'Exciting milestone' as Shropshire defence firm RBSL delivers first Telford-built armoured vehicles to UK Army
Telford defence manufacturer RBSL says the delivery of its first new armoured vehicles to the British army is a milestone development for the £5bn programme.
The British army has now taken delivery of its first Telford-built boxer vehicle, the first of 623 Boxer vehicles for the British Army produced by Rheinmetall BAE Systems Land (RBSL) in Telford.
The new eight-wheeled Boxer vehicle, an all terrain armoured vehicle that can be adapted to suit various military missions, is part of a £5 billion investment intended to modernise the British Army's infantry vehicles.
The first Boxer has now been delivered to Bovington, where it will be used to train British army soldiers in the new vehicle's operations.
Production for the Boxer began in Telford during 2023, alongside the Challenger 3 tank programme, with 148 tanks and 623 Boxer armoured vehicles planned to be in service by the end of 2030.
"In the latest of many exciting milestones being seen in our Boxer programme, the very first Boxer to be completed at RBSL's Telford facility is now in the hands of the British Army," said a spokesperson for the company.
"The vehicle was delivered from ATT to Bovington to start life as a training vehicle. Here, soldiers will learn to drive, operate and maintain the vehicle."
The company employs around 700 employees across its UK sites in Telford, Gateshead, Bristol, and Bovington, with the Boxer project believed to directly support around 400 jobs.
Defence procurement minister Maria Eagle unveiled the first Boxer vehicle built at the plant during a site visit to Telford in January, where she said the people of Telford should be "really proud" of what was being built in Donnington.
"I've been incredibly impressed including to see the first fully British built Boxer which is a really proud moment for Telford and for Shropshire because it's the people living here who have done that," she said.
"Defence industries across the UK and here in the West Midlands can provide fantastic lifelong careers and well-paid jobs creating prosperity in Telford and the local area. That's what we want to see more of."
In addition to the Boxer armoured vehicles RBSL, a joint venture between arms manufacturer Rheinmetall and engineering firm BAE Systems, also manufactures Challenger 3 Main Battle Tanks at the Telford works.
The firm's heavily-upgraded Telford site is a former manufacturing base for BAE systems with an engineering past dating back to the 19th century, originally established as the Castle Iron Works owned by Nettlefold & Chamberlain.
