HOSDB 2007 (bullet proof vests)

The British HOSDB 2007 standard has been used since 2007 and will still be one of the standards that will be used in England for many years to come. This bullet proof standard focuses on English threats and the bullet types that the British police can be exposed to.

Please note that in July 2017, HOSDB Standard 2007 has been revised and replaced by HOSDB Standard 2017, which you can read more about by clicking here.

HOSDB 2007 has 7 different levels of protection, for soft armor and ballistic hard armor plates. Below is a description of the "tasks" of which one sees the different levels of protection to be used for:

HG1 / A

Which is the lowest ballistic protection level for a bullet proof vest. This level is recommended to be used in low risk areas for patrols, and can be used as both overt and covert. (Overt is used above clothing and covert is concealed below clothing.)

HG1

HG1 soft armor is recommended for use in low-risk areas. This level can be used as both overt and covert.

HG2:

HG2 is recommended to be used for special operations where the chance of shootings is high. This type of vest is heavier and stops stronger small arms. This can be used with RF1 and SG1 hard armor plates. This is recommended for overt use.

HG3

HG3 is used for heavy duty body armor and is normally used with RF and SG hard armor plates. This is the highest level of soft armor and is not very common.

SG1

SG1 hard armor plates provide protection against shotguns at close range, and needs be used in conjunction with HG2 soft armor.

RF1

RF1 hard armor plates provide protection against soft-core ammunition from rifles, and are typically used in conjunction with HG2 soft armor.

RF2

RF2 hard armor plates provide protection against steel core ammunition from rifles, and are the highest bullet proof level for hard armor plates.

All the above levels of protection can be combined with knife and spike protection.

Of which a bullet proof vest can be called HG1 + KR1 + SP1. (Bullet + stab/spike protection)

The following will review the individual ballistic threats and the maximum BFS that a bullet proof vest or ballistic plate can have. For HG1/A, HG1 and HG2 the distance from the gun is 5 meter and 10 meter for HG3, RF1, RF2 and SG1. Like NIJ, the back face signature is measured by having a special clay behind the bullet proof vest or ballistic plate to measure the depth of the bullet impact.

This is required as the impact of the bullet can kill you if the BFS is too high. For HOSDB Body armor the bullet can have a maximum depth of 25 mm, of which NIJ allows a depth of 44mm.

There is, however, a big difference between the threats in the US and Europe, where the NIJ standard focuses heavily on the .44 magnum, where the HOSDB standard has focus on other threats as 9 mm and .357 Magnum which is more common in England.

HOSDB Protection levels for soft armor body armor according to HOSDB standard

HG1/A

This are the lowest ballistic level for HOSDB, and the BFS is allowed to be up to 44 mm as the only level. All other ballistic levels have a maximum BFS of 25 mm.

HG1/A is tested with a 9mm FMJ with a bullet mass of 8.0 g (124 gr) and with a velocity of 365 m s +/- 10 m/s and with a .357 Magnum soft point flat nose with a bullet mass of 10.2 g (158 gr) and with a velocity of 390 m/s +/- 10 m/s.

HG1

HG1 is tested with a 9mm FMJ with a bullet mass of 8.0g (124 gr) and with a velocity of 365 m / s +/- 10 m / s and with a .357 Magnum soft point flat nose with a bullet mass of 10.2 g (158 gr) and with a velocity of 390 m / s +/- 10 m / s.

Note that the difference between HG1/A and HG1 lies is in back face signature (BFS).

HG2

HG2 is tested with a 9mm FMJ with a bullet mass of 8.0g (124 gr) and with a velocity of 430 m / s +/- 10 m / s and with a .357 Magnum soft point flat nose with a bullet mass of 10.2 g (158 gr) and with a velocity of 455 m / s +/- 10 m / s.

Here is the velocity of 9 mm and .357 magnum increased with 65 m / s.

HG3

HG3 is tested against 5.56 (.223) ammunition, for example with an H&K G36C. This is a very special level of soft ballistic protection as it is intended to provide protection against the police's own machine guns. HG3 does NOT provide protection against FMJ or Steel Core ammunition, no matter what type it is. Maximum BFS for HG3 is 25 mm.

"HG1/A cannot have a BFS higher than 44mm and HG1, HG2 and HG3 Cannot exceed a BFS of 25mm."

HOSDB Protection levels for hard armor against rifles and shotgun

RF1

RF1 is tested with a 7.62x51 FMJ with a mass of 9.3g (144g) and with a velocity of 830m / s + -15m / s.

RF2

RF2 is tested with a 7.62x51 FMJ AP with a mass of 9.7 g and with a velocity of 850 m / s + - 15 m / s.

The difference between RF1 and RF2 is that RF2 stops AP (armor piercing) bullets. SG1 SG1 is tested with a 12 gauge shotgun with a mass of 28.4 g and with a velocity of 410-460 m/s.
RF1, RF2 and SG1 cannot exceed the BFS maximum which is 25 mm.

All body armor that have been tested and certified to the HOSDB standard will have the following symbols attached to the carrier.