The government has said it continues to explore export opportunities for Challenger 3, following questions over how the emerging European MARTE main battle tank programme could shape future defence exports.
In a written parliamentary question, Conservative MP Ben Obese-Jecty asked what assessment had been made of the potential impact of the MARTE project on future export prospects for the British Army’s Challenger 3 tank.
Responding on behalf of the Ministry of Defence, Defence Minister Luke Pollard said Challenger 3 remained “the centrepiece of the British Army’s armoured modernisation programme” and would deliver “a step change in lethality, survivability and digital integration”. He added: “The Department continues to explore export opportunities for Challenger 3 and its capabilities under the Land Industrial Strategy.”
MARTE, short for Main ARmoured Tank of Europe, is a European Defence Fund backed initiative aimed at designing a next-generation main battle tank system for participating European states. The project is coordinated by MARTE ARGE GbR, a joint venture between KNDS Deutschland and Rheinmetall Landsysteme.
Launched in July 2025, MARTE brings together a consortium of 51 entities from 11 EU member states, alongside Norway, and has been awarded approximately €20 million in European Defence Fund support. Participating defence ministries include those of Germany, Belgium, Spain, Estonia, Finland, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Romania and Sweden.
The programme is intended to conduct design and study work for a future European MBT system, incorporating new technologies and lessons drawn from contemporary conflicts, with an emphasis on long-term interoperability and strategic autonomy. While Challenger 3 is being developed as a modernised upgrade of the UK’s existing armoured fleet, MARTE represents a parallel effort to define what a future European tank could look like beyond current platforms.
As the Challenger 3 is based on existing hulls from the Challenger 2 fleet, most of which will be required for the C3 program, how is he proposing where the required extra hulls for exports will come from?
Yeah, I was thinking the exact same thing, I know we originally exported chally 2 to oman, MAYBE he means the chance to upgrade those, but yes, seems like a very very dumb question
Yes, it’s a questions asked by and answered by idiots. It shows how low bar the MP’s and ministers are.
Beat me to it.
Simply spin, giving an indication of an opportunity that simply does not exist.
The jigs for the hulls still exist,Rhienmettal have said they can build more if required.
If that is the case and now we have the smoothbore gun for commonality then why not pitch it as an alternative if the Germans start throwing their weight around with the other consortia? Surely it was the gun that was holding back exports. As it is it will be a hard sell to the French and Polish.
Ahh “Purple Born” lol, It’s Greek
Anyway, hello and welcome brand new person😁
Appears to be a German sponsored effort, France, Poland, UK not participating.
They don’t really interact at all and it’s a stupid question. To be honest as PPS to the shadow minister of defence Ben Obese-Jecty seems to spend a lot of his time asking really odd questions about challenger 3.
Challenger3 is a cheap as chips late 2020s upgrade to make a 3rd generation MBT a 4th generation MBT the European programme is to look at a 5th generation tank for the late 2030s and early 40s…
MARTE Is a possible replacement for challenger 3 not a competitor.. and that is even if challenger 3 was an export program.. it’s not it’s a program to give the British Army a forth generation MBT at about 5.5 million a tank.. compared to a new forth generation tank that comes in at 20 million a pop.. it’s a buy 1 get 3 for free offer… not an export opportunity.
Surely there is the need for consolidation at European level because of parallel programmes and need for efficiencies and economies of scale (and not only on MBRs). On future (5th?) gen in addition to MARTE (German led with multiple countries involved) there is the French-German MGCS and the FMBTech (technology only, French-led with multiple countries involved). Then there are multiple “bridge” (3rd/4th?) upgrade projects like the Challenger 3, the German Leopard 2A8, the French Leclerc XLR. The more advanced (4th?) Rheinmetall KF51 being developed into Italian and Hungarian versions. And more, including imports from the US and South Korea.
Geez, do these MPs have a clue?
Exactly what would we be exporting?
The MOD seems to have little interest in maintaining the small tank force we have now.
Building new hulls for CH3 ? … pure fantasy