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Version
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VAB
Renault Armoured vehicle personnel carrier |
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The
VAB ("Véhicule de l'avant blindé" in French)
is an armoured personnel carrier and support vehicle designed and manufactured
by the French Defence Company Renault Trucks Defense. Since 1976, more
than 5,000 VABs have been produced in 30 different versions. The basic
standard model is the 4x4 VAB VTT armored personnel carrier, which carries
an infantry team of 8 - 10 fully-equipped soldiers in the relatively
spacious armored hull. |
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| Variants |
- 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 the Toucan system, a tele-operated
turret fitted with a 20 mm cannon and a AA52 7.62 mm machine-gun. Used
by the French Air Force for airfield defence.[12]
- 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
- VAB TOP: 4x4 APC version fitted with a Kongsberg Protector
M151 RWS with 12.7mm machine gun and ceramic addon armour |
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| Technical
Data |
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| Armament |
The most
popular version of VAB 4x4 is fitted with a Nexter Systems
rotating gun mount type CB 127 armed with a .50 (12.7 mm)
M2 HB machine gun with an elevation of -15° to +45°
with the shield in the normal position and from -20° to
+80° in the anti-aircraft position; in both cases traverse
is a full 360°. Since the deployment of the French army
troops in Afghanistan, and to answer the new threats of the
battlefield, the standard unprotected weapon station of French
VAB is replaced by a Norwegian Kongsberg Remote Controlled
Weapon Station (RCWS) armed with a .50 M2 HB MG. Some others
version of VAB can be equipped with a full range of gun weapon
system.
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| Protection |
| The
all-welded steel hull of the VAB provides the crew with protection
from small arms fire 7.62 mm and shell splinters. Both crew
members have a side door that opens to the front, with a bulletproof
window in its upper part hinged at the top and opening outwards
that can be covered by a shutter. In front of the crew is a
heated bulletproof windscreen that can be covered by a flap
hinged at the top. Over the driver's position is a single-piece
hatch cover that opens to the front. |
| Propulsion |
The
basic model used a 4x4 chassis. The VAB is motorized with an
Renault MIDS 06-20-45 in-line water-cooled turbocharged 6-cylinder
diesel developing 220 bhp at 2,200 rpm. Original engine was
a MAN D.2356 HM 72 in-line water-cooled 6-cylinder diesel developing
220 hp at 2,200 rpm (standard on VAB until 1983) (option of
300 hp diesel). |
| Accessories |
The
VAB is fully amphibious, being propelled in the water by two
water-jets at the rear of the hull, each fitted with a deflector
for steering and reverse thrust, which is hydraulically controlled
by a joystick mounted on the dashboard. Before entering the
water, the bilge pumps are switched on and the trim vane, which
is folded back onto the glacis plate when not required, is erected
at the front of the hull. Not all export customers have water-jets
fitted. Optional equipment for the VAB includes an air conditioning
system, an armoured grenade thrower hood, a firing gun port
with incorporated observation port, a gas dispenser, an NBC
system (standard for French Army vehicles), passive night vision
equipment, a public address system and a front-mounted winch
with a capacity of 7,000 kg (which can be doubled with the aid
of a pulley) and 60 m of cable.
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| Specifications |
| Back
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Armament |
| One
12.7 mm machine gun
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Country
users |
| Brunei,
Central african Republic, Cyprus, Indonesia,
Ivory Coast, France, Kuwait, Lebanon, Mauritius,
Morocco, Oman, United Arab Emirates,Italy. |
Designer
Country |
| France
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Accessories |
| Water-jets,
air conditionning system, NBC protection system,
night vision and front winch. |
Crew |
2
+ 10 soldiers |
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Armor |
| Protection
against small arms firing 7.62 mm , shell splinters
and some mines. |
Weight |
13,000
kg
a
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Speed |
90
km/h maximum road speed, 8 km/h water speed |
Range |
1,000
km
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Dimensions |
Length,
5.98 m; Width, 2.49 m; Height, 2.06 m |
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