NIJ IIIA+ Protection Level

The NIJ protection level IIIA is currently the lowest protection level commonly used in military and law enforcement. NIJ IIIA level armor is widely used in bulletproof vests worn under clothing and fragmentation vests. The manufacturer uses an additional plus sign, indicating the protection may be slightly enhanced in some non-standard way.

NIJ IIIA has been tested against the following threats:

• .22LR (small-caliber pistols and rifles)
• .44 Magnum SJHP
• .357 SIG
• 9x19mm FMJ (pistols and submachine guns)
• Various fragments and ricochets

If you are not familiar with NIJ standards, here is a fairly easy-to-understand table of different protection levels:

Caliber | NIJ IIA | NIJ II | NIJ IIIA | NIJ III | NIJ IV

.22 LR LRN | OK | OK | OK | OK | OK

.380 ACP FMJ RN | OK | OK | OK | OK | OK

9x19 mm FMJ RN | OK (341 m/s) | OK (367 m/s) | OK (436 m/s) | OK | OK

.357 Mag JSP | FAIL | OK | OK | OK | OK

.44 Mag SJHP | FAIL | FAIL | OK | OK | OK

7.62 NATO FMJ | FAIL | FAIL | FAIL | OK | OK

.30-06 AP | FAIL | FAIL | FAIL | FAIL | OK

LRN | Lead Round Nose

FMJ | Full Metal Jacket

RN | Round Nose

JSP | Jacketed Soft Point

SJHP | Semi-Jacketed Hollow Point

AP | Armour-Piercing