EDA to Coordinate Ammunition Qualification Tests

The European Defence Agency (EDA) will coordinate the Joint Ammunition Qualification (JAQ) programme, funded with €50 million from the European Commission under the European Defence Industry Programme (EDIP). The project aims to streamline how ammunition is tested and approved across countries involved in the programme. It will initially focus on 155 mm artillery ammunition, identified as a priority by Member States.

JAQ is intended as a first step towards a more harmonised European approach to ammunition testing. At present, each Member State applies its own procedures to verify that ammunition is safe and performs as expected. 

So far, a manufacturer supplying the same ammunition to several countries often has to repeat testing and approval processes in each country, in line with rules and procedures that may differ. JAQ aims to introduce common procedures so that ammunition tested in one Member State would not need to be re-tested in other EU countries. The primary objective is to lay the foundations for a common EU-level qualification framework. This would reduce delays, lower costs and make it easier for armed forces to use the same ammunition in joint operations.

Testing together
EDA’s role builds on two decades of work in Test and Evaluation (T&E), where it has supported Member States in moving from nationally-driven testing towards more coordinated approaches. Over the past two decades, the Agency has supported Member States by helping them identify and use relevant standards and linking test centres across Europe. This has helped reduce duplication and improve interoperability. The same approach is now being applied to ammunition through JAQ.