Arquus comments on 2020 and 2021 deliveries in Africa and Middle East.

During his March 10 press conference, Emmanuel Levacher, CEO of Arquus, reported that various contracts with African and Middle-Eastern countries were successfully completed in 2020 while other ones will be in 2021.
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Arquus Sherpa Light Scout 4x4 APC (Picture source: Arquus)

In December 2020, Arquus delivered the last Sherpas ordered by Kuwait in different versions. The Sherpa family includes four base models: the Sherpa Scout, an armored vehicle for liaison and reconnaissance seating 4 or 5 soldiers, also available in a Station Wagon version; the Carrier, fitted for troop or communication systems transport; the APC, for protected troop transport; and the Sherpa Special Forces, designed for missions behind enemy lines.

The Sherpa is in service with the armed forces of Chile, Lebanon and Kuwait. The Sherpa Light is a family of 4x4 tactical and light armored vehicles. The vehicle was unveiled in June 2006 during the Eurosatory defense exhibition in Paris. The Sherpa Light Scout can transport 4 to 5 soldiers. It can be fitted with an open-top turret or a remote-controlled weapon station (RCWS) armed with weapons of up to 12,7 mm caliber. The hull of the vehicle can be fitted with armor plates to provide protection against the firing of small arms and artillery shell splinters. The roof of the vehicle can be fitted with a manually-operated turret or a remotely operated weapon station armed with a machine gun of up to 12.7mm caliber. The vehicle can be motorized with a Deutz 1013 or Renault MD5 4-cylinder Diesel engine coupled to a 6-speed automatic transmission. It can reach 110 km/h with a maximum cruising range of 800 km.

Arquus Bastion (Picture source: Arquus)

In 2020, Arquus delivered 50 Bastions in Africa and the G5 Sahel. The key role of the Bastion, notably in Africa, where it constitutes the backbone of numerous armies. To better meet its partners’ needs, Arquus keeps upgrading the Bastion and offers it in 2020 in a new version, fitted with a 270hp engine. It is a major milestone for the Arquus factory in Saint-Nazaire, which has been writing its history with the legendary VLRA (Véhicule Léger de Reconnaissance et d’Appui, Liaison, Reconnaissance and Support Vehicle), and keeps writing it with the new VLRA and the Bastion.

To answer its clients’ specific demands, which requested a robust and highly mobile armored vehicle, Arquus developed in 2012 the Bastion, now one of the most renowned vehicles of the African theaters. By fitting a mecano-welded hull on the new VLRA chassis, Arquus created a simple, robust, and hardy solution, ready to industrialize, easy to support and offering a wide commonality with all existing VLRA fleets all over the world.

Well protected against ballistic and mine threats, the Bastion can host a full 8-soldier combat group, as well as comprehensive equipment thanks to its large internal volume. Already in service in several African armies, where it is renowned for its simplicity of use and ruggedness, as well as for its versatility, the Bastion has recently been chosen by the G5 Sahel to equip some of its members’ armies in their fight against armed terrorist groups. Taking into account these latest orders, the Bastion reaches 500 units currently in service worldwide and asserts itself as the armored vehicle of choice for the African theaters.

As part of the evolution of Arquus’ range, the Bastion is now offered in a new version, with a four-cylinder, 270hp engine. This power increase grants the Bastion with new capabilities in terms of speed and obstacle crossing, thus upgrading its performance on all theaters of operations. This new version complements the classic 180hp version. It illustrates Arquus’ ability to optimize its vehicles’ performance, depending on the armies’ needs and feedback from the field.

Arquus VLRA 2 family (Picture source: Arquus)

A large order, 300 VLRA 2s will be delivered to the Moroccan armed forces in 2021. VLRA 2 is a family of light tactical vehicles sharing the same all-wheel-drive chassis specifically designed for military requirements. The successor to VLRA 1 (12,000 of which have been sold worldwide), VLRA 2 retains the latter’s ruggedness, no-electronics versions, range and low gooseneck chassis. The new VLRA 2 TDN-TDE, heir of 60 years of experience in driving forces in the most challenging terrain, integrates up-to-date technologies. This new range keeps the concept ACMAT “100% Military” proven in the most extreme environments: drop-frame and welded rigid chassis, cold-stamped HEL steel, standardization of the components, modularity to support troops, weapons and fire support systems. The new VLRA TDN-TDE meets the whole tactical and operational requirements of armed forces and special forces, with more mobility, payload and protection.The VLRA 2 family comprises a wide variety of 4x4 and 6x6 logistics and troop carriers. A Special Forces version, the Torpedo, has also been sold. VLRA is already in service in numerous countries across the world and is employed in the most demanding theatres of operations.

After more than fifty years of good and faithful service, more than 600 VLRAs are still in service in the French army, in more than 75 different versions, which prove the vehicle’s endurance and high versatility. In its command car version, the VLRA is notably used by the French President on the French National Day. A new VLRA version was presented by Arquus in 2009. This version increases the payload by more than 1 tonne, optimizes the cabin ergonomics, thus creating a third forward seat, and reduces the turning radius. The Bastion is built on this version’s chassis. In total, more than 1,000 chassis have been produced by Arquus for the new VLRA or the Bastion since 2009.

Arquus VLRA 2 (Picture source: Arquus)