Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of whether AJAX is able to reach initial operating capability if its operators must wear headsets for protection against noise and vibration.

Due to the nature of the operating environment, all Armoured Fighting Vehicle (AFV) crews must and do wear headsets. As well as providing protection against noise, AFV headsets are critical for the provision of internal crew communications as well as radio communications with other vehicles.

The headsets currently being trialled for use by Ajax operators must ensure crew communications, radio communications and protection against the noise signature of the Ajax vehicles. The trials that are underway are specifically designed to ensure this. Headsets do not provide protection against vibration.