Government halts all trials of UK's Ajax armoured vehicles after another soldier injured
Its after around 30 soldiers became unwell last month while using the vehicles on Salisbury Plain
All trials of the Army's new Ajax armoured vehicle have been paused after another soldier suffered vibration injuries, a defence minister said.
Use of the £6.3 billion vehicle for military training was halted last month after around 30 soldiers became ill due to noise and vibration while using the Ajax in a training exercise on Salisbury Plain.
The Times newspaper reported that some soldiers emerged vomiting from the vehicles, while others were shaking so violently they could not control their bodies.
Other trials of the vehicle continued, including some at Bovington, in Dorset, intended to provide data for investigations into November's incident.
But those trials have now also been paused after a soldier reported suffering from vibration symptoms on December 12.
Announcing the pause in a written statement to Parliament on Thursday, defence minister Luke Pollard said the soldier was being given medical support but had not needed hospital treatment.
Mr Pollard said the vehicle involved was not one of the 23 that took part in the exercise in November, which are currently being tested to determine the cause of the noise and vibration issues.
He said: "This additional report of an injury is a serious concern to me so, out of an abundance of caution, and to ensure the safety of our personnel, I have directed a pause on all Ajax trials.
"This is in addition to the ongoing pause for training and exercising."
Mr Pollard added that he would consider whether trials could be restarted in the new year.
The incident in November, during Exercise Titan Storm in Hampshire, is the subject of four separate investigations, and Mr Pollard said he had discussed the issue with Ajax's manufacturer, General Dynamics, last week.
Ajax was originally meant to enter service in 2017, but the project has suffered a series of delays and been plagued by noise and vibration issues that injured soldiers testing the vehicles.
At the start of November, however, Mr Pollard said Ajax had "left its troubles behind" as he declared its initial operating capability, meaning it could be deployed on operations.
He later told the Commons Defence Committee he had made this declaration after receiving written assurances from the head of the Army, General Sir Roly Walker, and the then-national armaments director, Andy Start, that it was safe.