Active Protection Systems - at DSEi 2007

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Active Protection Systems Are Maturing

Armored vehicles at DSEi 07: DSEi 07 proved a fertile ground for active protection

systems (APS) manufacturers. At least three products were on display, more discussed

unofficially by exhibitors and developers. The enthusiasm was motivated by the British

MOD interest in APS for its FRES program - the future family of combat vehicles,

expected to field an APS as part of their protection suite.(more...)

At DSEi 07, the Finnish

Advanced Modular Vehicle

(AMV) 8x8 APC developed by

Patria was 'dressed' with the

AMAP active defense system

(ADS) designed by the German

IBD Deisenroth Engineering.

Weighing about 400 kg, the

system incorporates a modular

design of multiple defensive

elements, integrating the

energetic material, laser sensors and activation systems in capsuled modules, installed

around the vehicle providing 360° protection against RPGs and other shaped charge

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Golan + Trophy view large

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Active Protection Systems - at DSEi 2007

threats (The company claims

AMAP-ADS also defeats kinetic

energy threats as well as IEDs).

The AMV installation on display

at DSEi used an armor base

plate designed to mitigate the

blast effect from transferring to

the vehicle's structure. APAM-

ADS is claimed to provide close-

range, non-fragmental defeat of

threats (possibly by blast effect) therefore minimizing collateral damage, facilitating use in

a dense urban environment. In the past IBD disclosed few details about the system's

design, including the use of laser triggered blast effect, but the company did not elaborate

on the actual kill mechanism of its defensive solution. The AMV on display at DSEi also

included the Remotely Operated Driver's Vision Enhancer (RODVE2-D), a compact,

steerable, panoramic, thermal imager for the driver developed by Thales Canada.

Although launched only a few years ago, the AMV has already won a number of major

international competitions and has so far been ordered by Croatia (84), Finland (24 with

120mm AMOS and 62 APCs), Poland (690), Slovenia (135) and South Africa (264).

Another APS on display at DSEi is the LEDS 150

from Avitronics, the South African subsidiary of

saab. LEDS is a family of countermeasures

designed for the protection of land combat

vehicles. Earlier versions of the system were

limited to 'signature-management' and 'soft kill',

while the more recent configurations, currently in

development are added with 'hard kill' options.

According to Cobus van der Merwe, senior

business development executive with Saab Avitronics, all three capabilities will become

an integral part of the protected vehicle, providing hemi-spherical, full spectrum active

protection. The system displayed at DSEi 07 on the Piranha III will be tested in

Switzerland in December 07. Next year the system is scheduled for evaluation by the US

Army, under its Foreign Comparative Test Program. The active protection LEDS is

proposed in three versions. Saab expects LEDS 150, the third level, to become

operational on Piranha platforms from mid 2009. LEDS 150 has been designed to defeat

rocket propelled grenades and antitank guided missiles (ATGM). The system uses an

advanced sensor package associated with two High Speed Direction Launchers (HSDL) ,

loaded with six 'Mongoose' hard kill projectiles each. The system has already

demonstrated the capability to defeat 105mm tank rounds and RPG-7 (Rocket Propelled

Grenades). A more ambitious system, designated LEDS 200 is in development, to defeat

multi-band threats while LEDS 300 will be capable to defeat kinetic energy projectiles and

anti-tank missiles at longer ranges.

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Active Protection Systems - at DSEi 2007

RAFAEL unveiled at DSEi 07 a

lightweight version of the

Trophy active protection

system, designed for light and

medium armored vehicles. It

was displayed at the RAFAEL

stand mounted on the Golan

armored vehicle. Trophy Light is

smaller than the original Trophy,

designed to protect main battle

tanks, weighing about half the

Trophy's weight. The system comprises four flat radar antennae located around the

vehicle, designed to cover 360 degrees. The system uses one or two launchers, firing the

interceptor projectiles to defeat incoming threats at close range. As with other APS, the

active defensive capability is only an element of the vehicle's entire protective envelope,

since such systems are designed to intercept threats (such as RPGs) at a stand-off

range, eliminating their most lethal shaped charge penetration capability while the

vehicle's passive armor is required to defeat residual impact by inert threats. At DSEi 07

the Golan vehicle was demonstrated with a new type of hybrid armor called M-TAPS,

developed by RAFAEL to offer effective protection from IEDs, RPGs and EFPs. The new

armor uses a combination of passive inert and insensitive energetic materials, to provide

passive and reactive protection from all types of threats, while Trophy Light could

augment these elements by enhancing defensive capability against tandem shaped

charge threats.

Topics covered in this review:

● Future Rapid Effects Systems (FRES) Program Update ● WLIP - Warrior Lethality Improvement Program ● British Medium Protected Patrol Vehicle (MPPV) Program ● Active Protection Systems Are Maturing ● Armored Vehicle Systems at DSEi 07 ● New vehicle platforms ● Artillery & Missile Systems ● Unmanned Systems

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