New Player in Poland’s Armored Programme [DEFENCE24 EXCLUSIVE]

The acquisition of a Heavy IFV is one of the priorities of the Ministry of National Defence. These vehicles are needed to support the Abrams tanks acquired by Poland. Obtaining a Heavy IFV is one of the tasks arising from the needs identified by the Polish Armed Forces. The timeframe that has been set indicates its extraordinary, complementary nature for the development of the Polish Armed Forces. Armored and mechanized units require equipment with the highest possible level of technical sophistication to meet the threats of today’s and the future battlefield. This necessitates the acquisition of a new design in the shortest possible time” said Paweł Bejda, Secretary of State at the Ministry of National Defence, in an interview with Defence24.pl.  

Talks are currently underway with the Polish Armaments Group, which is conducting analyses aimed at meeting the expectations of the Polish Armed Forces and developing optimal solutions that will enable the rapid supply of such vehicles to the military. The possibility of choosing a foreign strategic partner is not ruled out, with whom appropriate agreements and contracts for the procurement of the Heavy IFV can be concluded, added the deputy minister.

For some time, it has been known that two purchasing routes for the Heavy IFV were under consideration: either acquiring technology from a foreign partner and integrating it with domestic elements – including the ZSSW-30 turret already used on Rosomak and Borsuk vehicles – or independently developing the vehicle, as recently declared by Huta Stalowa Wola. As for the purchase of a chassis for the Heavy IFV from abroad, the constructs under consideration have included the German Lynx, the Korean Redback, the Turkish Tulpar, as well as the American AMPV from BAE Systems and the Spanish ASCOD.

However, according to unofficial information from Defence24.pl, another player is also vying for a role in the program. This refers to Great Britain. The British are interested in offering Poland the integration of the chassis developed for the Ajax multi-role reconnaissance vehicle, configured as a Heavy IFV, along with the Polish ZSSW-30 turret. Ajax was built by General Dynamics Land Systems UK, based on a deeply modernized ASCOD vehicle. This program, launched in 2015, initially encountered delays, but now the technical issues have been overcome and deliveries to the British Army are gaining momentum.   

GDLS UK recently announced the delivery of the 100th Ajax vehicle to the British Army. A declaration of initial operational readiness is planned for later this year, and deliveries are expected to be completed within a few years, no later than 2028-2029 (taking into account modifications of pre-series units).

The entire family of vehicles is provided immediately: fighting reconnaissance vehicles armed with CTA 40 mm telescopic ammunition guns (245 units), Ares armoured personnel carriers (93 units), Athena command vehicles (112 units), as well as Atlas armoured recovery vehicles  (38 units), Argus engineering reconnaissance vehicles (51 units), and Apollo ARVs (50 units).

Although the classic infantry fighting vehicle is not among them, one could be easily developed based on the Ajax family, as the vehicle was designed with a modular construction and open architecture. At the same time, it features a high level of interior protection and is equipped with a number of electronic systems. Its weight is estimated at around 38 tons, but it is designed to be increased by a further 4 tons. The development of a Heavy IFV based on Ajax could represent another element of Polish-British industrial cooperation, which is currently being developed primarily in the Narew, Pilica+, and Miecznik programs.