A computer-generated image of how a British Army Challenger 2 main battle tank would look after being upgraded by Rheinmetall. Note the sensor fitted on top of the turret rear. (Rheinmetall image)
Posted on 08/12/2016 7:49:36 PM PDT by sukhoi-30mki
LONDON --- An initial assessment phase portion for the British Army Challenger main battle tank upgrade program has elicited response from multiple bidders. The British Army's fleet of 227 Challenger tanks are to be upgraded under a program expected to reach £624 million ($816 million).
Under the latest U.K. Strategic Defense and Security Review (SDSR) published in November 2015, the Conservative government opted to extend the service life of the British Army's Challenger II main battle tank - which began entering service in 1998 - out by 10 years to 2035.
With the deadline for submitting industry proposals to the Ministry of Defense set for August 12, there have been multiple entries: one from a consortium led by BAE Systems and General Dynamics, a team-up of Lockheed Martin UK and Israeli Elbit Systems, Germany's Rheinmetall, Switzerland's Ruag, a CMI Defense-Ricardo UK partnership, and Germany's Krauss Maffei Wegmann.
Once it examines the proposals the British MoD will select two bidders to undertake a two-year competitive assessment phase. These invitations are expected to be extended by October.
Following this one of the two bidders will be down-selected for the developing and manufacturing contract which will be awarded around mid-2019. The main issue the British Army seeks to address with the Challenger is turret-obsolescence and the possibility of equipping them with active protection systems.
The tank upgrade project appears to have become an MoD priority in light of a leaked British Army report dating from July 10 that noted Russia's increased capabilities that appear to have an edge over their British counterparts. A planned £3.5 billion acquisition of a family of armored reconnaissance vehicles under the Ajax program has been deemed vulnerable to Russian mortar and rocket fire and the introduction into Russian service of the new-generation T-14 Armata main battle tank also appears to represent a crucial step-up in armored capability for the Russian Army.
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A computer-generated image of how a British Army Challenger 2 main battle tank would look after being upgraded by Rheinmetall. Note the sensor fitted on top of the turret rear. (Rheinmetall image)
I sure would like to be a defense contractor...
Vote Trump!
Just wondering, is that reactive armor on the plate covering the bogey wheels?
How pathetic.
I bet Somalia has more than that.
Upgrade them to Leopards.
more for an uprising of their subjects than real combat
According to Wikipedia, Saudi Arabia has 373 M1s, even little Morocco has 222, Kuwait 218, Egypt over 1000... And the UK just 220. SMH...
No kidding - not even enough to equip a mechanized division, let alone anything armored division.
Trump is right, our allies need to contribute more.
A bit tongue in cheek, but with some truth - Abrams can be upgraded to Leo 2s / Leo 2s can be upgraded to Chally 2s
Chally 2s can be upgraded to T-90s, T90s to T-14s ...
The Brits cannot even float a carrier group, let alone find the planes for the carrier nor field the troops to fight a real war.
They may need to contribute more, but cannot as all their money goes to social programs and resettlement of Islamic ‘refugees.’
The US, under Hillary, will face the same problems, assuming she will allow Bill to make the Presidential decisions she is medically incapable of making.
No truth in that. The Abrams, Leopard, and Challenger were all part of the same original design. The US, Germany, and Britain went in together for a design that would be utilized by all 3 countries (MBT-70) but eventually went to individual designs with commonalities, that being the German gun and British Chobham armor, though the Germans eventually dropped the Chobham in favor of Burlington and the Brits went with a rifled main gun (L30A1).
The fundamental differences are the electronics packages within each vehicle and how each crew acquires and engages targets. The British and Germans rely heavily upon electronics for acquisition and engagement. This is problematic in the modern battlefield and something I was grateful that the Marine Corps did not buy into when I was a company commander. The electronics were minimal and primarily for data to improve first-hit percentages. The Army has computer laden vehicles that bogs down the TC and keeps him out of the fight. The M1A1 is simply better than the Leopard II and Challenger II, the T-90 ain't even in the mix.
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