Counter-drone protection for tanks: Rafael upgrades Trophy protection system against drones

More counter-drone protection for armoured vehicles: at the International Armoured Vehicles Conference 2024, the Israeli defence group Rafael Advanced Defense Systems announced an upgrade of its Trophy Active Protection System (APS).

Specifically, the new version is to improve protection against commercial drones, first-person view (FPV) kamikaze drones and fixed-wing unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV). Its coverage is also being extended to threats coming from directly above. According to Rafael, the upgrade requires “software adjustments and minor hardware modifications”; it is compatible with existing systems.

Rafael Advanced Defense Systems developed the Trophy APS together with Elta Systems to counter modern threats from ATGMs, RPGs and other anti-tank weapons. Work began in the 1980s; the aim was to give armoured vehicles better chances of survival on both urban and open battlefields.

How Trophy's counter-drone protection works

The system relies on four Elta ELM-2133 WindGuard flat-panel antennas that provide 360-degree coverage around the vehicle. When incoming projectiles, missiles or drones are detected, their trajectory is analysed. A rotating launcher then fires explosively formed penetrators (EFP) in a precise pattern, neutralising the threat at a safe distance. Several threats can be engaged simultaneously, whether the vehicle is stationary or moving. More modern Trophy versions also reload automatically. In some cases, the system also determines the shooter's location, so that the tank crew can engage the threat immediately.

Hamas has also targeted the system: in 2023 it circulated a leaflet with instructions on how to defeat Trophy. It recommended attacks from less than 50 metres, high projectile velocity from recoilless guns to shorten reaction time, and several shots in rapid succession to overload the system.

Trophy APS has been in production in Israel since 2007 and in the USA since 2012. Since 2022, the joint venture EuroTrophy GmbH has also been manufacturing it in Germany for the European market.

The Trophy system is integrated into 17 platforms. These include the Merkava Mark 3 and 4 main battle tanks and Namer infantry fighting vehicles in Israel, and the M1A2 Abrams, Bradley infantry fighting vehicles and Stryker wheeled armoured vehicles in the USA. Germany is fitting it to 17 Leopard 2A7 A1 and all 123 Leopard 2A8, and the United Kingdom is evaluating the system for the Challenger 3.