The Army has come a long way since the famous “Steel Pot” helmet that offered some measure of protection for millions of troops fighting their way through World War II, Korea, Vietnam, and even the Cold War.
Paratroopers with the 82nd Airborne Division are the first to field the service’s new combat helmet. Formally known as the “Next Generation Integrated Head Protection System,” it provides troops with enhanced protection against enemy fire and can support high-tech equipment like night vision goggles, communications gear or even a heads-up display.
The NG-IHPS replaces previously fielded helmets like the first-generation Integrated Head Protection System (IHPS), the Advanced Combat Helmet, and the Enhanced Combat Helmet.
“This fielding marks significant progress for soldier protective equipment as it equips soldiers with protection against relevant battlefield threats,” said Lt. Col. Ken Elgort, product manager for Soldier Protective Equipment at the Army’s Program Executive Office. “The innovative helmet design is a purpose-built platform for integration now and with future soldier-enabling devices.”
The new helmet also allows the user to attach a “maxillofacial protective system” to provide a barrier against enemy fire to the mouth and lower face. The “mandible protector” will be primarily used by soldiers in mounted units, officials said.
Designers say the new helmet provides the soldier with increased ballistic and fragmentation protection while reducing the weight needed to reach the protective level by 40%, said officials with the Program Executive Office (PEO), the Army’s agency for rapidly developing and fielding equipment for soldiers.
“This is world-leading rifle threat protection that we’re providing to our soldiers,” said Maj. Matthew Nulk, assistant program manager for the PEO’s Head Protection Team.
A first-generation IHPS weighs about three pounds but requires the addition of a two-pound ballistic shield, known as an applique, to provide full protection against small-arms fire. Army officials said the next-generation helmet provides the same level of protection but without the additional weight.
The amount of weight a soldier is carrying is a crucial factor on any battlefield. An optimal helmet design discovers a balance between the need for protection and the comfort and practicality of the headgear.
Army surgeons during the Vietnam War discovered that a number of injuries from small shell fragments occurred due to soldiers not wearing their helmets because of complaints about excessive heat and discomfort, according to the Journal of Military and Veterans’ Health, based in Australia.
Because of design features of the new helmet, including a boltless retention system and a bracket mount, a soldier can add accessories such as night vision goggles without compromising the helmet’s structural integrity, said Alex de Groot, lead engineer for the Army’s Head Protection Team.
Older helmets used by the Army are made from strong and heat-resistant synthetic fibers called aramids, the best known of which is Kevlar. Because the material is so brittle, it absorbs energy by shattering. The next-generation helmets now being fielded are constructed out of more pliable polyethylene.
“It’s a softer material, and as a result, takes more deformation in order to absorb that energy from the round,” said Alex de Groot, lead engineer for PEO’s Head Protection Team.
Frontline troops will be the first equipped with the NG-IHPS. The Army said the brigades in the 82nd Airborne Division were scheduled to receive their new helmets by the end of March. Other combat-experienced units like the 101st Airborne Division and the 10th Mountain Division will receive theirs by 2028.
Army troops less likely to find themselves in a firefight against a determined enemy will continue using the Advanced Combat Helmet, known as the ACH, until further notice.
“Not every soldier is doing a high-risk job at all times. Not everybody’s jumping out of planes,” said Lt. Col. Elgort.
The new helmet is only one part of the Army’s “Soldier Protection System,” which also includes the Modular Scalable Vest, the Ballistic Combat Shirt, the Blast Pelvic Protector, and the Vital Torso Protection hard armor plates, officials said.
• Mike Glenn can be reached at mglenn@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.