UK Ministry of Defence has published data on delivery of the first RCH155 self-propelled artillery system demonstrator within the framework of a joint program with Germany to evaluate next-generation wheeled artillery systems the British military will receive the first demonstration sample in two years, in 2028.
This information was reported by the country's Minister for Defence Procurement Luke Pollard, UK Defence Journal reports. This concerns a vehicle that should be delivered within the framework of a contract concluded in December for about €60 million, which is essentially financing the completion of development of this SPG. Moreover, according to the agreement, two more vehicles should be delivered to Germany.
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So if earlier in Great Britain they officially reported that they haven't yet determined the timing and quantity of RCH155 SPGs they plan to order, then now it can be confidently stated that, it seems, contract conclusion is being postponed at least until 2028 if, of course, the British don’t change their minds and make an order earlier.
Such lack of haste is unofficially explained in particular by the fact that supposedly the British were so burned by Ajax armored vehicles, the scandal with which gained momentum at the end of last year, that they are now very cautious with new armament.
But this doesn't cancel the fact that Great Britain needs self-propelled artillery recall that the British made a really significant contribution to strengthening the artillery of Ukraine's Defense Forces, transferring all AS90 SPGs to us.
Having been left completely without self-propelled artillery systems, the British quickly began looking for some interim solution, which became the Swedish Archer SPG delivery of these artillery systems lasted from October 2023 to July 2024, and the first firing from this sniper SPG took place in November.
At the same time, if the procurement decision is made after evaluation of the demonstrator, then it's quite likely that delivery of RCH155 SPGs to the British military will take place already in 2029-2030s.
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