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| Véhicule de l'Avant Blindé | |
|---|---|
 A VAB carrier during a Bastille Day celebration in Paris, France |
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| Type | Armoured personnel carrier |
| Place of origin | France |
| Service history | |
| In service | 1976- present |
| Used by | France and numerous others |
| Wars | 2001 invasion of Afghanistan |
| Production history | |
| Designer | GIAT Industries |
| Specifications | |
| Weight | 13.8 Mg (13.8 tonnes loaded) |
| Length | 5.98 m |
| Width | 2.49 m |
| Height | 2.06 m |
| Crew | 2 |
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| Armour | Protection against 7.62 mm bullets and mines. |
| Primary armament |
1 × AA52 7.62 mm machine gun |
| Secondary armament |
- |
| Engine | Renault MIDR 062045 235 kW (320 hp)[1] |
| Power/weight | 17 W/kg (23 hp/t) |
| Payload capacity | 2 crews front + 10 troops rear |
| Suspension | wheeled |
| Operational range |
1,000 km |
| Speed | 100 km/h |
The Véhicule de l'Avant Blindé or VAB ("Armoured Vanguard Vehicle" in French) is an armoured personnel carrier designed by the Euro Mobilité Division of GIAT Industries of France. It entered service in 1976 and around 5000 were produced. They are amphibious (propelled in the water by two water jets mounted one either side of hull rear), NBC-proof, have excellent off-road capabilities, and can be configured in numerous versions. Modern versions of the VAB have had more than 1,000 improvements compared to the initial version. In 2003, Renault Trucks Défense took over marketing the VAB, as part of a commercial agreement with GIAT.
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Combat history
VABs have been deployed in virtually all theatres where French infantry troops were present, notably Kuwait, the Ivory Coast, Yugoslavia, and Chad. VABs belonging to the Royal Moroccan Army ( FAR ) have seen heavy combat during the conflict with Polisario rebels of the Western Sahara.
French troops supporting ISAF in Afghanistan also use the VAB. During the Uzbin valley ambush, a VAB was hit by a rocket propelled grenade, with no injuries. One soldier manning the rooftop machine gun of a VAB was later killed when the road collapsed under his vehicle and it rolled over.
Operators
France: French Army and Air Force
Brunei
Central African Republic
Cyprus
Indonesia: Army Corps / TNI-AD
Côte d'Ivoire
Kuwait
Lebanon
Mauritius
Mexico
Morocco
Oman
Qatar
United Arab Emirates
Italy: Italian Army (NBC configuration)
Variants
Variants may be 4×4 or 6×6 wheels. The French military mainly uses 4-wheel versions, with the Engineers Corps (Génie) having 6-wheels versions with enhanced amphibious capabilities. Export versions are also 6×6s.
- VAB VTT: 4x4 APC version, crew of two and ten passengers
- VAB T-20/13: VAB equipped with a turret mounted 20 mm gun recovered from old AMX-13 VCIs and refurbished and intended for fire support and for counter sniping
- VIB: IFV version fitted with a 20 mm cannon and a 7.62 mm machine-gun. Used by the French Air Force for airfield defence
- VAB VOA: Artillery observation vehicle
- VAB RATAC: Radar Artillery target acquisition vehicle, carries a doppler radar with a range of 20 km
- VAB RASIT: Reconnaissance vehicle, carries the RASIT ground surveillance radar
- VAB PC: Command vehicle
- VAB SIR: Digital regimental C4ISTAR information system
- VAB Bromure: Electronic warfare vehicle
- VAB Echelon: Maintenance and repair vehicle
- VAB Génie: Engineering vehicle
- VCAC Mephisto: Anti-tank vehicle, carries the Euromissile Mephisto system with four ready-to-fire HOT anti-tank missiles and eight more in reserve
- VTM 120: Mortar towing vehicle, can carry 70 bombs for the Thomson-Brandt 120mm mortar
- VPM 81: Mortar carrier with an 81mm mortar firing through a roof opening
- VAB SAN: Armoured ambulance
- VAB Reco: NBC reconnaissance vehicle
- VAB ATLAS: Artillery fire command and control vehicle
- VAB AZURE: Urban warfare vehicle equipped with a dozer blade and with panoramic periscopes to observe and monitor.
- VBC-90: Armoured car variant in service with the Mobile Gendarmerie
Versions reserved for export:
- VCAC UTM800: Export model anti-tank vehicle, carries the Euromissile UTM800 turret, with four ready-to-launch HOT missiles, and 16 more in reserve. In service with Qatar and Cyprus
- VAB Vehicle: Maintenance vehicle (with crane)
- VAB workshop
The French Gendarmerie also uses a variant of the VAB, which replaced the VXB, called VBRG (Véhicule Blindé de Reconnaissance de la Gendarmerie) for riot control. This version may be equipped with a water cannon and/or a bulldozer blade.
Weapons systems
Current:
Future:
- In early May 2008, Renault Trucks Défence signed an eight-year contract with Kongsberg Gruppen of Norway, for equipping the VAB with subsidiary Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace's Protector M151 Remote Weapon Station.[2]
Gallery
 Medical evacuation version |
 Inside view of the medical evacuation version |
 Version with 12.7 mm machine gun |
 Detail of propeller for amphibious operation |
Popular Culture Appearances
- Two Moroccan VABs were featured in the James Bond movie The Living Daylights.
- The Moroccan VAB 6x6, in UN colours featured in the movie Black Hawk Down.
- Moroccan Army VAB's were featured in the film The Jewel of the Nile.
- In Spriggan, the ARCAM Defence Unit has a unit of VABs stationed at their Turkish research centre in Mount Ararat
- The Hellsing Organisation uses VABs, as well as Saxon APC's, in the Hellsing TV anime.
- In the video game Grand Theft Auto San Andreas there is a VAB that CJ uses to infiltrate Big Smokes Crack factory in the mission End of the line.
References
- ^ http://www.renault-trucks-defense.com/description_2000831_0.html?lang=en
- ^ Weapon Control Systems framework agreement with France – Kongsberg Gruppen press release, 02.05.2008
- "Vehicle recognition (friendly armor): Light armored vehicle identification". GlobalSecurity.org. Retrieved on 2008-01-11.
External links
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