Paris (AFP)

The French army has completed in extremis the reception of 92 Griffon multi-role heavy armored vehicles, intended to modernize an aging armored fleet, announced Monday the Minister of the Armies Florence Parly, putting an end to fears of delay in delivery.

"The 92 Griffon armored vehicles will be delivered to the French Army in 2019. As expected," the minister tweeted. "Thank you to those - in particular the DGA (Directorate-General for Armaments) - who made it possible to keep this calendar".

These new generation six-wheeled armored vehicles (24.5 tonnes), which are intended to replace aging armored front vehicles (ABV), were developed by French manufacturers Nexter, Arquus and Thales, in the Scorpion program to renew ground combat capabilities.

The Griffon, of which 1,872 copies are to be delivered to the French Army by 2030, will notably improve the protection of soldiers engaged in combat with more efficient armor against fire, mines and improvised explosive devices (IEDs), a remotely operated machine gun and latest generation sensors.

The delivery of the first armored vehicles scheduled for late 2018 had been delayed for technical "development" reasons, the minister's office told AFP. Delay which raised some doubts about the respect of the calendar.

"The challenge at the end of the year was the ramp-up of industrial production," said the cabinet, referring to a "monitoring mechanism" put in place by the DGA to ensure that deadlines are met. "It was a major effort that paid off," the same source insisted.

Other armored vehicles in the Scorpion program include the Jaguar reconnaissance and combat vehicles (EBRC) and the Serval light multi-role armored vehicles (light VBMR), the first copies of which will be delivered to the Army in 2020 and 2022 respectively. .

The 2019-2025 Military Planning Law provides that 50% of the new armor of the Scorpion program will be delivered by 2025 to replace older equipment. By the end of 2025, the Army should have 936 Griffons.

A total of 128 Griffon armored vehicles are to be delivered in 2020.

© 2019 AFP