DBT FAPC inserts and S-3 plates
Stand-alone rifle plates are designed to stop the rated ballistic threat without the need to be worn over a ‘soft’ armour vest. ‘In-conjunction’ rifle plates are designed to stop the rated ballistic threat when used in-conjunction with the specified soft armour combination. For example, the SAPI plates initially issued with the Interceptor were meant to be used with the level IIIA armour in the OTV, not by themselves. But the Interceptor and other armoured vests can be bulky, and users might choose to wear a plate carrier instead of a full vest. Plate carriers are generally designed to hold a set of plates only, or small soft-armour panels. There are times in which a user might have a plate carrier, and stand-alone plates might not be available. In this case, in-conjunction plates can be used, but with a plate-shaped soft-armour insert. Diamondback Tactical manufactures offers Level IIIA plate-shaped inserts under their CAT (Custom Armour Technologies) label to use behind in-conjunction rifle plates in plate carriers. I was taking a look at an entry vest issued to a friend who’s a Federal agent, and the panels were made by CAT, and the carrier was the older Federal Agent Kit vest (now replaced with the newer molle style).