The German authorities have decided to follow in the footsteps of the US Army by choosing to acquire the Hard-Kill TROPHY protection system, designed and manufactured by the Israeli Rafael, to protect its tanks Leopard 2 front line, and this in a relatively short time since the announced objective is to have a company of combat tanks equipped with this device by 2023, to join the Very High Readiness Joint Task Force (VJTF) of NATO. The announcement was made directly by the Israeli Defense Ministry, and the contract will be made in a government-to-government procedure.
It is not a question, through this contract, of equipping the few 365 Leopard 2 in service within the Bundeswehr, but only one company, both to learn about the system and to actually significantly strengthen the survivability of its heavy tanks in combat. Indeed, recent conflicts, such as in Syria or Nagorno-Karabakh, have shown that tanks are preferred targets for the adversary's missiles and other anti-tank rockets. The Armenian tanks had the painful experience, losing more than 3/4 of their T72s during a conflict lasting a few weeks. Many of these tanks were victims of Azerbaijani SPIKE missiles, also of Israeli manufacture.
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[…] tank is now reaching its limits, particularly in terms of mobility, with additions, such as the Trophy active protection system, inevitably being to the detriment of mobility. It remains that the Leopard 2A7+ is […]