Shtora2

Shtora-2 is a Russian electro-optical countermeasure system designed to defend armored fighting vehicles against laser-guided weapons. It is the successor to the original Shtora system and is intended to degrade the effectiveness of laser rangefinders and beam-riding or designating lasers by emitting infrared signals and providing automatic countermeasures.

The system combines a laser warning and detection suite with active jamming and obstacle-creating measures. Laser warning receivers monitor for incoming laser designations and rangefinders, triggering an automatic response when targets are detected. Shtora-2 uses infrared jamming to confuse or saturate laser guidance and designation beams. In addition, it typically employs a smoke or obscurant generator to create a visual and infrared cloud that reduces the accuracy of optical and infrared guidance systems and denies line-of-sight to attackers.

Deployment and scope of use are partially public and vary by vehicle and upgrade program. Shtora-2 has been described as an enhanced, more capable version of the original system, offering improved jam performance, broader spectrum coverage, and greater integration with modern armored vehicle electronics. It is associated with newer Russian tanks and upgrades, and it is often cited as part of mid- to late-2000s and 2010s modernization programs.

Overall, Shtora-2 represents Russia’s approach to soft-kill active protection, focusing on electronic spoofing of laser-guided weapons and obscuration to reduce hit probability, rather than hard-kill physical interception. See also electronic countermeasure systems and Russian armored vehicle protection suites.