GD, Rafael, KMW announce European Trophy joint venture

General Dynamics European Land Systems, Rafael and Krauss-Maffei Wegman have formed a joint venture to sell and maintain Rafael's Trophy active protection system in Europe, the companies announced Nov. 11.

The joint venture, EuroTrophy, will be based in Germany, and it could be established by the end of the year if it passes antitrust clearance, according to a press release from the companies.

“With EuroTrophy we will make a significant step into an important adjacent market for military vehicles since advanced protection technologies will play a crucial role for crew survivability in the future,” Alfonso Ramonet, president of GDELS, said in the press release. “The establishment of a joint company in Germany is also a clear sign of our commitment to our German and European customers and to international industrial cooperation.”

Rafael partnered with Leonardo DRS to provide the Trophy APS for the U.S. Army’s M1 Abrams tanks, which are built by General Dynamics’ American ground vehicle division. Rafael and Leonardo announced in January they had completed Trophy deliveries for the Abrams.