Minister for Defence Readiness and Industry (): I am releasing this
statement to the House today to provide Parliament with a further
update on the Armoured Cavalry Programme, commonly known as Ajax,
following issues raised on Exercise Titan Storm in November 2025.
Since Exercise Titan Storm, there have been a number of reports
and investigations undertaken to understand the causes of the
issues presented. I can now provide an update on the status of
each of these reports and the associated next steps:
-
Army Safety Investigation Team (ASIT)
investigation as I outlined in my previous statement
to the House on 28 Apr 26, the ASIT investigation has concluded
and found that there was no single causal mechanism but rather
a combination of multiple factors. Work is already underway to
progress the findings of this investigation.
-
Defence Accident Investigation Branch (DAIB)
investigation the DAIB undertook initial
investigations at the scene in the immediate aftermath of the
incident and passed responsibility for the further
investigation to ASIT.
-
A Ministerial Review was conducted to examine the
quality of advice given to Ministers, Senior Officials and
military leadership I provided an update on this in my
statement to the House on 22 Jan 26, and on 28 Apr 26 advised
that a further review had been commissioned. This further
review will be chaired by Jonathan Simcock and will evaluate
the four previous reviews, looking specifically at the events
leading up to the declaration of Initial Operating Capability.
Jonathan Simcock has significant experience of Government major
projects having led the Infrastructure and Projects Authority
as well as holding a portfolio of non-executive and advisory
positions across Government. This review is due to complete by
the Autumn. I will provide a further update to the house on
this review in due course.
-
Ajax Independent Expert Panel Review I can
confirm that this review has now concluded and the findings
have been provided to Ministers. The panel comprised 51
independent subject matter experts from defence, science,
medicine and industry. The panel agreed with the ASIT report
that the platform is safe when operated and maintained within
the correct parameters but noted that further action is
required to improve the user experience. The report made 41
recommendations which are categorised into four groups:
technical and maintenance; training considerations;
environment, motion sickness and psychological factors; and
vibration and noise. All priority recommendations have been
agreed in principle and work is underway to align with extant
ASIT activity, this will be completed in the Summer including a
timetable for resulting actions. We are also considering
whether any of the recommendations have broader applicability
against other programmes and platforms as a precautionary
measure. I will report back to the House on progress against
the recommendations in due course.
The strategic case for Ajax remains extant. The capability is
critical to a fully networked, persistent and lethal capability
that sits at the heart of the British Army's recce strike
complex.
We have resumed acceptance of the Ajax vehicles, with sixteen
vehicles accepted. Trials have now restarted and Army training is
planned to commence shortly.
The safety of our Service Personnel remains paramount throughout
this process and we continue to work closely with General
Dynamics to deliver the vehicle that provides the world-leading
capability they need. I will continue to keep the House closely
updated on the progress of the programme.
