Military helmets are designed to protect against shrapnel and fragments, but is that the real ballistic threat they face? On the opportunity of Eurosatory 2022, in Paris, the Austrian company Ulbrichts is showcasing its Jump Model helmet for the new threats.
Follow Army Recognition on Google News at this link
Jump Model helmet at Ulbrichts' booth, Paris. (Picture source: Army Recognition)
Since February 2022, we have entered a new era, as the war in Ukraine shows the high risk of ballistic threats. Times have dramatically changed due to the requirements for protection against bullets, so it is not enough to protect only against shrapnel and fragments. In hybrid/urban war scenarios, shootings with rifles became common situations. Therefore, protecting against rifle shots becomes more and more important for soldiers.
A helmet must now combine two aspects in order to provide ballistic protection for soldiers. The first is to stop handgun and rifle projectiles, and the second is to prevent severe rear-end deformation leading to fatal brain injury. The objective was not only that the projectile be reliably stopped.
To protect effectively against a ballistic – especially rifle- thread a helmet must combine two aspects to provide true protection for soldiers. The first is – of course -to stop handgun and rifle projectiles.
But equally important is also to reduce the helmet’s backface deformations to a limit that it does not kill the soldier by the strong strike and transferred energy. Since today’s standard soldier helmets are specialized to protect against shrapnel and not against projectiles they have problems with both aspects: Shot by handgun ammunition they have a severe/probable lethal backface deformation and shot by rifle they cannot even stop the bullet and are fully penetrated.
Ulbrichts helmets can do both: stopping bullets shot by handguns and rifles (7,62x39 MSC, 5,56x45/M193, 7,62x51/NIJ3/M80) and reducing the helmet’s backface deformation/kinetic energy to survivable limits (25 Joule).
Currently, police officers and homeland security forces who are equipped with Ulbrichts helmets benefit from better protection than soldiers during operations. Ulbrichts believes that a police officer's life is just as valuable as a soldier's one, so they can be reunited with their loved ones in good health.
The new lightweight Jump modelis the best one for soldiers with true head protection against handgun ammunition starting at only 1.25kg. The helmet can be upgraded to true rifle protection via the FORTIS shiel as a - easily add-on-attachment has a total surface of 1,090 cm² and a ballistic protection surface of 962 cm².
Ulbrichts can add straps of 14 mm.This boltless helmet can also be combined via quick mount with a visor and other accessories. of 19 mm x 120 mm. The new stand-alone“rifle helmet” does not even need a Fortis shield but offers true protection against Kalashnikov AK47 7.62x39 MSC. Additionally, all helmets pass the tests for resistance to chemicals such as sulfuric acid, sodium, or acetone. In addition, it is non-flammable.
Next-generation of rifle helmets (Picture source: Army Recognition)
