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Out of Whole Cloth: Tarian Rocket Protection

30-Jul-2009 17:04 EDT

Related Stories: Britain/U.K., Contracts - Awards, Design Innovations, Materials Innovations, Other Corporation, R&D - Contracted, Tanks & Mechanized, Trucks & Transport
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TARIAN on HET
Tarian close-up
(click to view full)

Working with Britain’s Ministry of Defense, a transatlantic firm named AmSafe has come up with a novel solution to anti-tank rockets: fabric panels mounted on the sides of trucks and armored vehicles.

“BAE’s LROD Cage Armor” discussed the front-line threat of Rocket Propelled Grenades like the popular RPG-7, the uses of steel “cage armor,” and BAE’s much lighter aluminum solution. AmSafe’s Tarian (Welsh for “shield”) has been deployed by British forces, remains in development for new vehicle types, and offers several advantages over cage armor. Not least of which is a 50% weight savings over aluminum, and 85% savings over steel cage options…

* The RPG-7 Problem, and Solutions
* Tarian: Development and Performance
* Tarian: Next Steps
* Contracts and Key Events

The RPG-7 Problem, and Solutions
ORD_RPG-7_Terrorists.jpg
RPG-7

RPGs are almost as ubiquitous as “AK-47” Kalashnikov assault rifles – and almost as widely copied. The 1960s-era RPG-7 is the most widely produced and imitated variant; at the moment, it is also the most common front-line threat. These weapons are a serious threat to vehicles in urban zones, where the terrain makes their short range a non-issue, and creates a vast array of firing angles. They’re also very popular and common in Afghanistan, where vehicles like the Royal Marines’ BvS10 Vikings were being forced to mount cage armor that exceeded their weight limits.

At the most passive end of the scale, Western main battle tanks like the M1 Abrams, Leopard 2, and Challenger carry very heavy layered composite armoring that can simply ignore RPG-7 strikes. At the most active end of the scale, expensive and maintenance-intensive new “hit to kill” systems like RAFAEL/IAI/GD’s Trophy can sense an incoming rocket, then fire projectiles to destroy it.

If that level of weight, or that level of complexity and expense, aren’t viable options, there are 2 general approaches to stopping rockets like RPGs.
MCV-80 Warrior Wrap-2
Warrior in Wrap-2 armor
(click to view full)

One is reactive armor tiles that explode outward when hit, disrupting the blast.

The other is “cage armor” or screens. They can sometimes prevent detonation, or prevent the shaped charge jet from forming properly. That can mean shorting the crush fuze’s transmission, so its electric charge can’t ignite the explosive. Or it can mean preventing the shaped charge from forming a proper jet, turning the warhead into a big bang and a burning splatter of goo. Premature detonation, which prevents the shaped charge warhead from “focusing” its plasma jet properly and having its full effect, may also help, especially in fixed emplacements.

Appendix A of “BAE’s LROD Cage Armor” explains cage armor principles in more detail, and also explains their limitations.

Tarian: Development and Performance
AmSafe
(click to visit)

Back in early 2005, AmSafe approached the British MoD’s Defence Science & Technology Laboratory (DSTL) with an outline concept, based on research they had been doing in other areas of their business.

“Cold” approaches can be difficult in the defense industry, but AmSafe had built up contacts and credibility by applying engineered textiles to defense aerospace problems for many years. The firm has deep expertise at finding new textiles and figuring out how to create items that catch objects. They’re the leading NATO provider of aircraft and helicopter cargo nets outside the USA, for instance, and their products include the A400M’s net – which is the largest in the world, and can withstand 9g. They’re also the leading cargo net provider to the global airline market, which creates a constant pressure toward lighter weight materials.
AmSafe
(click to visit)

One of those materials had caught AmSafe’s eye. The firm kept hearing from the field that deployed vehicles were consistently 20% or more above their weight limit, a useful thing to know for a firm also makes vehicle barrier nets. The reason for that extra weight usually involves added armor, and steel cage armor is a major contributor.

Could this new material be used to solve that problem? If so, it would be much lighter. As a fabric, it would also allow something that bar armor does not: the addition of camouflage patterns.

DSTL became interested, and the program accelerated in 2007 after initial evaluations went well. In order to create a product that could meet the extreme environments and uses needed by the military, the joint AmSafe/DSTL project worked to continue development, conducted testing, and undertook extensive vehicle trials. DSTL’s fact sheet lists development costs at GBP 500,000, or about $825,000.
LAND RG-31 LROD Armor
RG-31 w. LROD
(click to view full)

Tarian works like cage armor, albeit at 50% less weight than aluminum and 1/7 the weight of steel. Its panels are not larger than traditional cage armor, and fit into place using traditional bar/cage armor fixings and mountings. AmSafe representatives also describe it as “equally effective,” which is to say a significant improvement over no protection, but not 100%.

The weight saved can be used to help vehicles last longer by remaining within their designed weight limits, or it can be traded to add more protection on the vehicle itself. Camouflage patterns can also be applied, in order to improve overall survivability by making the vehicle a more difficult target.

AmSafe says that the material used in Tarian is fully flame retardant, which is very important if the RPG’s explosives are triggered but its plasma jet doesn’t form correctly. DSTL also says that the vehicle has been tested against “petrol bombs,” aka. “Molotov Cocktails.” It’s also highly resistant to abrasion and cutting, which is necessary for an attachment that’s guaranteed to take a certain amount of punishment in the rigors of use.

In military situations, Trian needs to remain effective after taking a hail of small arms fire. DSTL personnel later added that Tarian ” has been tested to the highest standards using a variety of grenades, rockets and small arms fired at different angles.” The British Ministry of Defence is reluctant to discuss further details for obvious reasons, but it does say that:

“Testing has shown that Tarian is very robust, and more than capable of withstanding battlefield wear and tear… and functioning as intended. If it does get damaged, it is very easy to replace in the field [due to its light weight].”

The last set of required tests involved potential visibility issues for troops driving or riding in Tarian protected vehicles. That seems to have gone well for Britain’s Oshkosh HET heavy trucks, which are now in service with the new fabric armor.

Tarian: Next Steps
TARIAN on Spartan
TARIAN on Spartan
(click to view full)

Under the mutual agreement with DSTL, Tarian’s intellectual property is wholly AmSafe’s, and patents are currently in place or pending related to different stages of the product. In the UK, trials are underway on different vehicles, including armored personnel carriers and armored fighting vehicles. If testing goes well, AmSafe expects additional orders from the UK.

While the company would not comment on specific trials, the British Army’s popular MCV-80 Warrior light armored fighting vehicles already carry cage armor, and would be obvious candidates for Tarian. In the course of a different discussion, a BAE spokesperson said that:

“We are looking at using fabric armour to [protect] Warrior, but how a crew is supposed to see through this, I’m not sure. More on this soon.”
LAND_BvS-10_Viking_Afghanistan_Aerial.jpg
BvS-10, Afghanistan -
note anti-RPG ‘cage armor’
(click to view full)

Another obvious candidate would the Royal Marines’ BvS10 Viking vehicles, which were replaced with ATTC Warthogs in Afghanistan for reasons that included armor requirements and operating weight issues.

Tarian can also offer additional protection for fixed installations like checkpoints, whose protection is frequently built of sand bags and similar materials. While HESCO barriers and similar “pre-fab filled form” systems have proven to be very effective against RPGs, they require engineering equipment to set up and take down. Tarian offers an option that’s lightweight enough to carry in on regular vehicles, and quickly set-up or take down using minimal equipment.

Beyond Britain’s shores, interest in vehicle and fixed installations picked up quickly after Tarian was unveiled at the June 2009 DVD show. UK DSTL have been cooperative with respect to channels into equivalent foreign defense departments, and the firm is at an early stage of discussions with several countries.

The American market will be more of a challenge, despite AmSafe’s facilities in Phoenix. It’s also a far larger opportunity, given the number of vehicles that could benefit from a Tarian-type solution. AmSafe has a long history of its own working with agencies like the US Army ARDEC, and the firm recently partnered with QinetiQ to offer its barbed X-Net vehicle arresting systems. The firm has supplied more than 4,000 over the last 6 years, including a 5-year military contract, and non-military use by Arizona’s border patrol. A program is underway for a larger X-Net version that would help arrest large trucks, something that would undoubtedly be popular for embassies and other key facilities. As was the case in Britain, an array of prior contacts and experience can be expected to help, if AmSafe’s offering matches priorities within the US military’s various agencies.

http://www.defenseindustrydaily.com/Out-of-Whole-Cloth-TARIAN-Rocket-Protection-05603/#more-5603