Hensoldt has delivered a Multifunctional Self-protection System (MUSS) equipment set for integration into the German Army’s new Puma infantry fighting vehicle (IFV).

This is the 300th MUSS equipment set and takes the total deliveries of the devices for the Puma to 1,500, comprising 1,200 sensor heads and 300 central units.

The company is required to deliver 342 MUSS equipment sets to Krauss-Maffei Wegmann and Rheinmetall by next year.

Hensoldt CEO Thomas Müller said: “Electronic protection systems like MUSS are opening up enhanced possibilities for protecting armoured vehicles from attacks, as is already the case for aircraft or helicopters.

“Compared to conventional solutions, we are able to increase the protection level considerably without adding weight or risking collateral damage around the vehicle.”

MUSS is an Active Protection System (APS) designed to reduce the likelihood of the vehicles being hit by anti-tank guided missiles or laser-guided ammunition.

Components of the soft-kill APS system include four warning sensors, an infrared jammer head, a central unit, jammer electronics and a smoke grenade launcher.

The warning sensors contribute to the protection of the vehicles by detecting incoming threats such as missiles and laser beams.

As part of the soft response mechanism, the central unit is responsible for activating an infrared jammer, which then interferes with guidance systems of the missiles.

In a statement, Hensoldt said: “MUSS is a discrete solution, which has no significant influence on the vehicle radiation as it features only passive sensors and an infrared Jammer with short activation time, not detectable either in visible or in thermal image spectrum.”

Hensoldt’s subsidiary Optronics supplies components such as weapons optronics systems, periscopes and driver sighting systems, for the Puma vehicles.