Witness the power of this fully armed & operational er.. Active Protection System : )

Mark IV Merkavas have already had Trophies on-board in more limited deployment, but now the IDF after most recent testing has declared the life & tank saving missile protection operational. Great news indeed..

The IDF Ground Forces Command has declared the Trophy anti-tank missile defense system operational, following a series of tests last week that surpassed expectations for the system’s capabilities, it was revealed on Thursday.

The Trophy system, developed by Rafael, creates a hemispheric protected zone around armored vehicles such as the Merkava tank, which operated prominently in Lebanon. The system is designed to detect and track a threat and counter it with a launched projectile that intercepts the anti-tank missile.

The test was held last week in an IDF base in the South. The system was installed on old tanks and was tested in two positions – static and in motion. According to defense officials, it succeeded in intercepting all of the enemy anti-tank missiles.

Foreign military attachés from around the world were present at the test site and have expressed interest in possibly purchasing the system for their militaries [...]

Video: 3DGarage in Israel prepared the following PR film for Rafael, developer of the system.

Hard Kill: An Israeli Merkava Sporting Trophy in Testing

Here are details on the Iron Fist, the alternative Israeli APS system destined for Israeli Namer APCs. Yes, we made two of them & Iron Fist is mighty cool too..

US Falls Behind in Force Protection for Political Reasons

Meanwhile, the USA for what seemed like internal Army political reasons and an effort to flow funds to Raytheon opted not to test or employ Trophy despite the need for such a system to protect Strykers & US tanks, it was a pretty controversial move. 3 years later the much heralded Raytheon alternative (Quick Kill APS) which is very similar to the IDF Iron Fist I linked above, is still not ready and has met with design problems. Here’s 2007 NBC video on that controversy at the time..

I wrote a number of posts on Trophy and a few on the US aspect, you can view them with a search here.

The old adage Woulda, coulda, shoulda may be applicable. Back in Israel Trophy deployment is slated to expand soon to older Mark III & Mark II Merkavas as well in the future, that’s on top of the standard application for all new Merkavas off assembly lines. This should prove useful to help counter the thousands of anti-tank RPGs & weapons Hezbollah has in Lebanon.

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I’m still on the trophy case, that gorgeous new defensive anti RPG weapon system developed in Israel that appears truly astounding to me in its effectiveness against one of the worst threats mobile ground forces face, missiles, RPGs, & anti-tank weapons.

I’ve previously posted about developments on the trophy, including apparently the US Army’s rejection of the system.

But, the Pentagon Brass at the OFT (office of transformation) has not given up and I felt that would probably be the case, here’s an article on the overall OFT defensive weapons plan for mobile vehicles in theatre, the article mentions trophy as part of that effort (known as Sheriff) and states that some Sheriff equipped vehicles will soon be off to deployment for field testing, that means the trophy is likely going along too so the OFT still seems quite a bit more positive on employing the technology than the Army is apparently..

National Defense Magazine has some scoopage..

[...]
The Army, meanwhile, intends to continue to evaluate Trophy and other competing technologies before it decides to procure any system.

Army Chief of Staff Gen. Peter J. Schoomaker said it is premature to commit to the purchase of the Trophy system, at least until it undergoes more thorough testing. "What we’ve found is that traditionally people have made claims about things that have not been tested," Schoomaker told reporters. He said he is aware of Israel’s development work so far, but that is not enough to convince the U.S. Army that this is the right system. "We want to make sure that what we put precious dollars against works … Manufacturer’s claims don’t tend to be the way we judge things."

Under the future combat systems program, the Army recently awarded a $70 million to the Raytheon Co. to develop a hard-kill active protection system. But that technology is not expected to be fielded until at least 2010. The Army also has to develop tactics and procedures for the operation of vehicles with active protection systems. [...]

Pffft.. That’s a pretty weak quote the Army Chief of Staff gave on this issue, the Army did not get very good PR from the fact that it was leaning towards a weapons system still over half a decade away, while troops face off with Rpgs in a war NOW, with an apparently effective implementable solution possible today.

At least they are still looking to ‘evaluate’ now, as opposed to just ignoring the issue as was the case apparently from what I had read.

Smells like teen spirit to me

That manufacturer the General is talking about that wants to sell him those Israeli developed Trophies?

General Dynamics, the same ‘iffy’ people who manufacture the Stryker & M1 tanks these defensive weapons would be mounted on themselves. Come now General, which one is it, internal politics or iffy manufacturing lofty claims, and how come you sent 70 million dollars to Raytheon to try and speed develop a theoretical system that CANNOT be tested properly now while totally avoiding the one that can!?

I still maintain it has something to do with the BILLIONS such a weapons contract will be worth over the next few decades, mixed with the politics that simply do no belong in the Army, but are better suited for Washington..

Tags: Stryker, Missile Defense, Trophy, Israel, US Army

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SoccerDad informs me of the hard to process news regarding the new superlative Mobile Missile Defense System developed by Rafael Israel..

Globes: US Army rejects Israeli armor protection system
Ran Dagoni, Washington 25 Apr 06 15:22

The rejection comes despite a successful test of Rafael’s Trophy Active Protection System.

The US Army has rejected the Trophy Active Protection System for armored fighting vehicles developed by Rafael Armament Development Authority Ltd., despite a successful live fire test on March 30.

The Trophy system was intended for US Army Stryker 8×8 combat vehicles in operations in Iraq, where they are convenient targets for attackers using advanced rocket propelled grenades (RPGs). The live fire test was carried out at the US Naval Surface Warfare Center in Dahlgren, Virginia, on an Israeli Trophy-equipped Stryker flown to the US for the test.

An Israeli defense industry source told “Globes”, “The test was a great success, but the US Army was not convinced. The US Army is locked onto another system being developed by Raytheon (NYSE: RTN), which offers a comprehensive solution to all armored personnel carrier (APC) armor problems. Its only disadvantage is that it will not be ready for production and installation before 2010 or 2011.”

The Trophy system is liable to fall victim to a bureaucratic clash between two US Department of Defense agencies: the Office of Force Transformation (OFT), which is promoting the Trophy system for installation on US Army Strykers; and the US Army high command, which opposes the Israeli system and prefers Raytheon’s solution, even though it is not ready for immediate deployment.

(more…)

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The IDF Merkava4 Tank is the baddest brother on the block right now.

Defense-Update has some strikingly beautiful images of recently retrofitted MK4’s – the gorgeous new accessory consists of the Rafael developed Trophy APS. The Active Protection System can shoot down incoming RPG’s & the like and is a rather remarkable piece of technology (plenty of trophy details in the links below), one that can make a major difference in protecting the tank & its crew – it would have come in useful against Hezbollah last year.

The Merkava is already widely considered as one of, if not the safest tank on Earth – Being one of the most heavily armored and possessing some unique design characteristics like a survivability door built into the rear of the chassis and innovative protection on the forward end. Crew safety was one of the top goals in the tank’s design, the trophy makes for a beautiful crown for this king don’t you think?

Seen above, the reflective looking Trophy sensor systems and the two launchers on the ends of the turret. (Photo Defense-Update via Rafael)

Now that is riding in style! (Photo Defense-Update via Rafael)

Trophy info here at the Hashmonean.
PR film of the Trophy system in action, developed for Rafael by 3dGarage.

Tags: Trophy, Israel, APS, Missile Defense

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Rafael, recently signed on to the Israeli anti Kassam tender display some of their new anti RPG defense technology prowess.

All new Trophy system to protect Allied troops from RPG attacks while riding high in the Stryker.

Soldiers from Battery B, 4th Battalion 11th Field Artillery Regiment patrol the entrance of Suliyahi Sabina Site in a Stryker light armored vehicle on May 8, 2005 Photo: US Dept. of Defense

The trophy anti RPG technology will be coming to the USA’s battlefield of the future Stryker armored personel carriers. These behemoths recently deployed to Iraq, and hungrily purchased by nations like Canada as a frontline alternative to battle tanks in more urban environments come in a whack of variants. They are part and parcel of the new structure being defined for American Armed Forces under the modernization plan of Sec. of Defense Donald Rumsfeld.

From SpaceWar:

A new Israeli-designed technology to protect armored military vehicles from rocket-propelled grenades was successfully tested in Virginia last week.

The Trophy Active Protection System developed by RAFAEL Armament Development Authority was put through live-fire tests conducted by weapons manufacturer General Dynamics Land Systems in Dahlgren, Va., last week, the ISRAEL21c Web site reported Sunday. The Trophy detected, tracked and knocked out an inert RPG fired at a moving Stryker armored car using a small rocket automatically launched from the vehicle, the report said.

"Our mission is not to discover the 100 percent solution, but to find the best solution that can meet warfighter needs today," said Marine Corps Col. Wade Hall, in a General Dynamics news release after the test. "Currently, the warfighters’ only counter to the RPG threat is armor, more armor and more armor.

"As demonstrated … the Department of Defense now has at its disposal technology that allows U.S. Forces to defeat both the archer and the arrow."

[...]
The Trophy system is a miniaturized version of the anti-ballistic missile system that automatically detects an incoming threat and launches an interceptor rocket that homes in on the missile and destroys it at a safe distance.

Designed to mounted on a fighting vehicle and provide a virtual bubble of protection, it includes rockets that are launched vertically and knock down the RPG round as it streaks toward the vehicle, the Web site said.

The Trophy is based on a system designed by an Israeli industry consortium headed by RAFAEL, including Israel Military Industries, and Israel Aircraft Industries/ELTA. After evaluating several systems available in the world market, General Dynamics entered into the agreement with the consortium and selected the system to offer to the U.S. Army and other customers. GD plans to introduce the system with every new and existing combat vehicle it produces, including Stryker, M-1A2 and FCS.

It’s a good bet that the Anti Kassam missile defence tender presented by Rafael is based on their successes with the Trophy, this miniaturization process is something to write home about.

With high profile attacks on US Forces and the armor outcry in the US, people seem to look at the humvee and think more armor, but we seem to overlook the fact that those are jeeps not tanks. Similarly the Stryker is not a tank either, layers of armor and weight are not nec. the solution, utilizing the mobility and a new fighting doctrine combined with advanced active protection systems seems like a good plan, cut Rumsfeld some slack. This is a major step forward to protecting forces from terrorists, the use of such a system on the bigger (biggest really) M1A main battle tank speaks loudly to the need to counter RPG and missile threats not just with armor alone.

Seems fairly evident with this trophy everyone wins.. Force protection is sexy again!

Tags: military, Israel, US

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The Future is Now..

Israel continues to be a world leader in force protection. Details the last few months have been emerging that Iron Fist, our next generation APS to protect light & medium armored vehicles from RPGs, missiles, and even perhaps tank fired rounds is headed for deployment shortly. Israel is already a leader in the field with the Raphael developed and now seeing deployment to Merkava Mark 4 (and soon to be retrofitted to earlier versions of the tank) Trophy system.

The Trophy made world wide headlines with its ability to create what is described as a ‘virtual shield’ around the armored heavy vehicle, intercepting shaped charge penetrating hand held RPG rounds such as the Russian RPG 7 & RPG9 Vampyr. These weapons are in the hands of terror sponsoring nations & have been proliferated to terrorists & insurgents across the Middle East. These advanced penetrators have taken their toll on both Israeli Armor in Lebanon as well as American vehicles in Iraq and Afghanistan. Next to IED road side bombs, this is the number one threat and killer of US Servicemen in these conflicts.

Iron Fist

While there is some overlap with Trophy, the Iron Fist was designed to protect lighter vehicles. It will be able to be fitted to troop movers like APCs and even lighter vehicles like the Humvee or supply trucks, providing protection against a larger number of threats beyond the RPG & anti tank missile..

Jane’s Defense: [...] in addition to the threat posed by hand-held anti-tank weapons and anti-tank guided missiles, Iron Fist is also being developed to counter high-velocity, long-rod penetrators fired by tank guns and to combat soft- as well as hard-kill anti-tank guided missiles. Moreover, it is also being developed to provide a basis for greater situation awareness and, consequently, for effective counter-fire against threat launchers.

Like other APSs, Iron Fist incorporates radar for threat detection and tracking. Its radar system has been developed by the Elta subsidiary of Israel Aerospace Industries, which has also developed the radar of the Rafael Trophy APS already in low-rate initial production for the Merkava Mk 4 tanks. The system includes four flat-panel antennas, which between them not only cover 360 degrees in azimuth but provide what is virtually a hemispherical coverage.

That’s fancy for front, rear, side & top protection from threats, fairly stunning. All this activity takes place in milliseconds with the system detecting & launching its interceptor which does not seek to detonate the incoming threat, but rather deflect it without its detonation reducing collateral damage to soldiers in, on, or around the vehicle. Think of the gunners on light vehicles like APCs or Humvees and the soldiers whom are often found around the vehicles using them as cover during movement & assault.

Defense-Update: Unlike other systems, the Iron Fist uses only the blast effect to defeat the threat, crushing the soft components of a shaped charge or deflecting and destabilizing the missile or kinetic rod in their flight. The interceptor is made of combustible envelope, fully consumed in the explosion. Without the risk of shrapnel, Iron Fist provides an effective, close-in protection for vehicles operating in dense, urban environment. The use of close proximity, rather than “hit to kill” mechanism avoids complex interception techniques and contributes to reduced cost.

One of the main advantages of the Iron Fist is its integration into routine operations. Its sensor provides essential input to situational awareness systems, based on ground radar surveillance, moving target detection, classification and tracking and motion detection. Furthermore, by loading other types of projectiles, such as non lethal, anti-personnel, smoke or illumination, the system can be used in support of routine operation.

This week comments by the IDF indicate that Iron Fist is headed for deployment to Israel’s newest NAMER (Tiger) APCs which are based on the Merkava Mark 4. This Discovery Channel Future Weapons video below gives an amazing overview of the system, and a beautiful look at its employment on a Namer.. Just one of dozens of examples of how Israeli technologies have and going forward will contribute and be employed safeguarding IDF troops and those of Israel’s allies.

Discovery’s Future Weapons on the Iron Fist (8min).

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This past month Israel has been in the midst of major future procurement decisions. The generals, experts & industries consulted & the results are in. We’re going hardcore in 4 prongs hardware wise, but much more importantly these procurements spell a decisive switch philosophically for Israel, the renewed realization that despite all the kumbaya singing Israel needs to be prepared for conflict of any form, at any time and in any place.

Lebanon Lesson – Major modernization

Last summer’s Lebanon conflict was characterized by a 4 week air war in conjunction with some very limited ground work. Unfortunately the heavy reliance on air power did not produce all the desired effects, years of total prioritization of air power revealed deficiencies in Israel’s rolling thunder abilities on the ground. Equally years of low intensity fighting with the terrorists, er I mean Palestinians had dulled some of Israel priorities. Blue is a beautiful color, but green is apparently now back in style in a big way..

Haaretz

IDF chief okays comprehensive upgrade program for the military
By Yuval Azoulay, Haaretz Correspondent

Chief of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi approved on Monday a multi-year, multi-dimensional procurement program for the Israel Defense Forces that seeks to prepare for the broad range of security threats Israel is expected to face in the coming decade.

If the political leadership approves the program, its implementation will begin early next year. The procurement program, code-named Tefen, includes advanced systems for all branches of the IDF but much of the emphasis is placed on equipping the ground forces while sustaining the right mix “to ensure that we are not preparing for the last war,” as one senior officer put it [...]

Highlights include..

ABM – Missile defense on every level

The Arrow2 is getting further funding in order to develop the next generation of the world’s first fully deployed ballistic missile shield, Arrow 3 will incorporate improvements to the system as well as welcome Rafael’s under development ‘Iron Dome’ platform for short range missile threat like Qassams & Katyusha rockets as a second tier. Israel is currently being bombarded daily by Qassams from Gaza, and thousands of Katyusha rockets were fired at the North in the Lebanon conflict.

A 3rd tier has also been given the nod, with the beautiful Trophy system enjoying a wider deployment than initially thought. Initially Trophy was shelved, then only the newest Merkava Mark 4 main battle tanks were thought to be getting the Trophy anti rpg / rocket missile defense system, now the system will enjoy wide deployment across older Merkava 3’s and even the Mark 2. This is a serious vote of confidence for the Trophy. In conjunction with the State wide missile defense plan, now localized forces at the unit level will have missile protection as well.

Ground War

The Merkava 4 main battle tank considered the safest tank in service today, and widely rated in the top 3 overall for tanks worldwide with its advanced systems and world leading reactive armor technologies has been renewed, new Mark 4’s will again roll off Israeli assembly lines. The program was in limbo due to funding.

Israeli Merkava 4 Main Battle Tank – if looks could kill, well actually they do! Big & Beautiful.

Also, Israel is pushing forward with the Namer APC platform. Hundreds of new Namer (Tigers) personnel carriers based on the Merkava will enter the IDF fleet. Equally, rapid moving brand new General Dynamics Strykers will reportedly be joining the Israeli battlefield.

A Namer APC

General Dynamics’ very Uber Stryker!

All three of these platforms can be fitted with Trophy anti RPG systems if needed.. Fearsome ground rolling muscle to say the least, a full fledged across the board commitment to Israel’s historically legendary armored forces.

In the Air

Israel is anticipating deliveries of the in development F-35 Joint Strike Fighter to replace ageing F-16s. Little details as to interested confirmed numbers for procurement were released in the Tefen plan, this may be due (speculation) to the fact that the longer ranged & superior F-22 Raptor is a cause for serious lust around these parts, it’s just so damn expensive. We need a few Raptors, come on Congress.. Spread the love!

 
F-16 Sufa – Those big tanks are its specialty, extended range.

In conjunction with the brand new F16 Sufa & F-15I Thunder Israeli variants, these new squadrons will help cement unquestionable dominance in the air for Israel in the region and make no mistake, Israel has significantly extended its reach range wise already, and more so going forward with new procurement of F-35’s & hopefully the Raptor.

No mention is made of UAV plans, but Israel is a world leader in the field and a number of new platforms have been developed including a fighter sized pilotless wonder. Clearly despite the major ground initiative, Israel is committed to maintaining massive air superiority.

The F-22 Raptor & buddies – Photo USAF

On the sea.. and below it

Two new cruiser sized Navy boats have been mentioned, and procurement of additional Dolphin class submarines are already on track, expanding the fleet to 5 of these silent lurkers. The custom exclusive for Israel Dolphins from Germany are considered state of the art, and are amongst the most advanced diesels around. It will be some time yet before the 2 newer boats join the fleet but I get giddy just thinking about having 5 of these defending Israel. If you ‘ping’ us, we’ll ping you right back.. No matter what.

An Israeli Dolphin (Photo Israeli-Weapons.com)

Balanced Defense

Tefen, in conjunction with already active procurement plans seems to cover all the bases. Active civilian & military defense on all levels against missile threats, a substantive ground focus combined with Israel’s normal air superiority, and a small but potent naval component that enables a silent but lethal second strike ability from the deep blue sea. With advanced arms flowing to certain axis countries, these revitalized priorities couldn’t come at a better time.

Tags: Israel, Weapons, Defense, Tefen

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Procurement Race is on
Billions worth of High-Tech weaponry pouring into the Mideast.

With the Jihad heating up and being fueled by Iran & Syria, there has been a non stop flow of advanced weaponry into the Middle East. A number of significant weapons platforms have begun to arrive to the axis courtesy of Russia, with even more on the way. In response to this & other growing threats the US itself has this past week concluded a 10 year military aid package renewal with Israel, as well as made commitments to regional Arab states to the tune of over 53 billion dollars in funds spread across Egypt, Saudi Arabia & other smaller Gulf States. Here’s a quick look at some of the weapons Israel is eyeing and some still in the pipeline.

ISRAEL

 The Jewish State embroiled in a Terrorist war with Hamas, fresh from war with Hezbollah and facing a mounting threat from Iran & Syria has begun finalizing the task of taking stock, to prepare for the new regional threats. With a new Defense Minister in place, the military has allocated the bulk of this week to making major decisions on procurement goals and funding levels for weapon systems in the coming years. Barak has already made clear he sees major deficiencies in the IDF current readiness.

Among the weapons being considered and or developed, missile defense is a top priority.

• The Trophy system as mentioned this week is starting deployment.
• On top of the current Arrow2 & Patriot2 ballistic missile shield systems, Israel is considering upgrading Patriots to PAC-3s, the latest most advanced American version. Equally, Arrow2 development & improvements are ongoing, the Arrow having been upgraded just this year.

In addition to the larger long range ballistic shield above, Israel is currently developing & considering a number of short range interception systems to counter the types of threats posed by Hezbollah, Hamas & Islamic Jihad.

• The Nautilus / THEL is being pushed by Northrop as a current alternative while those weapons platforms are readied, they are still at least 2-3 years out. Selected from a number of submitted platforms, Raphael’s ’Iron Dome’ project is currently vying for funding.

Also being considered are upgrades to Israel’s air power.

• Decisions on future contracts for the F-35 JSF fighter, and longing looks at the prohibitively expensive F-22 Raptor are competing this week with funding priorities regarding ground forces. Israel is still flush with the brand new F-16I Sufa, and the long range F-15I Thunder, both custom Israeli variants of the latest most advanced US F-16/F-15 versions.
• Other air assets on the list include a chunk of new C-130H Hercules transports, or possibly an order for the latest J Model or SuperHercules, which has been thoroughly modernized for US military use.

 These are some of the more major platforms under development or in consideration for Israel. Of course the country is a world leader in military tech and there is a lot going on technology wise to counter insurgencies & terrorists, especially at the Urban Combat level. Israel’s enemies are not standing still, in part II tomorrow the advanced Russian weapons being funneled to Iran, Syria & their associated terrorist groups over massive US / Israel objections.

UPDATE AUG 23: Israel green lights Patriot / PAC3 upgrade

YNET:
The Israeli Air Force will buy advanced US-made Patriot PAC-3 missiles from Lockheed Martin, capable of intercepting aircraft and long-range ballistic missiles, including the type used by Syria.  The IAF is currently using the PAC-2 system, manufactured by Lockheed Martin. In the new system, each launcher is equipped with 16 missiles instead of four; each missile weighs 320 kilograms and is 5 meters in length. The advanced PAC-3 system is capable of intercepting aircraft, rockets and cruise missiles.

The decision to acquire the new system was based on the progress made by Syria and Iran in the field of fighter jets, and on the fact the Syrian army has recently obtained longer-range missiles.  [...]

UPDATE AUG 24: Arrow redeployment in Northern areas to counter mounting Syrian threat.

JPOST: Predicting that Israel’s future wars will be characterized by unprecedented missile barrages, the IDF has decided to modify its missile defense doctrine and has changed its deployment of the Arrow missile in northern Israel, The Jerusalem Post has learned. [...]

Ahead of a possible conflict with Syria and Iran, the Air Defense Forces are also conducting an increased number of joint exercises with the United States Armed Forces, in an effort to increase coordination between the two countries and to prepare for the possibility that Washington will send US missile defense systems to Israel if and when they are needed.

The Defense Ministry recently submitted a request to the Pentagon to receive information on two American-made missile defense systems – the Terminal High Altitude Air Defense (THAAD) and the Aegis.

The idea, a top officer explained, was to prepare infrastructure for the possibility that the American systems would be purchased by Israel or be deployed here during the time of war. In March, US Army officers from the European Command (EUCOM) were in Israel for the Juniper Cobra exercise, held every two years, during which Israel and the US run missile defense simulations.

“Our objective is to create the infrastructure and ensure that the Arrow will be interoperable with other systems,” the officer explained, adding that this objective took up a large portion of the Air Defense Forces’ training time. [...]

See the 2nd part of this post Arms Race II: From Russia with Love for details on the growing threat from advanced Russian arms in the hands of Iran & Syria.

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