"Loss of the status of a major military power": what can the UK face with the rejection of infantry fighting vehicles and tanks

The government of the United Kingdom may eliminate the modernization program of the Warrior infantry fighting vehicle.

Keren Wilkins, director of the BMP extension program (WCSP) of the British branch of the American corporation Lockheed Martin, told reporters at an online briefing.

“According to representatives of the ground forces (Great Britain. -

RT

), our program is the only opportunity, in accordance with all their requirements, to provide infantry fighting vehicles that can accommodate

an entire squad

behind (in the troop compartment. - 

RT

), equipped as the main weapon 40 -mm cannon, provided with additional armor protection and have other excellent characteristics, "- quoted by Wilkins portal Defense News.

The fate of the Warrior Improvement Program should be decided soon.

It is expected that the situation with the BMP will be cleared up with the publication of a report on a comprehensive analysis of the security, defense and foreign policy of Great Britain.

As Defense Minister Ben Wallace said in December 2020, along with this document, the British authorities will adopt a plan for the distribution of £ 16.5 billion ($ 23.1 billion) for the needs of the armed forces.

Thus, according to the publication Jane's, funding for the United Kingdom army will increase by £ 4 billion ($ 5.6 billion).

The corresponding order was given in November by Prime Minister Boris Johnson.

"The modernization will not make special weather"

According to The Times, there are currently 388 units of the Warrior family in various modifications in the British military fleet.

The car was created in the first half of the 1980s.

On the battlefield, the BMP directly interacts with the infantry and the Challenger 2 tank.

Initially, the UK Department of Defense intended to use the Warrior until 2010, but later decided to extend the operation until 2040 through modernization.

In case of a positive decision of the government, 275 BMPs are subject to renewal within eight years.

As follows from the materials of Lockheed Martin UK, the Warrior improvement program provides for an increase in striking power, increased survivability in the theater of operations (theater of operations) and improved situational awareness of the crew.

• BMP Warrior at the training ground

• © Lockheed Martin UK photo

To achieve new qualities, the designers installed new cameras on the machine, a turret with a 40-mm gun, an aiming system, a fire control complex, digital equipment and modular quick-change armor.

Also, experts from Lockheed Martin UK made the presence of military personnel in the BMP more comfortable.

In general, according to the company, the work carried out made it possible to strengthen the striking power of the armored unit.

Meanwhile, the British authorities are in no hurry to adopt a modernized version of the Warrior.

In 2018, the company delivered 11 improved machines in five modifications to the customer.

According to Lockheed Martin UK, their BMPs have demonstrated increased combat performance.

As of December 2020, the Kingdom's Department of Defense has completed 80% of the field tests of Warrior samples.

According to experts, the British BMP for the period of the end of the Cold War was a worthy example of Western design thought.

The creators of Warrior strengthened the frontal projection, taking care of protecting the vehicle from being hit by 30-mm shells that were in service with the USSR and the Warsaw Pact countries.

The vehicle also performed well in Iraq during Operation Desert Storm and in the former Yugoslavia.

However, now, as Sergey Suvorov, candidate of military sciences, explained in a commentary on RT, Warrior is very outdated.

At the same time, the expert does not share the optimism of Lockheed Martin UK about the capabilities of the upgraded BMP.

According to him, the enterprise failed to develop a truly modern combat model.

“This car is outdated.

Its modernization will not make much of the weather.

In my opinion, Warrior can successfully fight only with a technically weak enemy, devoid of modern means of destruction.

It is somewhere on the level of the Russian BMP-2 and is definitely inferior to our BMP-3, ”Suvorov noted.

Meanwhile, Lockheed Martin UK fears that the British government's refusal to modernize Warrior will put on the brink of survival the center for the design of new weapons systems in Ampthill, which employs about 2 thousand people, including 80% of British citizens.

Also, the closure of the Warrior improvement program could complicate the production of turrets (means for mounting small-caliber weapons) for the General Dynamics UK Ajax armored reconnaissance vehicles.

This type of military equipment is assembled at a plant in South Wales.

Auditors also warn about the negative consequences of scrapping the Warrior modernization plan.

A report from the international consulting company KPMG says that upgrading 275 BMPs over the next eight years could bring the British economy about £ 1 billion ($ 1.4 billion) in gross value added.

"Reorientation to more advanced things"

Recall, according to The Times, against the backdrop of economic problems due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the British leadership in August last year expressed dissatisfaction with the increased cost of modernization of the BMP fleet and Challenger 2 tanks. In this regard, the authorities may refuse to use these samples , the journalists suggest.

• Tank Challenger 2 in southern Iraq

• Reuters

• © Tony Nicoletti JB / CRB

According to them, the savings on updating Warrior and Challenger 2 will go to the development of aviation, the space industry, the potential of cyber troops and other areas of military activity.

True, the flip side of such a decision will be the loss of Britain's status as one of the leading powers of the North Atlantic Alliance and the main military ally of the United States.

“In the event that we cannot provide melee equipment, we will simply cease to be considered a reliable leading NATO power.

Thus, we will find ourselves behind countries such as France, Germany, Poland and Hungary, "- said a source in the Kingdom's Ministry of Defense.

In a commentary on RT, the founder of the Military Russia portal, Dmitry Kornev, said that the idea of ​​refusing to operate heavy military equipment appeared in the bowels of the British Ministry of Defense by no coincidence.

According to the expert, it is caused by financial difficulties and the desire of the kingdom to keep up with the rapid progress in improving information, reconnaissance and aerospace systems.

“Perhaps this is a reorientation towards, relatively speaking, more advanced things - aviation, precision missiles, UAVs.

The center of gravity is indeed shifted here in order to effectively cover the same ground forces.

But I would not be in a hurry with unambiguous conclusions.

Expeditionary missions, in which Britain is traditionally involved, require both infantry fighting vehicles and tanks, albeit in an unmodernized form, "says Kornev.

In turn, Sergei Suvorov believes that along with the curtailment of the modernization plan for Warrior and Challenger 2, London will indeed have to say goodbye to the status of a major military power capable of projecting power on distant borders.

“There is nothing outstanding in Warrior and Challenger 2, but the modernization potential of the British tank has not been exhausted.

If London still abandons this technique, then the combat capabilities of the kingdom's army will noticeably decrease.

Yes, it is necessary to develop different types and types of troops, but without modern tanks and infantry fighting vehicles it is impossible to win a single conflict, ”concluded Suvorov.