Armour MBT 2025

Military Capability

Record date: 31 March 2026

Whole-life cost: £2.0bn
Published schedule: 04/12/2014 – 11/10/2032
NISTA delivery confidence: RED
Senior responsible owner: Martyn Williams

What the project is for

The Armour Main Battle Tank (MBT) Programme will deliver the Challenger 3 capability. Challenger 3 will be Defence’s only guaranteed, 24 hr, all weather, mobile anti-tank capability. This programme will modernise and improve the British Army’s MBTs to the standard needed on today’s battlefield. Key elements include enhanced survivability, greater lethality, improved surveillance and target acquisition as well as removing obsolescence. The currently forecasted out of service date is 2040 but this is likely to be extended beyond this date to ensure value for money.

Departmental delivery commentary

Compared to financial year 24/25 Q4, the NISTA/SRO Delivery Confidence Assessment (DCA) rating at 25/26 Q4 decreased to Red. This is primarily due to the following factors. 1. Forecast delays and risk to Initial Operating Capability and Full Operating capability in delivery from the Prime Contractor. 2. Demonstration phase trials are still progressing to prove the performance of the tank but the time taken to do this is likely to impact on training and familiarisation

Schedule

Compared to financial year 24/25-Q4, the programme's end-date at 25/26-Q4 remained the same at 22/05/2031. This is primarily due to the following factors. 1. This forecast date remains subject to confirmation and could be subject to change if anticipated delays in equipment deliveries are encountered.

Cost

Compared to financial year 24/25-Q4, the project's departmentally agreed Whole Life Cost at 25/26-Q4 (measured in £m) increased from £1916.53M to £1944.09M. This is primarily due to the following factors. 1. Adjustments to reflect the anticipated delays in deliveries from the Prime Contractor. A revised costing profile is expected in Q1 26/27.

Benefits

Compared to financial year 24/25-Q4, the project's departmentally agreed Benefits at 25/26-Q4 (measured in £m) remained at 0. This is primarily due to the following factors. The project's departmentally agreed Benefits WLT is unchanged.