Talk:TROPHY Active Protection System

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[edit] No mention of disadvantages?

Firstly I would wonder why there is no mention of the Arena system? It seems to me that TROPHY is obviously based on Arena (at-least the concept). So shouldn't that be mentioned?

Secondly there is no mention of the obvious disadvantages of such a system, mainly the fact that it is totally incapable of stopping Tank rounds like HEAT and Kinetic Energy projectiles. So the claim that this system will be able to remove the need for Armour on vehicles is frankly, far fetched. If they really think that they can make tanks immune to attacks because they can shoot down a few missiles, they will get a rude awakening when they get a 120 mm round in the backside.

Also the claim that the system is safe for near-by people is also an exaggeration. If the system destroys an incoming missile, the missile's Warhead and fuel will Explode, and surely case casualties to near-by soldiers. The only difference is that the missile will explode a few meters from the vehicle instead of exploding on the vehicle's hull, there will still be an explosion very close to the vehicle. --Hibernian 00:48, 27 September 2006 (UTC)

I think it's even worse than that. From what I gather, this is intended to be used against irregulars and guerrillas, but in that role, it's completely useless. Existing armor works just fine against RPGs. When you replace it with this system, you open yourself up to all sorts of problems. An enemy sniper could destroy it as soon as the vehicle pauses somewhere. You'd have to take the Trophy system off of the vehicle at night just to be sure that it won't get shot or damaged in a mortar strike, which leaves you unprepared for night raids. A marksman could probably hit the system while the vehicle is in motion, and then follow up with an RPG. Like all electronic equipment, it's going to fail. Either dust and grime will accumulate on the motors and joints, or the bouncing of the vehicle will damage the equipment, or the program will reveal some new bug. Every added bit of complexity increases the chances of failure. If you get rid of the armor, you end up with vehicles that are periodically defenseless. Replacing the armor with this is just going to increase costs and casualties. Not to mention that it does nothing to stop the most serious threat so far: IEDs and landmines. Those are the most likely means by which guerrillas would bring down a tank anyway.

Now, let's say they try to apply this against modern armies. As you noted, an enemy tank is just going to make mincemeat out of this. It's a terrible idea, the radar will be giving away your position at all times. Commandoes can go around your vehicles, and armies can home in on them. It's also wrong to think of this as a shield. Even when the system is working perfectly, it won't completely defend the vehicle. Worst comes to worst, 5 missiles are sent instead of one. After there is need of specialized equipment, it's simply a matter of adding some armor to the front of a missile, or making it stealthy when viewed from the front. That much is extremely easy. Putting a slanted metal plate on the front and then some aerodynamic shaping around it would probably be good enough to make the missile stealthy from the front. Furthermore, this is an electronic active defense system, so a little EMP might render the unarmored vehicles completely defenseless.

In both roles, this system makes the vehicle less safe, and more expensive. Used supplementally, it might be beneficial in the first role, but again, tanks typically aren't brought down by RPGs anyway. When fighting guerrillas, IEDs and landmines are the tank killers. So, rather than affording any considerable increase in safety, it just increases the cost, and possibly enables the guerrillas to track the tank via its radar system, increasing the risk of landmines being placed ahead of its path, and decreasing its chances of engaging the enemy. Time will tell if all the gadgetry is actually worth its cost. -NorsemanII 06:43, 17 October 2006 (UTC)