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French Army receives first MEPAC armoured mortar carrier

By Nicholas Fiorenza |

The French Army received its first Griffon Mortier Embarqué Pour l'Appui au Contact (MEPAC) 6×6 self-propelled 120 mm mortar carrier on 19 December 2024. (DGA Techniques terrestres)

The French Army received its first Griffon Mortier Embarqué Pour l'Appui au Contact (MEPAC) 6×6 self-propelled 120 mm mortar carrier on 19 December 2024, the Direction Générale de l'Armement (DGA), France's defence procurement agency, announced on its website on 24 January. The agency delivered the vehicle to the Satory-based detachment of the French Army's 8e Régiment du Matériel responsible for maintaining the service's equipment in operational condition.

Ten more vehicles are planned to be delivered in 2025, with completion of deliveries of all 54 by the end of 2028. Another 25 are earmarked for Belgium under the Franco-Belgian Capacité Motorisée (CaMo) programme.

The Griffon vehicle that MEPAC is based on is manufactured by the temporary consortium composed of KNDS France, Arquus, and Thales, with the latter producing the system's semi-automatic Rifled Recoiled Mounted Mortar (2R2M). It also has a remote controlled weapon system armed with a 7.62 mm machine gun.

The 24.5 tonne MEPAC will support French groupement tactique interarmes (GTIA) joint tactical battlegroups in the zone of contact with the enemy. With a crew of four, the armoured vehicle is designed to be well protected and mobile in all terrain.

MEPAC is completely integrated in the chain of the ATLAS automated field artillery fire support system, allowing it to quickly provide fire support. The French Army claims that MEPAC can shoot-and-scoot in less than a minute. The system features the same vectronics as other vehicles of the SCORPION programme.

For more information, please seeFMS 2024: France increases mortar capabilities .

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