Explosive reactive armor (ERA) was designed to enhance existing tanks protection against HEAT sharped charge warheads. The Israeli Army first used Blazer ERA in the 1982 Lebanon War. The Syrians captured a M48 with Blazer and that one was delivered to the main Soviet Armor research center, the NIIBT at Kubinka. Scientific Research Institute for Steel with some other Soviet institutes designed own variant of dynamic protection elements (EDZ Kontakt). Kontakt bricks were first spotted on Soviet tanks in Germany in 1984. It was a very unpleasant surprise for NATO, which had come to rely very heavily on anti-tank missiles. The standard fit includes 227 bricks. |
