What is passive armor?

• A. Any armor that acts to disrupt incoming missiles.
• B. Any armor that does not act or react due to incoming or impacting projectiles.
• C. Armor that uses an active counter-attack.
• D. Armor that absorbs with explosive energy.

Answer: (B)

Passive armor is protection that works without any active response to a threat. It relies on the armor’s material properties and its physical design to absorb, deform, or deflect energy from an incoming projectile, without sensors, power, or countermeasures engaging. That means it doesn’t act or react when hit, which matches the description given. In contrast, armor that disrupts a threat, uses an active counterattack, or relies on explosive energy on impact describes reactive or active protection systems rather than passive armor. So passive armor is simply armor that does not act or react to incoming or impacting projectiles.