Trophy (countermeasure)


Trophy is an active protection system for military armored vehicles designed by Rafael Advanced Defense Systems.
It is designed to supplement the standard armor of light and heavy armored fighting vehicles. The system is in active use on Merkava Mark 4 tanks and the Namer armored personnel carrier. It is also found on the Abrams M1A1/M1A2 tanks and has been tested on Stryker APCs and Bradley Fighting Vehicles.
The Trophy system protects against a wide variety of anti-tank threats while enhancing the vehicle's ability to identify enemy locations.

Design

The first production contract for Trophy between the IDF and Rafael was signed in 2007. Israeli Government/IDF safety certification was granted in 2010, and first deliveries began immediately afterward. The design centers on the Elta EL/M-2133 F/G band fire-control radar with four flat-panel antennas mounted on the vehicle; this provides a 360-degree sensing field.
The system relies on high-speed computational technologies. Upon detection of an incoming projectile, the system automatically computes parameters such as the approach vector, nature of the threat, time to impact, and angle of approach. The defensive projectiles are launched by two rotating launchers positioned on the sides of the vehicle. These launchers deploy small explosively formed penetrators in a precise, closely spaced matrix, targeting an area in front of the anti-tank projectile. The system is engineered with a narrow kill zone to ensure the safety of friendly personnel near the vehicle.
Trophy enables connectivity to other technologies, such as soft-kill systems, C4I systems, and remote-controlled weapons stations. The system is designed to defend against many types of anti-tank guided missiles, rockets, high-explosive anti-tank rounds, and shoulder-launched weapons such as rocket-propelled grenades and recoilless rifles.
The system can simultaneously engage numerous threats arriving from different directions; it is effective on stationary or moving platforms against both short- and long-range threats. Newer versions include an automated reloading feature for multiple firings. Rafael's development program includes an enhanced countermeasures unit—to be available in the future—designed to protect against kinetic energy penetrators.
Based on data from 2013, adding the Trophy system to a Merkava Mark 4M potentially adds 30 percent to the cost of each vehicle.
By 2023, 40 Trophy systems and 500 countermeasures were being produced per month.

Capabilities and effectiveness

As an active protection system, Trophy has proven effective in protecting armored vehicles such as armoured personnel carriers, tanks, and related mechanized armor. By 2017, the manufacturer stated the Trophy system had accumulated 50,000 hours of active operational usage.
Since 2011, Israel has reported that the Trophy system has been operationally successful in low- and high-intensity combat situations, including urban, open, and forested environments. The system has intercepted a variety of threats, including the 9M133 Kornet ATGM and RPG-29. The U.S. Army has reported similar success in tests.
The system utilizes small EFPs projected towards the incoming threat; energy, debris, and explosive pressure waves disintegrate the projectile at a safe distance from the vehicle. In the case of an ATGM, the EFP affects the shaped plasma jet, dramatically decreasing its penetration ability. Trophy is reportedly effective against so-called top attack missiles, which target the thinner upper armor of a vehicle.
Rafael established the first Trophy production line in Israel in 2007, which began delivery in 2010. A second production line was established in the U.S. in 2012, beginning deliveries in 2015, with the main purpose of providing Trophy systems to the IDF as part of the Foreign Military Funding program. Both production lines are used for the U.S. contract and others.

Use as a target locator

The Trophy radar system searches, detects, and classifies incoming projectile risks. It feeds data to the vehicle's onboard computer and to an external network for data sharing with supporting units. This capability notifies both the crew of individual vehicles and the wider combat formation about incoming threats and the exact locations of potential shooters, making the system highly effective for both single vehicles and larger combat groups.
This data sharing and shooter location assists the unit's combat effectiveness, allowing other assets to acquire the hostile target rather than leaving it to a single armored vehicle. Trophy can identify if a threat will miss the targeted platform; in this case, it does not activate the countermeasure but provides shared location data, enabling rapid engagement by the full combat team.

System limitations

Active protection systems add complexity to the equipment they protect, increasing training and maintenance overhead. Components such as multiple sensor arrays are exposed and vulnerable to battle damage.
The system is currently incapable of defeating kinetic energy anti-tank weapons. Current and future systems based on technologies resembling the cancelled MGM-166 LOSAT and the Compact Kinetic Energy Missile designs are able to defeat the Trophy system.
Weight is a concern. The core system, designed for heavier frontline tanks, weighs approximately half a ton. Compared to the weight of a modern main battle tank, which is around 73 tons, this may be acceptable. However, on smaller vehicles, the core system impacts the power-to-weight ratio. There are numerous offerings for lighter armored vehicles which address this concern.
Because the system projects small EFPs toward incoming threats, creating energy, debris, and explosive pressure waves, it poses a risk to dismounted infantry. This impacts traditional infantry-supported mechanized warfare tactics.
The Trophy system has a donut-shaped window of vulnerability to attacks directly from above; additionally, the slow speed of a drone or gravity-dropped grenade might cause it to be filtered out by the Trophy's sensors. In October 2023, Hamas used civilian quadcopter drones to drop shaped-charge grenades and damage several tanks.
According to an informational flyer distributed by Hamas, the system can be defeated by firing an RPG-7 from within, or using a weapon with a projectile that exceeds the speed of sound, such as the SPG-9 recoilless gun. Firing multiple rounds in quick succession is also a tactic for overwhelming the system.

Trophy MV/VPS

Formerly known as "Trophy Light", Trophy MV/VPS was introduced by Rafael Advanced Defence Systems during the British DSEI exhibition in 2007. Unlike the standard Trophy system, which was primarily designed for main battle tanks, the Trophy MV/VPS was specifically engineered for integration with light and medium armored vehicles, such as the Stryker and Bradley. Notably, this system was anticipated to be approximately 40% lighter and smaller than the standard Trophy, intended to offer cost savings without compromising on performance or reliability. This was made possible through the continued utilization of critical components, including the sensor suite, mission computer, and hard-kill mechanism, along with the application of the same combat algorithms as the Trophy HV variant.
Leonardo DRS, Rafael's partner for the Trophy system in the United States, would reportedly be responsible for providing the modified autoloader required for the Trophy MV/VPS.
In the summer of 2018, Rafael conducted an extensive series of qualification tests for the Trophy MV/VPS in Israel, attended by over 130 decision-makers and technical experts from more than 15 countries. These tests were carried out in extreme scenarios, encompassing both rocket and ATGM threats. The reported success rate exceeded 95%. This underlined the system's capability to defend against a variety of threats, solidifying its standing as a solution for light and medium armored vehicles.

Trophy LV

In June 2014, Rafael unveiled Trophy LV, a lighter variant designed to protect light military vehicles such as jeeps and 4x4s. The system weighs, significantly less than other Trophy applications.

Combination with Iron Fist

In December 2014, it was reported that Rafael, IAI, and Israel Military Industries had agreed to jointly develop a next-generation active defense system for vehicles, based on a combination of the Rafael/IAI Trophy and IMI Iron Fist. Rafael would act as the main contractor, system developer, and integrator, with IAI and IMI as subcontractors. The Israeli Ministry of Defense had pushed the companies to combine their systems. No progress has been reported since then.

Combat history

Following a series of tests, the IDF Ground Forces Command declared the Trophy system operational in August 2009. It was scheduled to be installed in a full battalion of Israeli Armored Corps tanks by 2010.
On 1 March 2011, a Merkava Mark 4 equipped with the Trophy system successfully foiled a missile attack aimed toward it near the Gaza border; this marked the first operational success of the Trophy active defense system. On 20 March 2011, a missile was fired at a Merkava Mark 4 equipped with Trophy inside the Israeli area along the perimeter fence of the Gaza Strip. The system detected the attack but determined that it did not endanger the tank and did not intercept it; it passed information about the shooting to the crew, who attacked the source of the fire. On 1 August 2012, Trophy successfully intercepted an anti-tank missile launched from the Gaza Strip at a Merkava tank near the Kissufim junction.
On 14 July 2014, the Trophy system successfully intercepted a 9M133 Kornet anti-tank missile fired from Gaza at an IDF tank. From the beginning of the Israeli Operation Protective Edge to 20 July 2014, at least four Israeli tanks of senior commanders were protected by the Trophy system in the Gaza Strip. According to reports from the front, since the beginning of the ground operation, the system successfully intercepted five anti-tank missiles that were aimed at armored IDF vehicles in Gaza. On 22 July 2014, according to a video by a Palestinian group, the Trophy system installed on a Merkava Mark 4 tank successfully intercepted an RPG-29 rocket fired at the tank.
According to Debkafile, Hamas has tried to stop Israeli tanks with two kinds of advanced guided anti-tank missiles, the Russian Kornet-E and the 9M113 Konkurs, but Trophy intercepted them successfully. The appearance of near-invulnerable mobile land platforms suggests the current warfare paradigm may need revising.
As of 2016, Trophy was operational on all Merkava Mark 4 tanks of the IDF's 401st Armored Brigade, and with the 7th Armored Brigade 75th Battalion's new Merkava Mark 4 tanks.
In July 2016, the Israeli Ministry of Defense announced it had completed integrating Trophy on its first brigade company of Namer APCs. In November 2016, it was announced that the IDF would buy hundreds more Trophy systems to install on almost all of its Merkava Mark 4 MBTs and Namer APC/IFVs.

Operation Protective Edge

Israel stated that no tanks were damaged during Operation Protective Edge, with the Trophy system performing over a dozen interceptions of anti-tank weapons including Kornet, Metis, and RPG-29. The system, by identifying the source of fire, on occasion also allowed tanks to kill the Hamas anti-tank team.
Giora Katz, head of Rafael's land division, stated it was a "breakthrough because it is the first time in military history where an active defense system has proven itself in intense fighting." During the war, Trophy validated itself in dozens of events, protecting tanks and crews over three weeks of high-threat maneuvering operations in built-up areas without a single hit to defended platforms and zero false alarms.

Gaza War

During the Israel–Hamas war, the Trophy system has been used to intercept RPG-7 rockets targeting Merkava tanks on many occasions. Some videos released by Hamas and allies show what looks to be a hit, but upon further inspection, these turn out to be successful interceptions by the system. No Israeli tanks have been destroyed since the 7 October attacks.

International operators

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