In accordance with the framework set by the SCORPION program, the Sanitary version of the GRIFFON has recently been qualified by the French procurement agency (DGA).
Designed within the GME EBMR (Nexter, Arquus and Thales), the GRIFFON is a modern 24-ton multi-role armored vehicle (VBMR) integrated into the SCORPION information system. The 1872 GRIFFON planned by the SCORPION program are being delivered to the Army since 2019.
The purpose of the SAN version is to ensure the recovery and evacuation of injured personnel on the battlefield. It provides evacuated personnel and the onboard medical team with greatly improved protection, mobility and conditions for performing medical procedures compared to existing resources. The first GRIFFON SAN are expected in 2023. They will fulfil one of the multiple missions of the GRIFFON MRV, provided by its numerous versions: troop transport, command post, communication relay, artillery observation or the 120mm mortar version (MEPAC), the production order for which was recently notified by the DGA.
Deployed since 2021 in the Sahel by the French Army, the GRIFFON is appreciated for its operational qualities, its mobility and its ease of maintenance.
The GRIFFON shares common equipment with the other SCORPION vehicles, such as the vetronics and the SCORPION combat information system (SICS), which offers new communication capabilities and allows the digitization of the battlefield, as well as the remotely operated turret, which combines observation, protection and combat capabilities, at the heart of collaborative combat.
The GRIFFON was developed as part of the SCORPION program to renew the medium armored vehicles of the French army alongside the JAGUAR armored reconnaissance and combat vehicle and the SERVAL light armored vehicle.
The GME EBMR is delighted with this qualification, which completes the range of capabilities of the GRIFFON. The Nexter, Arquus and Thales teams remain fully mobilized to provide the French Army with the equipment it needs to fulfil the missions it has been assigned today.
Nexter, the leading French land defense company and one of the main European players in the ammunition sector is part of the KNDS Group. The scope of its business includes as well the supply of weapon systems and ammunition for air and naval forces. The group continues to apply its international development policy with several order intakes in 2021 intended for the export market.
In France, Nexter is fully committed to meeting the objectives of the SCORPION program, through the upgrade of the Leclerc tank and the development and production of the VBMR GRIFFON and EBRC JAGUAR vehicles within the temporary business venture between Nexter, Thales and Arquus, as well as the Lightweight VBMR SERVAL (with Texelis).
The group’s range of products also includes TITUS® and VBCI armored vehicles, CAESAR® and 105LG1 artillery systems, smart ammunition (BONUS®, KATANA®), robots and many equipment.
Nexter’s 2021 turnover amounted to €1.3 billion, including 30% devoted to customer services, from training to fleet management to support and revaluation.
