The British Army could scrap all its TANKS under a cost-cutting and modernisation plan

The British Army’s entire force of hundreds of tanks and armoured vehicles could be scrapped under sweeping modernisation plans.

The UK’s Challenger II main battle tanks and Warrior infantry fighting vehicles are said to be at risk because of swingeing budget cuts expected to follow the coronvirus crisis. 

The cost of upgrading the heavy armour and a desire to switch military focus to modern threats like cyberwarfare could see the battlefield heavies put out to pasture little more than 100 years after the first ones rolled into battle on the Somme.

The Challenger II has been the UK’s main tank since the late 1990s, with cavalry regiments using it in Iraq. There are around 227 in service.

The Warrier, of which there are almost 400, has been in service since the 1980s. 

Britain already sounding out Nato partners about giving up its heavy armour and focusing instead on aviation and cyber warfare, the Times reported.

A government source told the newspaper: ‘We know that a number of bold decisions need to be taken in order to properly protect British security and rebalance defence interests to meet the new threats we face.’  

Last year then defence secretary Penny Mordaunt warned that their age meant that the UK was falling behind other nations.

In her first speech in her short stint int he role before being replaced by Ben Wallace, Ms Mordaunt said: “Challenger 2 has been in service without a major upgrade since 1998. During this time the U.S., Germany and Denmark have completed two major upgrades, whilst Russia has fielded five new variants with a sixth pending,” she said.

“Warrior is even more obsolete, and is twenty years older than those operated by our key allies. Since Warrior’s introduction in 1988 the United States and Germany have conducted four major upgrades and Russia has invested in three new variants,” said Mordaunt.    

The ongoing talks about the tanks are part of the government’s defence review which is set to conclude around November.

One senior British defence source said: ‘We simply will not be viewed as a credible leading Nato nation if we cannot field close-combat capabilities. It places us behind countries such as France, Germany, Poland and Hungary.’ 

Currently the UK’s arsenal of 227 tanks leaves us behind Argentina, who have 231, Germany, with 236, and Uganda with 239.

At the top of the table is Russia, who have 12,950, followed by the United States on 6,333, China on 5,800 and India with 4,665. 

But General Sir Richard Barrons, former commander joint forces command, supports the modernisation of the forces and said the future is is ‘about manned/unmanned autonomous things.’ 

Under the potential plans the Challenger 2 tanks would be placed in preservation, just in case they were needed in an emergency. 

The country’s premier battle tank has been in service since 1998 – the successor to the Challenger 1 which was used during the first Gulf War – and was used during the invasion of Iraq in 2003.

The tank was deployed in Bosnia and Kosovo during the NATO-led mission in former Yugoslavia in the late 1990s.

The tank has a crew of four, carries a 120mm main gun and two 7.62mm machine guns, with a top speed of around 37mph.

It is currently in service with the Queen’s Royal Hussars, the King’s Royal Hussars and the Royal Tank Regiment.  

A spokesman for the Ministry of Defence said: ‘Our commitment to Nato is unwavering, and the UK recognises that as a global military power our greatest strength remains our alliances. 

‘We are engaging our international allies and industry partners as we develop and shape defence’s contribution to the integrated review.’