be carried in cargo pockets, backpack sleeves, or pouches on your kit.

In comparison, the ISKIT is even smaller, weighing only 60 grams. It can easily be put into your side or upper arm pockets, as it is roughly half the size of the GTAS Kit.

Level of manufacture

Both the pouches and the signal panels are made from high-quality materials with great attention to detail. Stress areas are reinforced and the stitching is solid, giving an immediate impression of high quality. As these are simple yet well-manufactured pouches, there is not much more to say other than that you are getting an excellent product.

Consequently, the two kits are straightforward to explain, and the specifications of the materials speak for themselves. More interesting are some specific use cases:

The Blackfolium GTAS Kit in use – Forest

I set up the VS-17 panel from the GTAS Kit on the ground floor of a forest, ensuring clear visibility. The distance to the panel was approximately 30 metres uphill. I took a wide-angle picture to give the impression of greater distance, as well as a picture taken with a 35 mm focal length to show how the human eye would perceive the distance.

As you can see from the photos, the magenta side was easy to spot and appeared quite bright at this short distance.

I also took a picture of the H70 panel from the ISKIT to show what its colours look like on the ground.

The Blackfolium GTAS Kit in use – Drone perspective

What interested me more was the visibility from above. To find out more, I used my DJI Mavic Mini to take pictures at different heights. The weather was sunny, with bright light and strong shadows.

From 30 metres up, the orange panel was clearly visible; however, the magenta side was more visible due to the higher contrast with the surrounding colours.

At a lower altitude of 20 metres, the results were the same. The pictures also illustrate the reflection of the nylon fabric well – the sunlight resulted in bright white reflections, which added to the visibility of the high-visibility colours.

The Blackfolium ISKIT in use – Mountains

Pine Survey contributor KodiakDerBaer carries the ISKIT with him during outdoor trips for signalling and emergency purposes. The following pictures show the ISKIT in use on a PenCott camouflage backpack, giving you an idea of how the camouflage and signalling features compare.

Conclusion

Sometimes you want to be concealed, and sometimes you need to be seen. The GTAS Kit and the ISKIT are ideal for the latter scenario. These lightweight, well-constructed products give you various options for marking your position during the day. At night, the added chemlight does the trick.

Despite their simplicity, these items can provide users with essential assistance in emergency situations or when marking a spot is necessary.

With that being said, I would like to thank the team at Blackfolium for making this review possible!

Thank you for reading!

Take care!