In 2002 QinetiQ were awarded a contract by the MOD to study the vulnerability of the competing BAE and Thales design concepts to damage from a wide variety of mechanisms that could be inflicted by an above water or underwater attack.  QinetiQ also studied the possibility that an explosion in one weapons magazine might trigger a similar explosion in another magazine.    

Since the down-select in January 2003, QinetiQ have continued to assist the ACA at stages in the platform design process.   They use their Survive rapid vulnerability assessment tool develop an appropriate computer model of CVF and determine how vulnerable the design is, why it was vulnerable and what can be done to make it less vulnerable.  Survive simulates a multitude of primary and secondary damage mechanisms including: blast, fragmentation, shock, whipping, residual strength, flooding, fire and smoke and crew movement.  QinetiQ have helped optimise the armour levels without compromising protection - in some areas suggestions were that armour levels were increased and in others that they were reduced.  They also considered the number of casualties that might occur as the result of a weapon strike.

Based upon the results of the threat studies, side armour and blast resistant bulkheads were incorporated in to the 2002/3 Thales CVF Alpha design in order to protect important compartments such as the Operations Room, resulting in a very tough ship.  However as part of the cost cutting trade-off's made during the second half of 2003, many of these protective measures apparently had to be deleted. 

In the CVF Delta design concept adopted in December 2003,  considerable emphasis was instead placed upon including military standard damage control facilities, extensive internal subdivision and bulkheads, and providing the infrastructure for a high quality NBCD organisation.  It now seems that the primary protection of critical spaces such as magazines, steering gear, and ops rooms will be the location of these compartments deep in the ship.  But it remains possible that some such spaces will quietly receive some physical protection such as Kevlar for splinter protection.  The inclusion, or not, of such passive protection during the design and manufacture is likely to be classified, in accordance with recent practice.  In April 2007 the CVF IPT Team Leader, Rear Admiral Bob Love, stated "Specific Naval and Defence Standards have also been retained in other areas where a commercial equivalent is not appropriate such as the magazines.  Remember that the size of the vessel alone does give a degree of protection and this has allowed us to make pragmatic adjustments to the design."