Thirteen new Griffon VBMR (véhicules blindés multi-rôles) armoured vehicles were handed over to the 21st Marine Infantry Regiment (21st RIMa) on 9 July.

The new generation of combat vehicles is based on a 6×6 commercial all-terrain truck chassis and being acquired by the French Defense Procurement Agency (DGA) to replace the ageing fleet of Véhicule de l’Avant Blindé (VAB) 4×4 armoured personnel carriers.

The French DGA unveiled its plan to acquire a total of Griffon multi-role vehicles under its Scorpion programme in November 2014. A contractual agreement for the manufacture of the VBMR vehicles was signed in December 2014.

Last summer, in July 2019, the first batch of vehicles was submitted to the French army by the DGA, in attendance of the French Army minister, Florence Parly. As a result, the production of the 92 Griffon required less than six months: it represents a real industrial challenge that permits to respond to Land Forces’ requirements.

Overall, the SCORPION program plans the delivery of 1 872 Griffon to the French army by the temporary company grouping EBMR. 936 vehicles will be presented until 2025 with all the maintenance and logistic support.

Nexter, Arquus and Thales are partners for produce if new vehicles.

Nexter acts as the representative of the grouping. Nexter is in charge of the development and production of the vehicle structure, including the armored hull, NRBC and ballistic solutions, and the interior layout. The mechanically-welded structure of the aluminum cases offers, thanks to high-precision machining and robotic welding operations, the best protection performance to the military. Furthermore, Nexter has the responsibility of the vehicles’ assembly and the integrations in the Roanne industrial site. All the equipment and subsystems supplied by partners and contractors are integrated in this facility.

Arquus designs and produces the full driveline for the Griffon, including all parts and organs that ensure the vehicle’s mobility. This driveline redefines the mobility standards of armored troop transport vehicles and grants the Griffon new generation all-terrain capabilities. The Griffon is thus able to accompany all other vehicles of the SCORPION program in all conditions. Arquus also designs and produces the Griffon’s remote-controlled self-defense systems, which also equip the other vehicles of the SCORPION program. These remote-controlled weapon systems benefit from the most advanced technologies: Full HD video, augmented reality tactical situation view, extended connectivity with the vetronics, which place the RCWS at the heart of collaborative combat.

Thales brings on board the vehicles all the technologies enabling the use of data and information for the collaborative engagement of the platforms. This includes on-board vetronics, which are based on computers and link all navigation, protection, observation and communication services. The on-board vetronics allows the management and merging of all data within the vehicle. The CONTACT radio software ensures the networking of forces by providing real-time communication capabilities.