Back General Dynamics Ajax German General Dynamics Ajax Spanish Ajax (panssariajoneuvo) Finnish General Dynamics Ajax French אג'קס (נגמ"ש) HE General Dynamics Ajax Polish Ajax (Scout SV) Ukrainian 阿贾克斯装甲车 Chinese
| Ajax | |
|---|---|
 Pre-production prototype of the turreted Ajax variant | |
| Type | Armoured fighting vehicle |
| Place of origin | United Kingdom |
| Production history | |
| Designer | General Dynamics UK |
| Manufacturer | General Dynamics UK |
| Specifications | |
| Mass | 38 tonnes with growth potential to 42 tonnes |
| Length | 7.62 m (25 ft 0 in) |
| Width | 3.35 m (11 ft 0 in) |
| Height | 3.00 m (9 ft 10 in) |
| Crew | 3+7 passengers for PMRS variant[1] |
Main armament | 40 mm (1.6 in) CTA International CTAS40 cannon |
Secondary armament | 7.62 mm L94A1 coaxial chain gun Kongsberg Protector Remote Weapon Station (UK testing with Javelin ATGM[2][3][4]) |
| Engine | MTU Friedrichshafen V8 engine 600 kW (800 bhp) |
| Transmission | RENK 6 speed HSWL 256B |
| Suspension | Torsion bar |
| Maximum speed | 70 km/h (43 mph) |
The Ajax, formerly known as the Scout SV (Specialist Vehicle), is a group of armoured fighting vehicles being developed by General Dynamics UK for the British Army.[5] It has suffered serious development and production difficulties.[6]
The Ajax is a development of the ASCOD armoured fighting vehicles used by the Spanish Armed Forces and Austrian Armed Forces. The vehicles were originally developed by Steyr-Daimler-Puch Spezialfahrzeug and Santa Bárbara Sistemas in the early 1990s. Both companies were purchased by General Dynamics in the early 2000s.
In 2010, General Dynamics UK was selected as the winner of the Future Rapid Effect System contract with the ASCOD Common Base Platform, beating BAE Systems' CV90 proposal. The Ajax vehicles were to be procured in a number of variants, initially planned to be in blocks, with the first vehicles planned to be delivered in 2017. Delays meant that as of January 2020, initial operating capability was expected in July 2020.[7]
In November 2020, trials were halted over excessive noise and vibration. In September 2021 Jeremy Quin, Minister for Defence Procurement, in a written response stated that dynamic testing and training on Ajax was suspended and that "it is not possible to determine a realistic timescale for the introduction of Ajax vehicles into operational service".[8] Limited trials resumed in October 2022, with extended trials to last possibly until early 2025.
In a statement in March 2023, the Ministry of Defence (MOD) said that full operating capability was expected between October 2028 and September 2029, when the army has trained and converted forces to the vehicle.[9]
- ^ "AJAX: The Future of Armoured Fighting Vehicles" (PDF). General Dynamics UK. Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 April 2016.
- ^ "Javelin missile completes ground vehicle launch tests for UK Army". Army Technology. 15 June 2016. Retrieved 3 June 2022.
- ^ "Appendix A Ajax - Weapons". Think Defence. 17 September 2017. Retrieved 3 June 2022.
- ^ "Ajax To MIV And The Emergence Of STRIKE". Think Defence. 15 September 2017. Retrieved 3 June 2022.
- ^ "Scout SV named Ajax [DSEI15, D2]". Jane's Defence Weekly. 16 September 2015. Archived from the original on 19 September 2015.
- ^ Brown, Larisa (29 June 2021). "New £3.2bn Ajax tanks withdrawn again after troops suffer hearing loss". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 16 January 2023.
- ^ "General Dynamics' Ajax to achieve initial operating capacity this year". Army Technology. 22 January 2020. Retrieved 3 June 2022.
- ^ Jeremy Quin, Minister for Defence Procurement (6 September 2021). "Written statement: Armoured Cavalry Programme (Ajax) Programme". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). United Kingdom: House of Commons.
- ^ Quinn, Ben (20 March 2023). "British army's new Ajax fighting vehicle will not be ready until end of decade". The Guardian. Retrieved 2 August 2023.