The system, known as Explosively Formed Axe (EFA), has two versions–light and heavy–which have been under development for several years by an industry team led by the Explosia Pardubice Company and the VTUO Brno division of the state-owned military repair plant VOP-026 Seternberk. Around two years of development will be required to produce an operational system.

Integration is under way in the Czech Republic of an indigenously developed the active protection system aboard an obsolete OT-64 8x8 armoured personnel carrier, in preparation for live system-level trials against rocket-propelled grenades (RPGs) and anti-tank missiles, with trials having been planned to take place in the latter part of 2009. A successful system may be adopted by the Czech Army to equip elements of its armoured vehicle fleet, including the 8x8 Pandur II, 4x4 Light Multipurpose Vehicle (LMV) or 4x4 Dingo 2.

Development of the APS began in the Czech Republic in 2006. It is a shared effort of an industrial team led by the Explosia Pardubice company (inventor and producer of Semtex explosives), working with the VTUO division of the state-owned military repair plant VOP-026 Sternberk, based in Brno. The research programme for tank protection was concluded by the end of 2008. Czech Army units on overseas missions generally only deploy with light-and medium armoured vehicles, and in addition to attacks involving blast mines, require protection against RPGs and improvised explosive devices (IEDs) generating explosively formed kinetic-energy penetrators (EFPs). The Czech Ministry of Defence therefore initiated a further project in 2007, aimed at providing an APS for these two categories of vehicle. This is being handled by a team that includes both Explosia Pardubice and VOP-026, supported by a top Czech technical university/institute, the CVUT of Prague.