Gear up better and faster. This is in short the message sent by the Minister of the Armed Forces, Sébastien Lecornu and expected by the arms manufacturers. Together, they announced their desire to compromise and adapt to the “war economy” that France has entered with the conflict in Ukraine.
An action plan will be drawn up to increase production rates and reduce weapons delivery times and, indeed, the administrative time from contract notification to equipment delivery.
High intensity
This need has been raised for several years by industry and the military. It was even the subject of a report presented by deputies Patricia Mirallès, who is now Secretary of State to the Minister for the Armed Forces, and Jean-Louis Thiériot, in a report on the preparation of the French armies in the event of a high-intensity confrontation.
The conflict in Ukraine, which began on February 24, 2022, has confirmed that the consumption of ammunition (shells, bombs and missiles) is staggering during a high-intensity conflict. However, the French armies are only in scant stock, even if Paris reckons that any war involving it would be fought within a coalition.
A “top 10 priority weapons”
For their part, the armies must in particular “have more rustic expressions of needs” and “simplify administrative documentation,” argued the Minister of the Armed Forces. These procedures lengthen the supply of equipment by the armies.
Between 3 and 6 billion euros
Last example, the Grounding System for Operational Launchers (SMTCOPS) of the three armies (land, air, sea) and the gendarmerie. This contract of 80 million euros was notified in 2016, was authorized by the General Directorate of Armament (DGA) on July 26, 2022 and will begin to equip the units at the end of 2022.
Not being able to wait any longer, two elite units, the CPA 10 (Air Parachute Commando No. 10), the Marine Commando Hubert as well as members of the Directorate of Military Intelligence (DRM) were authorized last year to equip themselves with Hi-5 parachutes from Airborne Systems, a less efficient model, but immediately available.
If there is a will to improve the process, things will not happen overnight. They are subject to an industrial program that, in order to produce more and faster, will be long and costly. The deputy (LR) Jean-Louis Thiériot evaluates “between 3,000 and 6,000 million euros, in addition to the 3,000 million already budgeted in the Military Programming Law”, the needs to replenish French ammunition stocks.
Beyond cost, delivery times for some components and raw materials take time. It takes two to three years to make so-called “complex” munitions, like a missile.
Source: BFM TV
