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Véhicule De L'avant Blindé
The or VAB (literally meaning "Armoured Forward Vehicle"; but more appropriately translated: "Armoured Vanguard Vehicle") is a French armoured personnel carrier and support vehicle designed and manufactured by ''Renault Trucks Defense'' (now known as Renault Trucks#Military vehicles, Arquus). It entered French service in 1979 and around 5,000 were produced for the French Army as well as for export. It has seen combat in various conflicts in Africa, Asia as well as Europe and has also been exported to more than 15 countries. A polyvalent military vehicle, the VAB has more than thirty variants and sub-variants. Beyond their common primary role of transporting personnel and equipment in combat zones, some VAB are tailored for mechanized infantry combat, some fulfill the role of anti-tank missile launchers, some of self-propelled mortars, some are optimized for electronic warfare, others act as reconnaissance vehicle, reconnaissance or artillery observer, artillery observation vehicl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Armoured Personnel Carrier
An armoured personnel carrier (APC) is a broad type of armoured military vehicle designed to transport personnel and equipment in combat zones. Since World War I, APCs have become a very common piece of military equipment around the world. According to the definition in the Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe, an APC is "an armoured combat vehicle which is designed and equipped to transport a combat infantry squad and which, as a rule, is armed with an integral or organic weapon of less than 20 millimetres calibre." Compared to infantry fighting vehicles (IFVs), which are also used to carry infantry into battle, APCs have less weapon, armament and are not designed to provide direct fire support in battle. Infantry units that travel in APCs are known as mechanized infantry. Some militaries also make a distinction between infantry units that use APCs and infantry units that use IFVs, with the latter being known as armoured infantry. History One of the first armored ve ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
MEXAS
The Modular Expandable Armor System (MEXAS) is a composite armour system developed by the German company IBD Deisenroth Engineering. MEXAS was introduced in 1994 and has been applied on over 20,000 combat vehicles worldwide. The successor of MEXAS is the Advanced Modular Armor Protection (AMAP). Design The Modular Expandable Armor System (MEXAS) was developed in the early 1990s by IBD Deisenroth and first used in 1994. In 2005 it was succeeded by the next-generation AMAP armour system, which provides a wider variety of different armour options. MEXAS has been marketed in three versions: ''MEXAS-L'' (light) offers protection against small-calibre rounds and can also be fitted on soft-skinned vehicles like MAN military trucks. ''MEXAS-M'' (medium) protects the vehicle against autocannon and RPGs with HEAT warheads. ''MEXAS-H'' is for use on heavy vehicles like main battle tanks. Depending on version and required protection level MEXAS can protect against kinetic energy penetr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
VBMR-L Serval
The ''Véhicule Blindé Multi-Rôle Léger Serval'' ( English: Lightweight Multirole Armoured Vehicle Serval) or VBMR-L Serval is also intended as a replacement for the ''Véhicule de l'Avant Blindé'' (VAB), thus complementing the heavy VBMR Griffon. Weighing in at 17 tonnes in combat order, the ''Serval'' is roughly 25% heavier than the ''VAB''. Four-wheeled and designed to operate in areas of contact with the enemy, the vehicle is particularly maneuverable and will primarily equip infantry units of light brigades such as the 11th Airborne Brigade and 27th Mountain Infantry Brigade. The contract for the vehicle's development was awarded in February 2018 to ''Nexter'' and ''Texelis''. 489 units are expected to be delivered by 2025 and 978 by 2030. Beyond the 978 ''Serval'' to be acquired through the ''SCORPION'' programme, 1,060 additional ''Serval'' vehicles are to be ordered under the ''VLTP-P segment haut'' programme and delivered by 2035. The latter are expected to be depl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
VBMR Griffon
The Véhicule Blindé Multi-Rôle Griffon ( English: Multirole Armoured Vehicle Griffon) or VBMR Griffon is a French six-wheel multi-purpose armoured personnel carrier developed and manufactured by KNDS France (formerly ''Nexter Systems''), Arquus (formerly ''Renault Trucks Defense'') and Thales. The vehicle entered service in 2019 and is, alongside the four-wheel VBMR-L Serval co-developed by ''KNDS France'' and ''Texelis'', the successor of the Véhicule de l'Avant Blindé (VAB). Components of the French ''SCORPION'' programme, the two vehicles are expected to fulfill a wide range of tasks and thus consist of several variants and subvariants. An on-board 120 mm mortar system based on the ''Griffon'', designated ''Griffon MEPAC'', has notably been developed. Furthermore, two distinct ''Serval''-based air defence platforms are under development as of 2023; the ''Serval LAD'', intended as a dedicated counter-UAV vehicle, and the ''Serval Mistral'' (or ''Serval TCP'') for g ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Artillery Observer
An artillery observer, artillery spotter, or forward observer (FO) is a soldier responsible for directing artillery and mortar fire support onto a target. An artillery observer usually accompanies a tank or infantry unit. Spotters ensure that indirect fire hits targets which those at a fire support base cannot see. History Historically, the range of artillery steadily increased over the centuries. In the era of bombards or ''Steinbüchse'', the gunner could usually still fire directly on the target by line-of-sight. As ranges increased, methods of employing indirect fire were developed. This made a forward observer essential in order to be able to use artillery effectively. The proximity of the observer to the target depended on the terrain and battlefield situation. Elevated observation posts could be used as an aid to facilitate communication between the guns and the observers. The development of optical and communication aids for observation advanced significantly in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Reconnaissance Vehicle
A reconnaissance vehicle, also known as a scout vehicle, is a military vehicle used for forward reconnaissance. Both tracked and wheeled reconnaissance vehicles are in service. In some nations, light tanks such as the M551 Sheridan and AMX-13 have also been used by scout platoons. Their armament ranges from a medium machine gun to a large cannon. Modern examples are often fitted with ATGMs and a wide range of sensors. Reconnaissance vehicles are designed with several philosophies: scout cars used for passive reconnaissance, with a low profile or small size and are lightly armoured to maximize mobility, relying on speed, stealth and cover to escape detection; armoured reconnaissance used for active reconnaissance, distinct from ordinary scouts in weight and size of weapons and armor, designed not to break away from attacks, but to force their way through towards their objective. Design Smaller caliber weapons help reduce the vehicle's profile and noise signatures. In contrast, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Self-propelled Mortar
A mortar carrier, or self-propelled mortar, is a self-propelled artillery piece in which a mortar (weapon), mortar is the primary weapon. Simpler vehicles carry a standard infantry mortar while in more complex vehicles the mortar is fully integrated into the vehicle and cannot be dismounted from the vehicle. Mortar carriers cannot be fired while on the move and some must be dismounted to fire. Evolution The mortar carrier has its genesis in the general mechanisation and motorisation of infantry in the years leading up to World War II. To move an infantry mortar and its crew various methods were developed, for example mounting the mortar on a wheeled carriage for towing behind a light vehicle, attaching the mortar and its permanently fixed baseplate to the rear of a vehicle — the entire assembly hinging from the horizontal for travel and to the vertical to fire, simply transporting the disassembled mortar (tube, baseplate and bipod) its crew and mortar bombs by truck or ha ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Anti-tank Missile
An anti-tank guided missile (ATGM), anti-tank missile, anti-tank guided weapon (ATGW) or anti-armor guided weapon is a missile guidance, guided missile primarily designed to hit and destroy armoured fighting vehicle, heavily armored military vehicles. ATGMs range in size from shoulder-launched weapons, which can be transported by a single soldier, to larger tripod-mounted weapons, which require a squad or team to transport and fire, to vehicle and aircraft mounted missile systems. Earlier man-portable anti-tank warfare, anti-tank weapons, like anti-tank rifles and magnetic anti-tank mines, generally had very short range, sometimes on the order of metres or tens of metres. Rocket-propelled high-explosive anti-tank (HEAT) systems appeared in World War II and extended range to the order of hundreds of metres, but accuracy was low and hitting targets at these ranges was largely a matter of luck. It was the combination of rocket propulsion and remote Wire-guided missile, wire guidan ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mechanized Infantry
Mechanized infantry are infantry units equipped with Armoured personnel carrier, armored personnel carriers (APCs) or infantry fighting vehicles (IFVs) for transport and combat (see also armoured corps). As defined by the United States Army, mechanized infantry is distinguished from motorized infantry in that its vehicles provide a degree of armor protection and armament for use in combat, whereas motorized infantry are provided with "soft-skinned" wheeled vehicles for transportation only.Infantry Division Transportation Battalion and Transportation, Tactical Carrier Units. (1962). United States: Headquarters, Department of the Army. p. 15 Most APCs and IFVs are fully tracked or are all-wheel drive vehicles (6×6 or 8×8), for mobility across rough ground. Some militaries distinguish between mechanized and armored (or armoured) infantry, designating troops carried by APCs as mechanized and those in IFVs as armored. The support weapons for mechanized infantry are ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
French Army
The French Army, officially known as the Land Army (, , ), is the principal Army, land warfare force of France, and the largest component of the French Armed Forces; it is responsible to the Government of France, alongside the French Navy, French Air and Space Force, and the National Gendarmerie. The Army is commanded by the Chief of Staff of the French Army (CEMAT), who is subordinate of the Chief of the Defence Staff (France), Chief of the Defence Staff (CEMA), who commands active service Army units and in turn is responsible to the President of France. CEMAT is also directly responsible to the Ministry of Armed Forces (France), Ministry of the Armed Forces for administration, preparation, and equipment. The French Army, following the French Revolution, has generally been composed of a mixed force of conscripts and professional volunteers. It is now considered a professional force, since the French Parliament suspended the Conscription in France, conscription of soldiers. Acc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Renault Trucks
Renault Trucks was a French commercial truck manufacturer with corporate headquarters at Saint-Priest near Lyon. Originally part of Renault, it was a subsidiary of Volvo since 2001. In July 2024, John Cockerill (company) completed the takeover of the corporation, then named Arquus. From its beginnings in 1978 to 2002, the company was called (''Renault Industrial Vehicles''), from 1992 on officially written as Renault V. I.. Until 2002, Renault Véhicules Industriels also manufactured buses. History Renault first began building dedicated commercial trucks in 1906. In 1956, however Renault stopped producing trucks and buses under its own name. Instead, the company Saviem was formed as a subsidiary of their own commercial products with the manufacturers Somua and Latil. Lighter commercials kept on using the Renault name, however. From 1957 on, Saviem was also used as the brand name for the trucks and buses produced by the company. As a result of French industrial polic ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
