The Army continues to require an armoured mortar capability and is looking at alternative ways of delivering it, including through the Heavy Protected Mobility programme, which remains in its concept phase with no procurement decision taken, according to an answer given in Parliament.
Ben Obese-Jecty, the Conservative member for Huntingdon, asked what progress had been made in procuring an armoured mortar capability, following an earlier answer on armoured fighting vehicle finance.
Luke Pollard said: “The Army continues to require an armoured mortar capability. Alternative delivery routes, including through the Heavy Protected Mobility (PM) programme are being considered. The Heavy PM programme remains in its concept phase, and no final procurement decision has been taken.”
An armoured mortar is a heavy mortar carried inside a protected vehicle and fired from within it. A battlegroup can put high explosive onto a target within a couple of minutes of the call and then move before counter-battery fire arrives. Dismounted mortar teams can do the first part but not the second, and in a war where drones find a firing position within minutes, the ability to shoot and drive away is valuable.
An armoured mortar variant had been expected to come through the Boxer programme, and the answer that prompted this question established that funding had been removed from part of the armoured fighting vehicle portfolio. Pollard said separately that the decision reflected “a broader reprioritisation of capability investment to maximise operational effect and affordability”. The Army still needs the capability and no route to it has been settled.
Heavy Protected Mobility is the programme intended to replace the Army’s ageing protected vehicles, and a concept phase is the earliest formal stage of a procurement, well before a competition, a contract or a date.
Patria CAVS with Mortar is what I’ve read about for months now as being preferred to the too expensive Boxer.
There’s no money, so it’s all in limbo, like Patria CAVS for SHORAD, which I understand has been chosen.
Mmmm Patria NEMO & TREMOS both with single or double 120mm mortars.There you are pathway sorted no need for lengthy meetings and requirement lists it’s all there ready for ordering along with the other Patria vehicles needed! Oh hang on it’s not 2030 is it when all the other defence equipment will magically appear!
Ahh, that old trick, by which time it might be someone else’s problem to pay for.
Still fools enough people. Journalists are the worst, they can call HMG out for some of their bullshittery if they knew what’s what.
Approx £6.6b for 2000 Patria wagons, the way this lot chuck £Bs here there and everywhere you would think that’s doable wouldn’t you?
It’s £63m a year to keep the current PPV fleet etc running and they are fast getting past their sell by date!
On a positive note the dry support bridge mounted on MAN 8×8 is replacing the uni power mounted ABLE bridge in 2028?
Titan is getting the MLU and will have the Leguan style bridge replacing BR90 by 2031?
Poland and Finland have chosen Patria. In the budget Healey mentioned something about the UK, Poland and Finland co-operating in some sort of defence purchasing group. I wonder if a joint Patria 6×6 order is on the cards.
TYRO still outstanding, though?
Also not mentioned in these official replies is Boxer Bridgelayer, hopefully that batshit crazy idea has also died with batch 2. It cannot do what Titan does and some lunatic wanted to replace Titan with it!!!
Use it as a supplement, sure, for lighter wheeled Brigades, but not a full on replacement, while paying premium prices at the same time??
No wonder there’s no money.
Buy kit at affordable prices that is good enough, in bulk, and keep the highest end for niche roles, not Boxer for everything.
What about the UKs own Supacat with a 120mm mortar?
Or, if they cracked on with the IFV replacement would the CV90, Lynx, Ascod/Wolf, Redback and ani other types types all have mortar variants like with Nemo?
Mr Moore, you were right. Abysmal situation at the moment.
Labour need to grip social spending or this country is going down the pan.
As Healey announced his grand plans on taxing on-line shops he did not point out the likes of TEMU which can export into the UK tax free should the goods be under the value of £138 – has this now been abolished or do the Chicoms still get special dispensation to wreck our high streets?
Tax TEMU to pay for our Armed Forces, indeed, tax anything Chinese to pay for our Armed forces; oh the irony if the Govt had the spine to make that happen.
Craig’s writing is very good but the number of adverts makes it near-impossible to read the whole article smoothly. Is there no way UKDJ can control where on the page adverts appear so they don’t get in the way of the article?