Lockheed Martin UK’s Warrior Capability Sustainment Programme (WCSP) prototypes have completed the first 20 battlefield missions as part of the UK Ministry of Defence’s (MoD’s) Reliability Growth Tests, programme director Lee Fellows told Jane’s on 22 August.
A convoy of testbed WCSP vehicles at the Bovington Armour Centre. (Lockheed Martin UK)
The six prototype Warrior infantry fighting vehicles (IFVs) upgraded under the WCSP have been undergoing trials for the past six months, which will continue until mid-2021. “At the end of the trials will be design acceptance, and a contract will be placed when Lockheed Martin and the MoD decide that the time is right,” said Fellows.
He added that the trials vehicles have completed thousands of kilometres of tests, and fired thousands of 40 mm rounds from the vehicle’s main armament and from the 7.62 mm chaingun, all without any safety concerns. The successful completion of 20 battlefield missions marks the first point at which Lockheed Martin and the MoD will meet to review the data gathered during the trials.
“We have a plan, we are performing to that plan, and I am meeting all of the milestones,” said Fellows, adding that the upgraded Warriors are the first vehicles to go through this process in the UK since the Challenger 2 main battle tank and its variants were introduced into service in the early 1990s.
The battlefield missions are designed to demonstrate the upgraded vehicle’s ability to meet the missions that are required of it by the UK’s MoD. There are a total of six sets of battlefield missions that are broadly arranged into groups of 20, added Fellows.
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