Nexter from France will provide Griffon and Jaguar armored vehicles to Belgian army.

The Belgian Council of Ministers of October 25, 2018 approved the signing of an intergovernmental agreement with France concerning the establishment of a strategic partnership in the field of land mobility under the CaMo program. French Company Nexter will deliver 382 Griffon 6x6 multi-role wheeled armored vehicles (VBMR) and 60 Jaguar 6x6 wheeled armored reconnaissance and combat vehicles to the Belgian army.

Griffon 6x6 multi-role armored vehicle designed and manufactured by the French Company Nexter (Picture source Army Recognition)

France and Belgium will develop close cooperation between the land forces of both countries. In this context, Belgium is planning the complete modernization of its motorized capacity (CaMo program) through the acquisition of 382 Griffon 6x6 multi-role wheeled armored vehicles (VBMR) and 60 Jaguar 6x6 wheeled armored reconnaissance and combat vehicles (EBRC), whose industrial mastery of work will be provided by Nexter Group.

Nexter, system integrator architect of land defense and supplier of all combat vehicles of the French Army already equips the Belgian Land component with 105LG1, 105 mm guns. To respond to the CaMo program, the Group will rely on the know-how of its teams, its mastery of complex systems (LECLERC tank, JAGUAR design authority, VBCI, CAESAR, ...), and its central role in SCORPION French Armored Multi-Role vehicle (EBMR) program, alongside its French industrial cooperatives, primarily Arquus and Thales, grouped together in a temporary business venture.

In parallel, Nexter has signed partnership agreements with several Belgian companies. It is in this context that the final assembly of the VBMR Griffon multi-role wheeled armored vehicles and EBRC Jaguar wheeled armored reconnaissance and combat vehicles will be done by CMI Defense in Belgium and that the remotely operated weapon station of the Belgian vehicle Griffon will be produced by FN Herstal. MECAR, the Belgian Nexter Group subsidiary, will be in charge of producing part of the ammunition.

Stéphane Mayer, Chairman and CEO of Nexter "welcomes the cooperation between Belgium and France, and between the two ministries of Defense. The Belgian Directorate General Material Resources (DGMR) and the French Defense Procurement Agency (DGA) have set up a joint office to conduct the CaMo acquisition program. I thank the two defense ministries for their trust. It is a great honor to be at the side of the Belgian Land component, with the supply of its next combat equipment and participating in this important new step in the construction of the Europe of Defense".

The Griffon VBMR (Multi-Role Armoured Vehicle) is a new development of 6x6 Multi-Role armoured vehicle for the French Army under the program EBMR Scorpion (Engin Blindé Multi-Rôle - Armoured Multi-roles Vehicles). The vehicle was designed and developed by a consortium of French Companies including Nexter Systems, Renault Trucks Defense, and Thales.

In armoured personnel carrier configuration, the Griffon is capable to carry a total of 11 soldiers including driver, commander, gunner and 8 infantrymen. The Griffon is fitted with a remote weapon system, that can be armed with a 7.62mm or 12.7mm heavy machine gun or an 40mm automatic grenade launcher.

The Griffon will have a weight of around 24,500 kg. and has been designed to offer a high level of off-road performance and a high level of ballistic protection through its modular armour system (up to NATO STANAG 4569 Level 4) that provides a ballistic protection against firing of small arms 14.5×114mm AP / B32 at 200 meters with 911 m/s and shell splinters at 30 m of the vehicle and mine protection 10 kg of mine explosion under the center of the hull and the wheels.

Jaguar 6x6 reconnaissance and combat armored vehicle designed and manufactured by the French Company Nexter (Picture source Army Recognition)

The Jaguar EBRC (Engin Blindé de Reconnaissance et de Combat - Reconnaissance and Combat Armoured Vehicle) is a development of a 6x6 Reconnaissance and Combat Armoured Vehicle for the French Army under the program EBMR Scorpion (Engin Blindé Multi-Rôles - Armoured Multi-roles Vehicles).

The Jaguar EBRC is fitted with a two-man turret 40 CTAS armed with one 40mm CTC cannon with Ammunition Handling System (AHS). The 40mm cannon will have a maximum range of 1,500 m. The right side of the turret is fitted with two launchers for the MMP (Missile Moyenne Portée - Medium Range Missile) missile designed by the French Company MBDA

The Jaguar EBRC is based on 6x6 all-terrain vehicle chassis with the turret mounted at the centre of the hull. We can suppose that the hull of the Jaguar EBRC will have the same level of protection (NATO STANAG 4569 Level 4) as the Griffon VBMR which is also include in the EBMR Scorpion program of the French army. The STANAG 4569 Level 4 provides protection against fire of small arms 14.5mmx114 AP, 155mm artillery shell splinters at 30m and mine blast protection of 10 kg TNT under the wheel.