A Mine Resistant Ambush Protected vehicle fitted with the Israeli active protection system developed by Israel Military Industries withstood numerous rocket attacks under a two month test and evaluation program.
Iron Fist, the active protection system (APS) for armored vehicles developed by Israel Military Industries (IMI), has completed an evaluation by the U.S. Office of Secretary of Defense (OSD) as part of a congressionally mandated evaluation of domestic and foreign APS. For the OSD evaluation IMI integrated the Iron Fist onto a Mine Resistant Ambush Protected, or MRAP, vehicle. The rigorous test program spanned over several months and evaluated the system under complex engagement scenarios. The Iron Fist demonstrated exceptional performance in each test scenario. All tests were performed with the system installed on the MRAP vehicle.
The evaluation culminated with a VIP event attended by senior members of the OSD, which also included a presentation of other IMI APS products, including the man-portable, ‘Shock Absorber’ missile ‘soft kill’ countermeasure solution, and a light-weight, ‘Bright Arrow’ remotely controlled weapon station with Iron Fist integrated, which was installed on a HMMWV.
The Iron Fist APS uses passive and active sensors for threat detection, situational awareness and fire control. The system can employ both an electro-optical ‘soft kill’ countermeasure and ‘hard kill’ interceptors that are launched against incoming threats. The combined soft and hard kill method effectively defeats threats such as RPGs and guided missiles, including advanced models fitted with tandem warheads, as well as tank rounds. In addition to the protection by soft and hard kill means Iron Fist accurately identifies the enemy firing positions, enabling rapid counterstrike thus eliminating repeated attacks.
The Israel Defense Force (IDF) has selected to equip the Iron Fist on its new Namer Infantry Fighting Vehicle (IFV). The Iron Fist is currently in final development and integration for the Namer.
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