The links between the French armored vehicle manufacturer Arquus, then Renault Trucks Defense, and PT Pindad, champion of the Indonesian public defense industry, go back 15 years, the two companies having cooperated on programs of 4×4 vehicles, such as the VBL and the Lightweight Sherpa. Eighty vehicles were delivered to the Indonesian army, making the French manufacturer one of the main suppliers of this service. The relationship between the two companies goes far beyond the simple commercial link, since Arquus has supplied powerpacks for vehicles designed and produced in Indonesia such as the Badak 6×6 armored car and the APC 6×6 Anoa, as well as for Komodo 4×4. , which looks quite similar to the Sherpa Light Scout, as well as 4×4 VABs and VBLs, these last three vehicles being supplied by Arquus for a total of around 80 platforms, partly produced locally.

At Indo Defense 2022, Arquus and PT Pindad exhibited the Anoa 3, which is a VAB Mk3 adapted to Indonesian needs by the local manufacturer, the vehicle being displayed on the Defend ID stand, the latter being the Indonesian holding company which includes among others companies also PT Pindad. The Mk3 was developed by Arquus based on the experience gained by the French army in the latest missions and aims to constantly increase protection against ballistic threats, RPGs, mine explosions and improvised explosive devices. Its increase in weight forced it to adopt the 6×6 configuration, the increased efficiency of its power supply allowing it to maintain or even improve its mobility. The version shown at Indo Defense was the armored personnel carrier, although an infantry fighting vehicle version was also available, along with other specialized versions, due to the vehicle’s inherent flexibility. This allows easy insertion of ad hoc subsystems, such as those added by PT Pindad to better meet the requirements of the Indonesian military, to whom the vehicle is offered.

The proposal of PT Pindand and Arquus is the concretization of the Memorandum of Understanding signed on June 14^e, 2000 at Eurosatory which established a future collaboration between the two companies in ground system platforms for Indonesia. As the agreement states, the two entities have agreed to “transform an exemplary relationship into a formal and larger-scale partnership.” This will cover armored general-purpose vehicles, reconnaissance vehicles, APCs and IFVs, as well as remote-controlled weapon stations produced by Arquus subsidiary Hornet.

Photo courtesy J. Roukoz