See, this is why you shouldn't fire at Aegis! | Forums

[Compassghost]

FRIENDLY FIRE FROM THE RICOCHETS!

[Blank-z]

I've one shot myself off a ricochet. It was embarrassing.

[gameshoes]

How interesting. I did not know the bullets would ricochet. I thought that they were just absorbed.

[Compassghost]

I just thought of something awesome. Using Aegis to hit someone in cover. GENIUS.

[Davynelord]

Yeah they richochet....but I'm almost certain that shooting the shield depletes it faster...otherwise what would the durability stat be for if it's not able to be depleted faster than the 16 - 22 seconds it's supposed to last?

So as long as it's able to be depleted faster, shooting it is a good option in my opinion even if you risk hitting your own team with a ricochet....at least the shield goes down faster and you'd be able to stop the Spec from killing the rest of your team with the shield still up....so a very small chance of trading 1 teammates life (not like you'll always kill a teammate with a ricochet) to save 3 or 4...I can live with that in this game LOL.

[cra2yazn]

I've actually killed myself while in an AEGIS from shooting at another AEGIS. Pretty funny stuff. Also Davynelord the AEGIS doesn't deplete faster but actually just has health if that makes sense. If you deal enough damage to an AEGIS you can shut it down.

[Noviwan]

Yeah they richochet....but I'm almost certain that shooting the shield depletes it faster...otherwise what would the durability stat be for if it's not able to be depleted faster than the 16 - 22 seconds it's supposed to last?

Correct on both accounts. It's really not a shield ... the bubble you see is an AR (augmented reality) visual representation of a hemispheric protection system. Which has been demonstrated albeit at a much larger scale:
http://defense-update.com/products/t/trophy.htm