Indian army has long been in dire need of large number of bullet proof vests and even when the govt last year ordered 50000 bullet proof vest under fast procurement still the army requires more than 1.6+ lakh jackets immediately. Several trials for selection of vests were done but none of the vest was able to meet army's requirements or pass the tests which army threw at them (firms blamed army for not doing tests as per standards and said that army did not have fixed procedure for testing). This thing till now had no clear solution as some vests failed in stopping bullets at close range, some failed in other tests and some were unable to meet weight requirements.
Now an Indian origin scientist Professor Shantanu Bhowmick has designed and developed an ultra light bullet proof jacket which has been given nod by MOD. The jacket is made using thermoplastic technology which is fully indigenous. The jacket which is made using state of art technology is ultra light and weighs about 1.5-2 kgs which is atleast 3-4 times lesser than normal bullet proof jackets which are being used by forces. The current jackets weight about 6-8 kgs without armour plates and about 18 kgs with solid armour plates.
Also the imported jackets costs more than 100000 INR per jacket while the new indigenous jackets will cost about 50000 INR.The jacket also surpasses the ordinary jackets in protection as 20 layers of carbon fiber provide ample resistance from bullets and protect the user well. For protection against larger calibers similar to normal jackets we can add solid armour plates which will keep the user safe from even bigger bullets like 7.62 mm etc.
The production of jacket will be done after the jacket gets green signal from PM Narendra Modi and the jackets will be produced under "MAKE IN INDIA" initiative. These jackets will not just make us self reliant when it comes to body armour but will also save lives of many soldiers & also save millions or even billions of dollars in long run.
Now an Indian origin scientist Professor Shantanu Bhowmick has designed and developed an ultra light bullet proof jacket which has been given nod by MOD. The jacket is made using thermoplastic technology which is fully indigenous. The jacket which is made using state of art technology is ultra light and weighs about 1.5-2 kgs which is atleast 3-4 times lesser than normal bullet proof jackets which are being used by forces. The current jackets weight about 6-8 kgs without armour plates and about 18 kgs with solid armour plates.
Also the imported jackets costs more than 100000 INR per jacket while the new indigenous jackets will cost about 50000 INR.The jacket also surpasses the ordinary jackets in protection as 20 layers of carbon fiber provide ample resistance from bullets and protect the user well. For protection against larger calibers similar to normal jackets we can add solid armour plates which will keep the user safe from even bigger bullets like 7.62 mm etc.
The production of jacket will be done after the jacket gets green signal from PM Narendra Modi and the jackets will be produced under "MAKE IN INDIA" initiative. These jackets will not just make us self reliant when it comes to body armour but will also save lives of many soldiers & also save millions or even billions of dollars in long run.
Great news👌
ReplyDeleteYes indeed
ReplyDeleteOulah, first, if it needs plates for riffle threats, it's a Level IIIA vest, maybe even Level II/IIA.
ReplyDeleteLevel IIIA withstands all pistol calibers up to .44mag but may not stop 5.7x28AP from FN 5-7/FN P90 or some home-made boosted .22mag with DIY AP bullets. No way to stop .30carbine from an US-M1 or Automag-III.
The Tsahal vest weights 2.4kg, a Level II able to take 9mmPara/.45ACP is likely to weight only 1.5kg without problem.
Weight can rise if there are neck/groin protection.
It's clear that there is coverage for the neck, groin etc, weight rises...
Additional ceramic anti-riffle plates will weight 1.5kg for Level III (5.56, 7.62x54/.308) butwon't take AP bullets, there are Level III+ that can take the AP ones then you go Level IV to withstand 30-06AP (Garand M1) but in many cases, they can take .338Lapua-AP or .300winch-mag AP.
Now remember that ceramics will only take one hit in a somewhat large area of the plate, they can be ruined by shocks, degrade over time.
In any case, you have to add trauma plates as the kinetic energy alone, if not repartited, can cause serious harm or kill while there may be no penetration. I let imagine a 6000 .300winch-mag or a 8000J .338Lapua without trauma plates : ouch!!!
Additional plates may be carried for the sides, shoulders, neck and even groin/ass. Remember that it needs also a coating as shrapnels can be absolutely lethal, jumping into your face.
Now, if you want to take multiple hits, smth that will not degrade easily and take shocks, you will need to be metal-plated and an AR680 Level III+ will weight 3.3kg for front & same for back. Thus, such a plate is standalone and very likely to rise a Level IIIA soft body armour to Level IV.
Standalone Level IV metal plates can weight a good +4 to 5kg, especially if made in AR500 steel.
An AR680 6"x8" side plate will weight 900g
Note that some hi-end tiles for bathrooms are in the same ceramics used for some Level III/IV plates ;-)
Now, it's no surprise that an army doesn't uses body armour at all but just plate-carriers integrated to the tactical harness, so no additional weight due to some 3A body armour, any way, you may not be shot at with pistols so full coverage with a Level IIIA has no purpose : AK rounds will go through anyway, so why bothering with a body armour? Just put the plates you need in the carrier.
At short distance, and even likely medium distance, there's nothing to stop .50BMG and very unlikely .408Chey-Tac too, ctually, although with less muzzle energy, .408 may even pierce further as bullet are faster.
What pierces through is more the speed than the calibre. A .243 WSSM with a 55gr bullet flying at Mach4 and a .223WSSM flying at Mach5, especially with AP bullets, may defeat what a .308AP won't
Now, threats may change in range : if you have the typical gun-totting rebels with AK, level III will be enough, if you face troops with standard NATO calibres and habitual AP bullets, Level III+ is OK, if there are snipers with .300winch-mag/.338Lapua AP or higher, go for Level IV and prey the sniper's enough far, if there are any caliber like .300ultra-mag or worst, to have smth with not enough speed to pierce through and pray for the sniper not beng the king of head-shots...
Actually, in case of snipers with high calibres, your best asset is having serious smoke grenades using red phosphorous as smoke will be warm and so will obscure thermal imaging...
In conclusion : I wouldn't buy body armours for the military! This is good for the police in uniform which is likely to face handguns, thus it can depend on areas and who they are after : if criminals are usually the kind to use riffles, plates are needed
Indian army mostly faces terrorist infiltrators which are equipped with AK-47 and BPJ can be lifesaver for thousands. yes armour plates are essential part of BPJ for protection against 5.56 or 7.62 mm rifle rounds (other rounds too, m not really great with ammunition).
Deletethe ones US uses are ext heavy even as bpj weight 6-8 kilos without plates but this jacket weighs 1.5 kg and provides 360 degree protection and even with plates it will merely be as heavy as an american jacket. its not a bad idea for us to provide entire army with jackets.
Our requirement is of NIJ lvl IV (we want best). we dont face sniper fires by terrorists so we need a body armour.
I AM VERY IMMPRESSED WITH RUSSIAN RATNIK ARMOUR.
There is also US made Dragon Skin, but actually, shenanigans torpedoed the project, the owner ends near ruined while it was publicly proven tremendous.
ReplyDeleteSmall company vs. big sharks, you know...
The armour can even resist a point blank grenade and is easy to move in as these are round small plates placed like a reptile scales. Take a look to tests on Youtube : absolutely impressive!
I'd simply propose the guy to resettle and to make him... rich!
NIJ MIV AKA Level-IV is made to resist 30-06 (Garand M1) armour piercing. Usually it also takes .338Lapua too.
For AK-47/5.56NATO, Level-III or III+ is enough as it withstands .308NATO or 7.62x54ru and AP ones for the III+ (if I remember well)
If you want serious explanations on firearms, there are a lot here :
http://modernfirearms.net/
and to see many (funny) tests, FPSrussia on youtube (nope, he's murican impersonating a Russian gunfreak)
Once you'll know a little better about ballistics, you'll definitively get why I so highly consider replacing 5.56 and .308 by
.243WSSM
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/.243_Winchester_Super_Short_Magnum
Note that kinetic energy's on par with old Brit .303 Enfield
"Compared to other factory 6mm sporting cartridges the 243 WSSM is capable of functioning in the AR-15" (M-16, M-4 and also other 5.56 platforms!)
Nevertheless, I sincerely hope your soldiers to get quality protection, nevertheless, the 6-8k US jacket is WITH plates, at 1.5kg, you'll get a Level-IIIA (all pistol rounds up to .44magnum) with plates to be added and it sounds even light to me for Level-IIIA... More likely a Level-II (9mm Para/.45ACP). It's clear that body armour largely reduce casualties.