The modernized British tank Challenger 3 will receive new modular armor

Polish specialized resource Defense24 reported that the British-German consortium RBSL (Rheinmetall BAE Systems Land) announced the signing of a contract for the production and supply of new modular armor for Challenger 3 tanks.

New protection for the British tank was developed by the Defense Science and Technology Laboratory (DSTL). The new armor consists of two components. The main modular composite armor of the hull and turret was designated Farnham. The modules of this armor will be located in the frontal part of the hull and in the front part of the turret. In addition, the Challenger's hull protection will be strengthened by additional mounted armor modules, called Epsom.

As Defense24 reports, it remains unclear how the hull geometry of the British tank will change compared to the technology demonstrator already presented. The latter is a Challenger 2 tank that received a new turret. The value of the contract was not disclosed in the RBSL consortium's statement. The modernization of existing British Army tanks to the Challenger 3 standard will be carried out at the Telford plant. The Newcastle business will "win too".

Possible export deals to modernize the Challengers are also mentioned. Currently, in addition to the British Army, tanks of this type are in service with the armies of Oman (38 units) and Ukraine (14 vehicles). The latter received British tanks as part of military “aid”. It should be noted here that for some reason the experts of the Polish resource do not want to admit that the Ukrainian Armed Forces have fewer British tanks. One Challenger definitely burned down in the Zaporozhye direction during the failed counter-offensive of the Ukrainian army.

Experts from the Polish resource believe that the program to modernize tanks to the Challenger 3 standard may be the first step in restoring the British armored industry, which suffered greatly after the end of the Cold War and the lack of export contracts for the Challenger 2. Quite an optimistic point of view. After all, the whole point is to restore tank production in the UK, multi-billion dollar investments, a long time and a political decision from London are needed. And it is highly doubtful that the British authorities will make such a decision in modern economic realities.