Julie Elliott, Labour MP for Sunderland Central, posed a question to the Ministry of Defence regarding the usage of tank shells in training exercises.
This question aimed to gather specific data on the military’s training practices over the past several years.
James Heappey, the Minister of State for the Armed Forces, provided a detailed response to Elliott’s question. He presented a comprehensive chart outlining the number of shells and shots fired from tanks during training exercises for each financial year, starting from 2014-15 up to the current year 2023-24.
Overview of Tank Shell Usage
The chart shared by Minister Heappey revealed varying levels of tank shell and shot usage over the years:
- 2014-15: 6,742 shells fired and 5,904 shots fired.
- 2015-16: 11,422 shells fired and 10,429 shots fired.
- 2016-17: 4,313 shells fired and 5,509 shots fired.
- 2017-18: 9,860 shells fired and 6,650 shots fired.
- 2018-19: 10,206 shells fired and 7,632 shots fired.
- 2019-20: 11,038 shells fired and 10,807 shots fired.
- 2020-21: 700 shells fired and 4,766 shots fired.
- 2021-22: 3,581 shells fired and 8,818 shots fired.
- 2022-23: 2,635 shells fired and 6,162 shots fired.
- 2023-24 year to date: 3,201 shells fired and 1,966 shots fired.
From 2014-15 to the year-to-date figures in 2023-24, the total number of shells fired amounts to 63,698, and the total shots fired tally up to 63,643.
Military News Today 
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