{"id":15210,"date":"2020-10-12T17:07:59","date_gmt":"2020-10-12T17:07:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/uncategorized\/2020\/10\/12\/british-army-admits-more-delays-in-fielding-enough-combat-forces\/"},"modified":"2026-08-07T21:29:30","modified_gmt":"2026-08-07T21:29:30","slug":"british-army-admits-more-delays-in-fielding-enough-combat-forces","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/global\/europe\/2020\/10\/12\/british-army-admits-more-delays-in-fielding-enough-combat-forces\/","title":{"rendered":"British Army admits more delays in fielding enough combat forces"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

LONDON \u2014 The limitations of the British Army\u2019s ability to field modernized armored fighting forces<\/a> in the 2020s have been laid bare in evidence submitted by the military to the parliamentary Defence Committee.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Army admitted that by 2025 it would only be able to field a combat division consisting of just a single maneuver brigade and an interim maneuver support brigade.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A fully capable division including a new Strike brigade will not be available for fielding until the early 2030s \u2014 more than five years late, the Army said in written evidence published by the committee Oct 9.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One analyst here wondered what impact the admission would have on Britain\u2019s allies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“If you are the chief of staff of the U.S. Army, which still retains considerable heavy forces, you are going to really wonder how much the British Army is a warfighting army, “said Ben Barry, senior fellow for land warfare at the International Institute for Strategic Studies think tank in London.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The government\u2019s 2015 strategic defense and security review mandated a restructuring of the Army with the creation of a combat division of three brigades, including fielding one of two new medium-weight strike brigades being formed for rapid deployment with new General Dynamics tracked Ajax reconnaissance and Artec Boxer wheeled infantry vehicles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The interim maneuver support brigade will be equipped with Ajax, the first Boxer platforms and in-service protected mobility vehicles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s quite jaw-dropping. One of the key takeaways from this evidence is the Army can\u2019t field two armored infantry brigades,\u201d said Barry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe Army was mandated [in the 2015 review] to deliver two armored infantry brigades, whereas they are now saying they can only generate one. They have enough vehicles for three infantry armored brigades, but my very strong suspicion is they haven\u2019t been spending money on spares. If they haven\u2019t got sufficient spare parts they will only risk sending one brigade on operations,\u201d said Barry.<\/p>\n\n\n\t