Panhard expands PVP family

Christopher F Foss

Monday, 16 June, 2008

Panhard General Defense (Outdoor Stand C220) is expanding its Petit Véhicule Protégé (PVP) family of protected light vehicles with the PVP/HD (High Density) and PVP/XL (Extra Large). These have been designed to meet emerging requirements for wheeled protected vehicles with a significant increase in volume and payload.
The French Army has already ordered 993 of the original PVP. First production vehicles were handed over earlier this year and 200 are expected to be completed by the end of this year. Production is now running at 15 vehicles a month.
The baseline PVP normally has a crew of three and a payload of 800kg and is typically used to carry anti-tank teams or is fitted with communications equipment.
Like the standard French Army PVP, the new PVP/HD and PVP/XL have a chassis to which the armoured body is attached. The protection level of the PVP depends on customer requirements. The French Army PVP has a protection level in excess of STANAG 4569 Level 2; the PVP/HD has Level 3 and the PVP/XL Level 4.
The current production French Army PVP has an internal volume of 4.5m3; the PVP/ HD has 6.5m3 and the PVP/XL has an internal volume of 8 to 11m3, depending on the version.
The introduction of these members to the PVP family has enabled Panhard General Defense to offer a complete family of 4x4 protected vehicles in the 5-12 tonne gross vehicle weight class.