Rafael’s Trophy Active Protection System (APS) has been chosen as the baseline APS for the new Leopard 2 A8 MBT design, with initial contracts issued for Germany and Norway.
EuroTrophy GmbH announced on August 6 that it had been awarded a contract by KNDS (KMW+NEXTER Defence Systems) for the Leopard 2 A8 programmes for Germany and Norway. Krauss-Maffei Wegmann and Nexter, located in Germany and France, respectively, are the most successful companies in Europe’s Land Defence systems industry, merged to become KNDS. KNDS has incorporated the active protection system Trophy into its brand-new Leopard 2 A8 standard configuration.
In November 2011, Israeli defence equipment maker Rafale announced the completion of its TROPHY active protection system tests on the German Leopard 2 tanks. In addition to installation, the contract also includes training and services. The integration of TROPHY will be completed in 2023, the release stated. TROPHY APS was installed on the newly built chassis of the Leopard 2 A7 standard and the Leopard 2 A6 A3. KMW referred to the new name Leopard 2 A7A1 in its press release.
With this accomplishment, Trophy has proven to be the most successful active protection system put into Western Main Battle Tanks, such as the Leopard 2, Abrams M1, and Merkava IV, as well as lighter platforms, such as the Namer APC and other wheeled and tracked IFVs. On August 5, Rafael announced an order from the British Ministry of Defence to install Trophy APS on Challenger 3 Tanks.
In February 2023, the Norwegian Defence Materiel Agency (NDMA) placed an order with KNDS to provide 54 Leopard 2 A8 Main Battle Tanks, each fitted with the Trophy active protection system. In addition, in May of 2023, the Federal Acquisition Office of the German Armed Forces (BAAINBw) signed a framework agreement with KMW to provide up to 123 Leopard 2 tanks in the standard A8 configuration.
