The Minister for Defence Procurement, James Cartlidge, along with representatives from the Ministry of Defence, recently visited the KNDS UK manufacturing facility in Stockport.
The visit highlighted the progress in producing the Boxer armoured vehicles for the British Army, with the first UK-built Boxer Drive Module coming off the production line.
During the visit, the ministerial delegation engaged with the skilled team of welders, fitters, and mechanics working on the new armoured vehicles. They were informed about the extensive technology transfer programme between KNDS Germany and KNDS UK, which has resulted in over 60% of the project’s content being sourced from the UK.
Besides manufacturing all the hulls for the British Army’s new armoured vehicles, KNDS UK is also responsible for their assembly, integration, and testing.
The tour included a visit to the Bridging facility, where the Medium Girder and Dry Support Bridges are produced. The visitors learned about ongoing projects for the British Army and international military customers, including Project Tyro, which aims to equip the British Army with the latest generation of rapidly deployable military bridging.
KNDS UK, operating from the Heaton Chapel site since 1915, is a significant employer in the North West with a workforce of over 300.
Did he find any Boxers?
That’ll be on the next visit… Lol 😁
Yep, have they even built any yet? Heard only 60 odd per year before, which was nowhere near enough.
In the meantime Ukraine is getting some you beaut new CV90 IFVs as reported in Defense News today and will have BAE manufacturing setting up in-country. Good on 🇺🇦, they need plenty of good equipment. Sweden also getting more and the Netherlands are having their CV90s upgraded which has been mentioned in earlier postings.
We need highly regarded IFVs too, for the infantry in our armoured brigades. But we will have to make do with Boxer for at least a generation.
Morning Graham, all the Boxers haven’t been built yet. Lol. Sorry to sound irritating but why not habey both? A mixed fleet is surely more sensible and even more survivable! Isn’t it? If “all wheels” are the thing why did they ever go with the tracked Ajax?
Morning Quentin. We have always had both tracked and wheeled equipments for artillery systems, recce vehicles, infantry carriers etc etc. Further, we have many examples of tracks and wheels in the same Brigade, Unit and sub-unit. Ajax (tracked) replaces Scimitar (tracked) and was the recce/strike vehicle for Infantry battalions with Warrior/upgraded Warrior, and tank regiments with CR2/CR3 – known as Close Recce. It was also to be the equipment in formation recce regiments (Formation Recce formerly called Medium Recce) – there they typically provided recce for an armoured brigade (ie a formation). Tracked recce supporting tracked units (AI Bn, tank… Read more »
Good evening Graham, thank you again for a very well written reply and for making sense of it all. I’m likely getting some of my horses for courses muddled up a bit. With the decisions for wheeled or tracks, it’ll be interesting to see what cross influences happen between US-Aus-UK and UK-Europe with any future vehicle and equipment choices for the Army.
And in Janes today, Korea’s Hanwha Redback IFV being offered to Italy and Romania. As adopted by Australia.
Sems like most countries with an IFV are upgrading it or will soon be replacing it with a better, brand new IFV….except the UK.
I find it hard to believe that the UK can’t see what others are doing. If they’ve ordered too many Boxers well you can always cancel the bloody things. They’re not even built yet. Replace 200-300 of them with tracked and turreted IFVs.
The MoD haven’t ordered too many Boxers according to their plan which is to equip five battalions in the 2 armoured brigades with wheeled APCs – in fact they haven’t ordered enough by a long way.
They have ordered too many for my plan though!
Lol. You versus the MOD! We’re with you and we’ll see who wins! All may still work out well in the end. I’m enjoying your comments and from others here who speak from real experience.
Thanks. I am pessimistic. I don’t see the army getting more than 148 tanks. I don’t see IFVs back in the inventory unless they are whd Boxers with cannons in the later tranches or if some tracked Boxers are ordered with IFV module in place of order of some whd Boxers.
Thanks Quentin. In the armoured brigades, tanks and infantry often work in close proximity and support each other. Tanks destroy enemy MBTs and can destroy other strong targets such as medium armour and strongpoints with the right ammunition, all of which threaten our own Infantry. The Infantry target enemy infantry especially enemy anti-tank teams which threaten tanks. It is essential that Infantry keep up with tanks and vice versa. Many are concerned that wheeled vehicles (Boxer) may not be able to keep up with tanks cross-country. Also if our Infantry are unable to defeat enemy infantry carriers (because it does… Read more »
Good evening Graham, If the risk is considerable as you’re saying then why are they doing this? It sounds highly dangerous, even ineffective and frankly just stupid. You’d think that the Army if any one should have a real grip on this. I might have this quite wrong but wouldn’t the Boxer be better replacing more the Bulldogs and get a proper tracked IFV to replace the Warrior and even some Boxer IFVs if still needed too? The lack of anti-drone tech and gunnery on Ch3 is also a bit of a worry too. Sorry for carrying on. I’m sure… Read more »
High Quentin, Back in the period 1996-2003, UK was in the multi-national Boxer programme. Boxer was to replace all FV430 vehicles, Saxon and non-turreted CVR(T)s. UK left the programme to pursue a national programme, FRES in mid-2003. On another tack, in 2011, contracts were let to upgrade Warrior to push its life out to 2040, with ISD envisaged for 2018. UK re-entered the multi-national Boxer programme in 2018, intending that Boxer as the army’s Mechanised Infantry Vehicle (MIV) would replace Mastiff HPM and no doubt to still replace FV430s. The army had created a plan to build 2 Strike brigades,… Read more »
Thanks again for your reply with all the history. What a jumble!
Yep. Key point is that the army never intended for Boxer to be in the armoured brigades replacing Warrior. They wanted (required) a modern or modernised IFV to replace Warrior – that’s why they wrote the Requirement for and launched the WCSP project. Politicians cancelled it.
True. The army needs about 1,360 of them.
Just the one with the Union Jack paint job and the little MG on top.
Describing what they’d seen as the ‘tractor module’, I presumed that was the chassis with the wheels, engine, cab, etc. on- onto which the mission module goes? At least that’s how I understood it to mean. I don’t think he turned up just to be shown a box with a ramp at one end and some tie-down points on it, but I may be wrong..!
Just me slipping into sarcasm mode. Joe. Bad habit. I’m still working on it.
Perhaps he. I sited the Massey Ferguson factory by mistake and his aids didn’t like to mention it
Just Dachshunds apparently
Apologies….I couldn’t resist falling into cynic mode. But combining Sam’s 60 per year with Graham’s 1360 requirement we are looking at a 20 year project.
At current build rates, that seems like the case.
Is there a plan to put some weapons on the top ? 😎
We know some are going to be the RCH 155…. Lol 😁
And they should be looking at Boxer based SkyGuard 30/35mm with Starstreak /LMM for VSHORAD. Germany has recently ordered a lot of these. Why not the UK? Maybe it’s in the pipeline.
Yes there’s going to be a rack on top to hold a fair few Lee Enfields they sourced from a museum.
I’m picturing some “Dad’s Army” lads inside… 🇬🇧
Really with that Paint scheme, very patriotic but no use for concealment hope this is just the Showroom colours
The paint scheme will be standard on all Boxers flying the flag with no weapons as when the enemy sees the boxer with the flag they will run for their lives 😂
Then they have forgotten the kilts.
In the 80ts I did have a pair of union boxers my oppo had a pair of red Hammer and sickle boxers funny what make you remember silly things
I remember building mgbs in the pouring rain in the middle of the night.
More to the point, what are the developments of the tracked version?
I might put money on us not getting the tracked Boxer.
Very long odds against. Bulldog Capability Sustainment Program I reckon 🙂
Yep, I’ve always thought Bulldog is due an upgrade!!
Haha. Stranger things have happened!
Just get more Boxers!!! Lol. 😆
Something will replace Bulldogs. Boxer was always envisaged as replacing the FV430s back in the day.
A tracked mgb now that would be a sight.
Brilliant idea!
This might make you laugh… when you said “mgbs” I first thought “MG B” 🤔 sports car? 😆 Tracked MGB? 🤣. Had to look it up… Medium Girder Bridge. 🫣
Just to mix things up again, a “tracked MGB” sports car? I think Quentin, Spy in the Sky and myself deserve intellectual property rights on this, when they emerge for the Infian market!
With MG Chinese owned now who knows what might happen! 😂
Quentin, its great to see you learning about our world!
It turns out they procured Tyson Fury.
i honestly think the army needs to trim the order of boxer and work on an upgrade programme for warrior….the 2 armoured regiments really need to accompanied by armoured infantry battalions in a proper tracked infantry fighting Vehicle..not mechanised infantry battalions in wheeled APCs…there is a place for boxer but that should be as a vehicle for the mechanised battalions.
Very much this.
Tracked Boxer might eventually be an option. They aren’t going to go back to the Warrior upgrade now.
Or Lynx, Ascod 2, stretched Ares, Redback, or whatever the US chooses.
You could be right. But they are ordering a Boxer variant for the artillery, so it seems they’re going down the road of commonality. Be interesting to see what replaces the Alvis Stormer for example, as it’s due out of service in 2026.