The versatility of the FELIN will revolutionise French Army operations
This makes it the worldwide first future soldier system to enter service with armed forces and go into series production: the first of a total of 22,588 ordered FELIN future soldier systems have now been handed over to the French Army. Early this week, the French Armament Procurement Agency (Direction générale de l'armement, DGA) announced that it delivered the first 90 systems of the FELIN (fantassin à équipements et liaisons integers) system to the French Army in late May. The systems have been handed over to the French Infantry School’s FELIN training centre to provide basic training on the system to French army instructors.
Being one of the largest and most advanced soldier modernisation programmes, the value of the entire French FELIN programme, including development, industrialization, production and initial support, is estimated at approximately €1 billion ($1.5 billion). FELIN is designed to enhance all the dismounted soldier's operational functions: protection, observation, C4I, weapons use, mobility and support.
To reach last month’s important milestone, the pre-production series of the FELIN systems, manufactured by prime contractor Sagem DS (Safran Group) and its industrial partners, underwent thorough testing and evaluation in various locations in France (et al. mountainous and urban terrain) as well as in French Guiana (tropical jungle conditions) and Djibouti (desert conditions and NBC equipment testing) during the past years. The Technical/Operational Evaluation (EVTO) of 358 FELIN units was carried out by by four regiments – battle-hardened units who have all seen combat in Afghanistan –, including the “Marche du Tchad” Regiment, the 13th Mountain Infantry Battalion and the naval infantry’s 8th Paratrooper Regiment.
Tradition meets Innovation
Having successfully completed the evaluation phase and further boosted by a order for an additional 16,454 FELIN equipment suites in late 2009 bringing the total to the impressive number of 22,588 systems, FELIN is now on track to revolutionise the warfare capabilities of French infantrymen. According to Sagem, 190 modifications were carried out as a result of the evaluation phase in order to fully meet the operational requirements of the French Army.
The Sarrebourg-based 1st Infantry Regiment will be the first combat unit designated to introduce the FELIN into operational service. The first equipment suites are scheduled to join the regiment in September 2010. With a history of some five centuries, the “1er d'infanterie” is Europe’s oldest regiment and has seen deployment to various military operations around the world in recent years, including to the Gulf region, Ruanda, Chad, the Balkan, Côte d'Ivoire and Afghanistan. As of September 2010 its capabilities and flexibility in demanding military operations is to be brought to a new level with FELIN.
The 1st Infantry Regiment will then be followed before the end of the year by the 13th Mountain Infantry Battalion, based in Chambéry. Starting in 2011, four regiments per year will be equipped, with deliveries to be completed by 2015.
“There’s no comparison”
As Colonel Laurent Barraco, the DGA program director, explains, “The DGA, French Army and Sagem's obsession was the ergonomics when handling matériel and software. For example, FELIN's C4I can reverse operational postures both day and night.”
The weapons of the FELIN system include the Famas assault rifle, the FRF2 precision rifle and the Minimi. In terms of performance, “The FAMAS rifle has a firing range enhanced from 300m to 500m during the day and from 150m to 400m at night. We put a section equipped with FELIN in face-to-face simulated combat, by day and by night, with another outfitted with today's equipment: there’s no comparison,” explains Colonel Rey, head of the French Army's FELIN program in its Technical Section.
The FELIN generally comprises ten fields of equipment and armament, including clothing and protection, ballistic, riot and NBC protection, FAMAS configurations, infrared binoculars, information network terminal, head gear, dismounted soldier information system, and the vehicle integration kit. The FELIN solution offers 13 configurations for the driver of an armoured personnel carrier to the operator of the MILAN light anti-tank missile system and from the platoon leader to the army corps commander.
News by:
Nicolas von KospothManaging Editor
defence.professionals
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