How a Body Armor Protects?

By: Alex De Mostafa

Body Armor work on the principles of using layers of very tightly woven fibers which are reinforced with metal or ceramic or plastic plates to provide protection from fire arms of various kinds. The hard type Body Armor has become a standard accessory in military use as the soft type Body Armor are ineffective against any kind of rifle fire power. The CRISAT-NATO provides a standard for body armor which specifies the use of titanium plates as reinforcement backing. Use of titanium has been recommended due to its light weight but very high protective strength. These titanium plates may be permanently fixed to the vest or may be removable.

How does the Body Armor then protect the wearer?

The Body Armor does not deflect he bullets for protecting he wearer but it catches the bullet and spreads the force of its impact over a much large portion of the body all the while absorbing the force of the bullet and bringing it to a halt before it can pierce and penetrate the body. This process of stopping the bullets usually de-shape and deform the bullet making it all the more difficult to penetrate the body. No doubt the Body Armor stops the bullet, but the wearer has to absorb the shock arising out of the bullets impact. These impacts can often result in blunt force trauma. Most users normally suffer only bruises but sometimes the blunt impacts can cause sever injuries to internal organs. At least the vest save you from life threatening bullet hits.

However, these vests are ineffective in normal one-on-one combats which use sharp weapons like knives, spears, pick axes, or any kind of bladed weapons or special type of Body Armor piercing bullets having a sharp pointed head. The reason being simple; the vests get pierced if the force is concentrated in a very small area of impact.

Josh Baker writes on topics such as Body Armor and Body Armor for Tactical Gears Visit How a Body Armor Protects?.