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TANKS AGAIN
I was asked how many MBTs the UK ought to have. The answer to this question is not: as many as we can afford. But rather requires us to consider the ideal composition of the Army across the most likely deployment scenarios.
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I was asked how many MBTs the UK ought to have. The answer to this question is not: as many as we can afford. But rather requires us to consider the ideal composition of the Army across the most likely deployment scenarios.
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A key strategic goal should be to contribute a fully equipped armoured division (with three brigades) that would be interoperable with our NATO allies and partners. If we& #39;re not able to do this, then we& #39;re probably not doing enough to counter peer adversary threats.
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Under current Army 2025 plans, we will have a single division with two Armoured Infantry Brigades and two Strike Brigades (plus an Air Assault Brigade). This is a cumbersome and compromised structure that makes effective command and force generation difficult.
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As things stand, the two Armoured infantry Brigades will only have a single MBT regiment each, while the Army Reserve will have a third. Total MBT numbers will be reduced from 227 to 148. We used to have 56 tanks per regiment, but this will be cut to 44, plus a few spares.
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In an ideal world, we would have two deployable divisions. A Mechanised (Strike) Division would be rapidly deployable but lack staying power. A Heavy Armour Division would take longer to deploy but be more resilient. Each division would have three brigades.
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Both Strike and AI brigades would ideally copy the US Stryker BCT and Armored BCT structures. This means each Armoured brigade would have 2 MBT Regts supported by 2 IFV Bns. This would result in 6 MBT regiments with 44 tanks each or 264 MBTs in total. This would be ideal.
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In 2010, we had six regiments with 56 MBTs each or 336 in total. We should have stuck with this if you want my honest opinion. So, asking for 264 tanks plus a few spares, or 300, should not be considered unreasonable. The Army should be screaming in fury until it gets this.
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However, 250-300 MBTs is probably unaffordable in the short-term. So, it is fair to suggest an armoured division with three brigades with three tank regiments of 56 tanks each. This adds up to 168. Add 12 spares and 180-200 MBTs, which would be an acceptable compromise.
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