France Orders 530 Serval Appui SCORPION Armored Vehicles

Paris, February 8, 2025 – The French Armament Directorate (DGA) placed a significant order on December 31, 2024, for 530 Serval Appui SCORPION armored vehicles for the French Army. Deliveries are scheduled to begin at the end of 2025 and continue through 2031.

This order, valued at over one billion Euros, represents a major investment in modernizing the French Army’s capabilities. It will primarily benefit French defense companies including KNDS France (with sites in Satory, Bourges, and Roanne), TEXELIS (Limoges), MBDA (Plessis Robinson and Bourges), and CS GROUP (Plessis Robinson and Toulon).

The Serval Appui SCORPION, designed for high-intensity conflicts, builds upon the proven performance and military qualities of the Serval armored vehicle. This order also includes an additional 97 Serval vehicles, bringing the total number of Serval and Serval Appui SCORPION vehicles to 627.

This acquisition is part of the Multipurpose Light Tactical Vehicle (VLTP) program and is aligned with the 2024-2030 military programming law (LPM). It also complements the Surface Air Low Layer Defence and Anti-Drone Warfare programs, which are developing ground-to-air defense and anti-drone warfare systems, respectively.

The Serval Appui SCORPION’s enhanced armor and integration within the SCORPION environment will support Army units operating in the contact zone, within the Joint Brigade and division, providing critical command, support, and sustainment capabilities. The vehicle offers high levels of mobility, protection, autonomy, and projection capacity, along with modularity and new high-value-added functions.

This order addresses critical capability gaps, modernizing:

• Ground-to-Air Defense: A specialized Serval variant will be equipped with a turret capable of firing Mistral 3 ground-to-air missiles under armor.
• Anti-Drone Warfare: Another Serval variant will feature integrated radar, radio frequency detection, a fire control system, a 30x113mm cannon mounted on a turret, and specialized munitions.
• Tactical Communication Node: A dedicated version will provide SYRACUSE IV satellite, radio, and service communication capabilities.

This order for 530 Serval Appui SCORPION vehicles constitutes stage 3 of the VLTP program. Stage 1 resulted in the delivery of 4,380 VT4 vehicles, and stage 2 involved an order for 103 unprotected medical vehicles.