Rheinmetall Defence Offers Passive Protection for Warship

19 April 2012

VERhA line of products from Rheinmetall Verseidag Ballistic Protection Systems (RVBP), these include lightweight high-performance materials which can be built into special vehicles, helicopters and ships for protecting passengers and crew. (photo : Rheinmetall Defence)

State-of-the-art systems for the Malaysian military

Located amid some of the world’s most strategic shipping lanes, Malaysia is an influential member of the Asia-Pacific region, serving as an intermediary between the West and the Islamic world.

Modern, well-equipped armed force and security services form an important component of its multilateral security policy. The Defence Services Asia (DSA) tradeshow takes place in Kuala Lumpur 16-19 April. Rheinmetall will be on hand at DSA, showcasing an impressive array of products and services.

Whether the requirement is protecting friendly forces from optical, optronic or electronic surveillance; supplying innovative vehicle protection systems; or safeguarding critical infrastructure from attack, Rheinmetall offers a full range of system solutions – all from a single source.

Among the passive protection systems on show at DSA is the VERhA line of products from Rheinmetall Verseidag Ballistic Protection Systems (RVBP). These include lightweight high-performance materials which can be built into special vehicles, helicopters and ships for protecting passengers and crew. Visitors can also inspect inserts for ballistic vests made of these materials.

For the first time, Rheinmetall will be presenting a three-dimensional ceramic composite component at DSA used for hardening the driver’s cab of the new protected HX trucks made by Rheinmetall MAN Military Vehicles (RMMV). It is earmarked for Australia’s LAND 121 programme, for which RMMV was selected as preferred bidder. Another exhibit from the “VERhA-Land” portfolio are the doors from the HX series, which were also developed using high-tech composite materials.

Ultra-light spall materials from Rheinmetall Verseidag Protection Systems will be used in a forthcoming armoured vehicle-program. Specially developed for the purpose, it performs particularly well in overmatch situations, significantly reducing the fragmentation cone despite the low addition to the vehicle’s total weight.

Six MEKO A-100 Kedah-class warships have equipped with RVBP composite armour (photo : TLDM)

In the naval domain, RVBP develops and produces customer-specific passive protection solutions (“VERhA-Marine”). On behalf of the Malaysian Navy, for example, RVBP has equipped the first six MEKO A-100 Kedah-class warships with composite armour.

In addition, Rheinmetall Chempro will be presenting its Mobile Modular Protection System, or MMS. Reinforcing checkpoints, hardening shelters in combat outposts and forward operating bases and shielding portholes or machine gun positions on board ships are just a few of the potential applications for the highly flexible MMS, which can be quickly deployed in all climate zones in accordance with STANAG 4569, even in difficult terrain.

In the realm of active protection, Rheinmetall supplies high-performance “soft kill” solutions for ground vehicles, fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters and ships. Smoke/obscurant protection systems like “Rosy” render vehicles invisible to the enemy if attacked, while Rheinmetall’s MASS naval countermeasures system now sets the standard worldwide. A decoy-based system, MASS produces phantom targets that reliably divert enemy missiles from their intended targets. “Hard kill” systems serve as a last line of defence, engaging incoming projectiles immediately before they hit their target, as with Rheinmetall’s ADS vehicle protection system.

One of Rheinmetall Defence’s special strengths is the integration of new and existing products and systems into a highly effective whole.

(Rheinmetall)