Challenger 3
Challenger 3 (CR3) is a planned British main battle tank in development for the British Army. It will be produced by the conversion of existing Challenger 2 tanks by the British/German Rheinmetall BAE Systems Land joint venture.
| Challenger 3 | |
|---|---|
Challenger 3 Tech Demonstrator | |
| Type | Main battle tank |
| Place of origin | United Kingdom |
| Service history | |
| In service | From 2027 |
| Used by | British Army |
| Production history | |
| Designer | Rheinmetall BAE Systems Land |
| Designed | 2020s |
| Manufacturer | Rheinmetall BAE Systems Land |
| Produced | 2027–2030 |
| No. built | 148 (Planned) |
| Specifications | |
| Mass | 66 tonnes (65 long tons; 73 short tons) |
| Crew | 4 (commander, gunner, loader, driver) |
| Armour | "new Modular Armour" consisting of External "EPSOM" and Internal "Farnham" Armour, APS |
Main armament | 130/120 mm Rheinmetall L55A1 smoothbore gun |
| Engine | Perkins CV12-9A 26.1 litre V12 diesel |
| Transmission | David Brown Santasalo TN54E epicyclic transmission (six forward, two reverse) with new component improvements. |
| Suspension | Horstman third generation Hydrogas |
Improvements to Challenger 2 began in 2005 as the Capability And Sustainment Programme (CSP) to keep the Challenger 2 competitive until the 2030s. Lack of funding meant that it was not until 2014 that the programme was formally reorganised into the "Challenger 2 Life Extension Programme" (LEP). In response to the LEP programme, two prototypes were submitted for evaluation; one from BAE Systems in 2018 and the other from Rheinmetall in 2019. Later that year BAE and Rheinmetall merged their British operations into Rheinmetall BAE Systems Land (RBSL), effectively leaving Rheinmetall's proposal the only option available without replacing the Challenger 2 fleet with foreign models.
The Challenger 3 has an all-new turret with an improved hull. The most significant change from Challenger 2 to Challenger 3 is the replacement of the Challenger's main armament from a 120 mm L30A1 rifled main gun to the 120 mm L55A1 smoothbore gun (which itself is an upgraded version of the L55 fitted to the Leopard 2A6/A7 family of main battle tanks) giving commonality with other NATO members. Ammunition is to be developed in conjunction with Rheinmetall AG, with a new kinetic energy round being developed for Challenger 3 and Leopard 2.