Britain’s most senior soldier General Sir Patrick Sanders blasts the Army’s outdated vehicles and the belief that reservists can replace regulars as ‘unrealistic’
- General Sir Patrick Sanders said much of the Army’s ‘platforms’ were ‘outdated’
- Head of the Army likened vehicles to ‘rotary dial telephones in an iPhone age’
Britain’s most senior soldier has launched a blistering attack on the Army’s armoured vehicles, tanks, its bureaucracy and its belief that part-time soldiers can replace regulars.
General Sir Patrick Sanders said much of the Army’s ‘platforms’ were ‘outdated’ and ‘not fit for purpose’, and derided our reservist force as neither ‘capable’ nor ‘credible’.
The head of the Army likened vehicles such as Warrior and Challenger 2 to ‘rotary dial telephones in an iPhone age’.
Such antique pieces remain in service, he argued, because the UK’s industrial base has ‘withered’.
General Sir Patrick was speaking as the Ministry of Defence unveiled an overhaul of Army structures and a £35 billion investment in new kit over the next decade.
General Sir Patrick Sanders (pictured) has launched a blistering attack on the Army’s armoured vehicles, tanks, its bureaucracy and its belief that part-time soldiers can replace regulars
The head of the Army likened vehicles such as Warrior and Challenger 2 (pictured) to ‘rotary dial telephones in an iPhone age’
This will see 35 out of 38 existing Army vehicles replaced, the introduction of Artificial Intelligence systems and a much greater emphasis on un-crewed vehicles and drones.
He said: ‘I trained on the 432 armoured personnel carrier in the 1980s when it was already 30 years old; it is still in service today.
‘Our armoured reconnaissance vehicle came into service in 1973, our infantry fighting vehicle Warrior in 1987 and Challenger 2 in 1998. These are rotary dial telephones in an iPhone age.
‘Our procurement record has been poor and our land industrial has withered. Furthermore our Army Reserve is not as capable and credible as we need it to be.’
Sir Patrick said previous assumptions that reservists could fill in for regular troops had been ‘unrealistic’. So under new plans they will be categorised as a ‘second echelon’ force.
He said the reserve force of the future will move away from ‘insisting upon equivalence’ and would recognise that reservists are constrained by the time they can offer.
The British Army is expected to shrink considerably in the decades ahead, continuing a fashion for smaller brigades and regiments which followed the Cold War.
While the introduction of new technologies, such as AI, will make conflict even less labour intensive, so armies will not require as many soldiers.
The British Army is expected to shrink considerably in the decades ahead, continuing a fashion for smaller brigades and regiments which followed the Cold War
Sir Patrick said the changes will make the British Army ‘one of the most modern, connected and lethal armies in the world’.
He added: ‘Change is coming. We will think and fight differently. We must structure ourselves to meet our core purpose. We will reprioritise investment towards remote and autonomous systems.
‘The Army’s AI Centre is already establish and, by 2024, we will have built a new Land Component Data Fusion and Analytics Engine; both exponentially increase the tempo of our decision making and targeting.’
The Army is expected to shed around 3,000 troops by 2025 to meet a target of 73,000 full-time soldiers.
Some military observers expect a further 10,000 posts to go over the next decade. The infantry is likely to be the hardest hit.
