Ballistic helmets are an essential part of the personal protection for anyone in a combat setting, including the military, law enforcement, security agents, etc. Probably too often, the choice is dictated respectively influenced by what this or that special forces unit uses (tacticool effect!).
Today I will discuss the relevant parameters you should consider to choose the adequate ballistic helmet for your needs.
Mission profile
You should define the primary mission role of your helmet. Examples are combat arms (e.g., infantry, rangers, etc.), general purpose, police patrol car, hostage rescue, special forces patrol, etc. As well as does your mission profile include standing, running, climbing, swimming, parachuting, working in the arctic, jungle, etc.? It seems easier than it is, but it will lead to many induced consequences below.
Protection level
You must specify the possible and probable threats, one of the most challenging tasks. As we have seen in the last 100 years, the type of military conflicts has changed regularly, and so has the primary threat. In WW2, the primary threat was shrapnel; in Afghanistan, Improvised Explosive Devices, and today in Ukraine, again shrapnel. Suppose you are a military or police special unit doing hostage rescue operations. In that case, your threat may be rather bullets, but probably primarily rifles for the military in combat operations and handguns for police in domestic law enforcement. Of course, you want to choose the best available protection level, but it will conflict with the other requirements I will describe now.
Coverage surface
Of course, you want the highest coverage available. So why choose a high-cut helmet? The main reason will be tactical headsets, although you could use headsets under full-cut helmets. Another element could be your techniques and procedures (e.g., does a wider helmet negatively affect your techniques and procedures!?). The coverage surface and weight difference between a full- and high-cut helmet is about 7-8%, around 100cm2 or 100g. That doesn’t seem much…, but it can become relevant with the complete helmet system.
Weight
Older helmets (PAGST, ACH, M92, etc.) weighed on average 1,5kg (3,3lbs). This weight is appropriate for combat operations and choosing the right weight will depend on your mission profile! Do you need to freefall and infiltrate 5km or approach a building from your vehicle 100m away? The weight depends on which ancillaries are fixed on your helmet (night vision devices, battery packs, beacons, camera, ballistic visor, etc.). In this case, you must evaluate the complete helmet system weight in relation to your mission profile. You can’t run and jump around with a >3kg helmet, which may be adequate for a short-time police mission.
Liner and harness
Liners and harnesses have come a long way since the PAGST helmet! Today’s products offer better protection (blunt impact, back face deformation, etc.), better stability, and adjustment friendliness. For instance, if you use your helmet for general-purpose protection without any ancillaries on the helmet, you probably don’t need to often adjust your liner and harness. If you use a monocular or lightweight binocular night vision device (<450g), your harness needs excellent vertical stability (and adjustment). On the other hand, if you use heavy night vision devices (e.g., GPNVG’s or ENVG-B’s), your harness needs excellent vertical and lateral stability.
Other aspects to consider are comfort, logistics, and hygiene. How long do you need to wear your helmet? Under which climatic conditions? Is the helmet personal issue? Do you need to change the liners and harness regularly? Do you need or want to wash the liners and harness? How long do you want to use the helmet (durability of the components)?
Ancillaries
You must define what ancillaries you want to interface/ work with your helmet respectively. Some examples are gas masks, night vision devices, lamps, beacons, goggles, etc. The ancillaries will have a significant influence on the required interfaces, the weight of the complete helmet system, and eventually the configuration of ancillaries (e.g., is the tactical headset worn under the helmet or fixed on external rails, are the goggles worn over the helmet of fixed on exterior rails, etc.)
Budget
Today you can buy an ACH helmet for well under $ 500.- and an Ops Core FAST RF1 costs well over $ 3’000.-! Probably some well-financed special units will be able to buy the best helmet they find for their needs, regardless of the price, but most organizations will not be able to do that. That’s where well-thought and prioritized requirements are essential.
In conclusion, choosing your future helmet adequately requires a good understanding of your mission requirements and a well-thought prioritization of your needs. You should understand and analyze each parameter before writing the requirements and approaching the industry. A possible approach would be to request the industry options concerning protection vs. weight vs. price. For example, helmet model A protects 10% more, is 20% heavier, and costs 50% more than helmet model B, etc.
Don’t forget that the industry doesn’t show all available models, developments, and technical information on its webpage. Therefore, it’s not a reliable information source to write your requirements. Write your requirements smartly and thoughtfully!
Future helmets will have to be viewed as a complete system and will require compromises, as all the wishes will likely not be fulfilled.
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