QinetiQ said it has secured a contract from the U.K. Defence Science and Technology Laboratory to enhance the protection capabilities of the British Army’s land armored vehicles.
The deal serves as Phase II of the Modular Integrated Protection System program, which aims to develop an active protection system for British tanks and armored personnel carriers to address existing and emerging threats.
To be managed under the Aurora Engineering Delivery Partnership, the program will advance the U.K. open systems architecture standard that supports adaptable protection configurations for military vehicles.
The project is intended to increase the survivability of British armored vehicles against rocket-propelled grenades, anti-tank guided weapons and small uncrewed aerial systems.
According to QinetiQ, the protection system will be used for various operational scenarios to ensure that British Army vehicles are equipped with the latest protection tactics.
Jamie MacKenzie, head of business development at UK Defence QinetiQ, lauded EDP’s selection to participate in the research.
“Specifically, Phase II of the MIPS program will demonstrate a significant advancement in the future-proofing of capability for the British Army in this critical area of protection systems,” he said in a statement.
QinetiQ is a lead partner in the EDP program framework while Leonardo UK is the principal systems integrator, leading a team that includes Thales, CGI, Roke, Ultra Electronics and Frazer Nash.
The program’s second stage will continue the work Leonardo started with the Icarus TDP but will focus on developing an MIPS controller for Technology Readiness Level 7.