New Ajax facility fitted out at Warminster Garrison
A 226-tonne steel superstructure is being built at Warminster Garrison near Salisbury Plain to support the British Army’s Armoured Cavalry programme, commonly known as Ajax.
The Ajax programme will deliver a family of tracked, all-terrain, digitally-enabled vehicles with a range of weapons and sensors, delivering transformational change in capability to the British Army. The £17 million infrastructure project at Warminster Garrison will provide a synthetic training facility to support Ajax Regiments based within Salisbury Plain. The project is being delivered by Aspire Defence based in Wiltshire on behalf the Defence Infrastructure Organisation (DIO).
Following the start of construction last October, the internal fit-out of the building is now underway in preparation for installation of the Ajax simulation capability next year. The building is on track to complete in autumn 2025 and will support a suite of state-of-the-art driver, gunnery and crew trainers. This will enable ‘real-world’ training to military personnel who will be in operation of Ajax vehicles, with the Royal Dragoon Guards as custodians of the facility.
Colonel Jamie Hayward, Armoured Cavalry Programme Director, said: "This new infrastructure is a vital component of the Ajax programme. It allows the appropriate technical solution to train our Service Personnel and enables a reduction in running costs, platform wear and dependence on live training areas."
Allan Thomson, Chief Executive of Aspire Defence Ltd, said: "We are proud to be delivering this project for DIO to support the British Army, which showcases Aspire Defence’s ability to successfully deliver quality infrastructure on behalf of the Ministry of Defence and the army. This first-rate facility supports the contemporary vision of training that’s in keeping with the modern army and its readiness for today’s challenges."
