Leonardo and Rafael complete deliveries of Abrams protection systems

The final Trophy active protection system ordered for the Abrams main battle tank has been delivered to the Army, Leonardo DRS announced Jan. 6.

Leonardo partnered with Rafael, the Israeli company that designed the Trophy system, to upgrade the combat protection of the Army and Marine Corps' Abrams tanks.

"While COVID created challenges for on-time deliveries, we used our resources and capabilities to facilitate on-schedule deliveries," Michael Lurie, a Rafael vice president, said in a press release. "With our partner Leonardo DRS, we remain committed to supporting the Army and providing increased protection to U.S. forces on a timely basis."

The Trophy system shoots down incoming rockets and missiles, and it can locate the source of hostile fire, according to the press release. It has successfully worked in combat on the Israeli Merkava main battle tank and Namer armored personnel carrier.

"Under contracts awarded on an urgent-need basis by the Army's Program Executive Office for Ground Combat Systems, the companies delivered the first APS systems in September 2019 for both the U.S. Army and Marine Corps," the press release stated.

The Army placed its first order for the Trophy active protection system in 2017, with a follow-up order coming in January 2019.

The service has also purchased the Iron Fist active protection system, from Israel Military Industries, for the Bradley Fighting Vehicle, and it has tested systems from Rheinmetall and Rafael for the Stryker combat vehicle.