The British Army has suspended all use of its troubled Ajax armoured fighting vehicles after dozens of soldiers reported vibration, hearing, and balance problems during a major training exercise on Salisbury Plain. The pause, expected to last two weeks, comes after 31 troops emerged from the vehicles vomiting, dizzy, and in some cases unable to control their movements. Several soldiers described tingling in their hands, ringing in their ears, and motion-related sickness after spending 10 to 15 hours inside the £10 million vehicles.

The exercise, known as Iron Fist, involved around 60 Ajax vehicles and hundreds of troops from the Household Cavalry and the Royal Lancers. It was halted immediately after the symptoms were reported. All vehicles were transported back to camp on flatbeds and every soldier involved was medically screened. The Ministry of Defence confirmed that the vast majority have since been cleared to return to duty, although a small number continue to receive specialist medical care.

The timing is politically sensitive because government officials had only recently declared Ajax safe for use. Earlier this month defence minister Luke Pollard toured the General Dynamics manufacturing plant in Wales and insisted the long-delayed programme had finally put its problems behind it. Critics now question whether he was misinformed or whether concerns raised by soldiers were not taken seriously enough. Retired officers and defence analysts have openly warned that accountability is needed and that the programme has become another example of the UK’s persistent procurement failures.

The Ajax fleet, which costs more than £6 billion overall, has faced years of controversy. Trials were paused in 2021 after hundreds of soldiers suffered hearing damage and other injuries linked to noise, vibration, and instability. The vehicle’s weight increased from the original design, and additional requirements demanded by the Ministry of Defence introduced further noise and shaking that testers described as severe. Soldiers have been required to use double hearing protection and are limited to short stints inside the vehicle. Even with those measures, at least two soldiers were recently medically downgraded and can no longer deploy overseas. Several others are expected to be medically discharged.

Despite these issues an internal MoD investigation earlier this year concluded there were no systemic faults. The Army proceeded with the rollout and publicly positioned Ajax as the backbone of its future reconnaissance capability. Designed to detect adversaries from miles away while remaining sealed for extended periods, the vehicle was meant to anchor Britain’s modernised armoured forces through 2050.

This latest incident has reignited debate over whether the UK should consider abandoning the troubled programme and purchasing an off the shelf alternative. Some senior officers argue that after more than a decade of delays and billions spent, patience has run out. Others say the problems are fixable and that the Army cannot afford to walk away from a platform that has already consumed so much of its armoured modernisation budget.

For now the fleet remains grounded as investigators work to determine why troops continue to be injured despite repeated assurances of safety. The Ministry of Defence insists the pause reflects its commitment to protecting personnel. With hundreds more Ajax vehicles expected to enter service by 2030, the future of the programme now depends on whether the Army can resolve issues that have persisted for years and continue to undermine confidence in one of the UK’s most expensive defence projects.