Despite supply chain issues continuing to hinder the production of the British Army’s 600+ Boxer 8×8 armoured fighting vehicles (AFV) on order, the UK government has said it expects 100 units per year to be delivered moving forward.
A total of 623 Boxer vehicles across four distinct variants are on contract, comprising: infantry carrier (146 units), command platform (212 units), specialist carrier (200 units), and ambulance (65 units).
In addition, follow on orders could be made for other variants, such as the Amoured Mortar Vehicle (AMV) platform, the SERPENS deep find radar, a ground-based air defence C-SAT variant (2032 IOC timeframe), and a TYRO combat support bridging vehicle.
The AMV variant has a development timeline for 2030, followed by 2031 for the SERPENS, and 2032 for the GBAD C-SAT variant. The TYRO timeline sees a rough development guide from 2029.
The UK has committed to the co-development of the RCH 155 self-propelled artillery platform with Germany.
In a written parliamentary response, Defence Procurement Minister Maria Eagle admitted on 12 March that British Army Boxer deliveries had been subject to “ongoing delays” due to global supply chain issues resulting from the war in Ukraine.
“However, production vehicles are now arriving, and defence expects industry to deliver up to 100 vehicles per year,” Eagle said.
UK Boxer in serious numbers still years away
With over 600 Boxers due to be delivered at up to 100 per year, this provides the earliest completion of all units by around 2030, and likely beyond.
The first UK-manufactured Boxer AFV handed over to the British Army was showcased at the recent International Armoured Vehicles conference.
Concurrently, the British Army is conducting trials programmes, including firing tests at Lulworth Ranges in Dorset, to prove the mission capabilities of the Boxer ahead of wider adoption.
However, the British Army has to translate all of the training manuals needed for the Boxer into English, a process that could delay the take up of the AFV into service.
