Written question asked by Ann Winterton (Conservative) on Monday, 29 March 2010, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Tuesday, 6 April 2010. It was answered by Lord Davies of Stamford (Labour) on Tuesday, 6 April 2010 on behalf of the Ministry of Defence.

Afghanistan: Peacekeeping Operations

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what main weapons systems Scout vehicles will have on deployment in Afghanistan; which companies are the (a) manufacturers and (b) suppliers of the ammunition for the vehicle's main weapons systems; what the cost is per round of ammunition; and what estimate he has made of the lifespan of the barrel of the main weapon system per number of rounds fired.

Answer: The intent is for the Scout vehicle's main weapon system to be the 40 mm Cased Telescoped Cannon provided by Cased Telescoped Ammunition International, a joint private venture between BAES and Nexter. On current plans, BAES will produce the ammunition for the cannon at their facilities in Glascoed, South Wales under the Department's Munitions Acquisition Supply Solution (MASS) contract. The cost of each round of ammunition will be determined during commercial negotiations before the MASS contract is amended to incorporate the 40 mm ammunition. The lifespan of the barrel will be established during the qualification programme for the cannon and ammunition. The qualification programme consists of an extensive series of tests and trials to ensure that the cannon and ammunition are safe, reliable and effective for use by the British Army.

Secondary information