The DGA ordered 54 MEPACs on 30 December 2019. (Ministère des armées)
The French Army's towed 120 mm mortars that will be replaced by Griffon Mortier Embarqué Pour l'Appui au Contact (MEPAC) 6×6 self-propelled 120 mm mortar carriers will be transferred to its infantry units, Janes learnt at Defence iQ's Future Mortar Systems (FMS) 2024 conference held in London on 29–30 October. As a result, the service will have 20 120 mm mortar batteries, one for every French Army battlegroup.
The Direction Générale de l'Armement (DGA), the French armaments procurement agency, awarded a contract to the SCORPION temporary consortium composed of Nexter (now KNDS France), Arquus, and Thales for 54 MEPACs at the end of 2020, with deliveries to be completed in 2028. The systems will equip the French Army artillery units. The infantry units will be equipped with 81 mm mortars, in addition to the 120 mm towed mortars that they will receive. The latter will be towed by Serval Véhicule Blindé Multi-Rôle Léger (VBMR-L) 4×4 light multirole armoured vehicles, which the French Army refers to as ‘Servalisation'. This is expected to contribute to the service's infantry transformation process, which includes the introduction of new sensors, unmanned aerial vehicles, and loitering munitions, the latter to be delivered at the end of 2024.
The first MEPAC delivery is also planned for the end of 2024, following completion of qualification. With a crew of four, the 24.5 tonne MEPAC is equipped with the Thales Rifled, Recoiled, Mounted Mortar (2R2M) system with 360° coverage. The system features SCORPION vectronics, with automatic positioning and gun laying, as well as an ATLAS automated field artillery fire support system. The French Army claims MEPAC can shoot and scoot in less than a minute.
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