Future of UK's multibillion Ajax armored vehicle program looks shaky

Noise and vibration keeps sending soldiers to the medics

The future of the British Army's troublesome Ajax armored vehicle program has again been called into question after the official in charge was removed and use of Ajax halted over its effects on personnel.

Initial operating capability (IOC) of the tracked reconnaissance vehicle was declared in November last year, despite ongoing concerns over excessive noise and vibration impacting Army personnel using it.

Now the Minister for Defence Readiness and Industry Luke Pollard MP has disclosed in a statement to Parliament that he had been given written assurances by senior Ministry of Defence (MoD) personnel that Ajax was "demonstrably safe."

Since that guarantee was given, 35 service personnel reported symptoms consistent with noise and vibration effects during a training exercise, causing him to order an indefinite pause of the use of Ajax for training, while safety investigations are carried out.

A ministerial review into the advice that Pollard and other senior officials were receiving concluded that people had been raising issues with the Ajax program, but those issues were not being "elevated to an appropriate level."

In response, the Senior Responsible Owner of the Ajax program has been removed, and Pollard says he has passed oversight to the National Armaments Director. The latter is a civil servant, Rupert Pearce, who was appointed last year with a brief to reform defense procurement.

As for Ajax itself, Pollard said the MoD is working with the contractor, General Dynamics, to identify problems and solutions, adding that "we will need to decide on the platform's future shortly."

This seems to suggest that the UK government may be preparing to cancel Ajax if the issues cannot be fixed, but that would open up a whole new can of worms, as the program is already years behind schedule and the multibillion-pound budget for it has already been spent.

It has been suggested that the MoD should consider buying the CV90 instead, which is already in service with several other European armies, but the MoD is said to be facing a £28 billion ($38 billion) funding "black hole" over the next four years, as it stands.

Meanwhile, the government has just committed £650 million ($880 million) to upgrade the RAF's fleet of Typhoon fighter jets, as some ask whether more of these should be procured instead of the troublesome F-35 stealth aircraft.

About £453 million ($612 million) is going on fitting European Common Radar System (ECRS) Mk2 kit [PDF]. This is said to be able to simultaneously detect, identify, and track multiple targets in the air and on the ground, while providing a high-powered jamming capability in contested environments.

Another £205 million ($277 million) is going on specialist engineering support by QinetiQ to help upgrade the Typhoon's weapon systems, the MoD says.

But both Turkey and Germany recently placed orders for 20 new-build Typhoons apiece, in the latter case to replace aging Tornado aircraft. At the time, MPs questioned in Parliament why the UK isn't buying any more itself, especially as the Royal Air Force (RAF) has retired many of its oldest Tranche 1 models, leaving it with about 107 Typhoons in service.

Instead, the government last year decided to buy 12 F-35A fighters capable of carrying nuclear weapons, despite the fact these can't be refueled by the RAF's own tankers and the nukes they would carry are owned by the US.

The RAF and the Royal Navy also operate the F-35B version of the jet, as a replacement for the Harrier in the Navy's case, and the Tornado in RAF service.

Pressure will likely grow for the government to change its mind on a Typhoon purchase, especially in light of recent events that have led many to question whether the US can be considered a reliable partner.

Spain last year cancelled plans to buy the F-35, opting for the Typhoon instead.

In addition, the maker of the F-35, Lockheed Martin, has dragged its heels on supporting UK weapons such as the Spear and Meteor missiles, a capability not expected before 2031, five years behind schedule.

However, the UK is already committed to developing the Typhoon's replacement, as part of the Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP) project with Italy and Japan. Codenamed Tempest, this is expected to be in service by 2035, which means the UK may see little point in ordering new Typhoons now. ®