The AMX-10 RC is a French

armoured fighting vehicle An armoured fighting vehicle (British English) or armored fighting vehicle (American English) (AFV) is an armed combat vehicle protected by vehicle armour, armour, generally combining operational mobility with Offensive (military), offensive a ...

manufactured by

Nexter Systems KNDS France (formerly known as Nexter, GIAT Industries or ''Groupement des Industries de l'Armée de Terre'', Army Industries Group) is a French Government-owned corporation, government-owned arms industry, weapons manufacturer, based in Versaill ...

for

armoured reconnaissance Armoured reconnaissance also Combat reconnaissance vehicle is the combination of terrestrial reconnaissance with armoured warfare by soldiers using tanks and wheeled or tracked armoured reconnaissance vehicles. While the mission of reconnaissan ...

purposes. Equipping French

cavalry Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from ''cheval'' meaning "horse") are groups of soldiers or warriors who Horses in warfare, fight mounted on horseback. Until the 20th century, cavalry were the most mob ...

units since 1979,https://imagesdefense.gouv.fr/fr/remise-du-premier-vehicule-amx-10-rc-au-2e-rh-regiment-de-hussards-a-sourdun-par-yvon-bourges-ministre-de-la-defense.html over 240 remained in service with the

French Army The French Army, officially known as the Land Army (, , ), is the principal Army, land warfare force of France, and the largest component of the French Armed Forces; it is responsible to the Government of France, alongside the French Navy, Fren ...

in 2021 when replacement by EBRC Jaguar gradually started. 108 units were sold to

Morocco Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It has coastlines on the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to Algeria–Morocc ...

and 12 to

Qatar Qatar, officially the State of Qatar, is a country in West Asia. It occupies the Geography of Qatar, Qatar Peninsula on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in the Middle East; it shares Qatar–Saudi Arabia border, its sole land b ...

. "RC" stands for "''Roues-Canon''", meaning "wheels-gun", as it is 6-wheeled and armed with a

105 mm calibre 105 mm (4.1 in) is a common NATO-standard artillery and tank gun calibre. The rifled tank round is defined by STANAG 4458. The artillery round is defined by AOP-29 part 3 with reference to STANAG 4425. Artillery Since the early 21st century, mos ...

gun. Newspapers and officials have often incorrectly referred to it as a "char léger" (''light

tank A tank is an armoured fighting vehicle intended as a primary offensive weapon in front-line ground combat. Tank designs are a balance of heavy firepower, strong armour, and battlefield mobility provided by tracks and a powerful engine; ...

''). The AMX-10 RC is distinct from the amphibious

AMX-10P The AMX-10P is a French amphibious infantry fighting vehicle. It was developed from 1965 onwards to replace the AMX-VCI in the French Army. It served with the French Army from its introduction in 1973 until its retirement in 2015, when it was fu ...

: they both have a waterproof welded aluminum chassis and share automotive components, but have completely different battlefield roles. The AMX-10 RC is usually used for reconnaissance missions in dangerous environments or for fire support.

Design and development

Initial work on the AMX-10 RC began in 1970, derived of the

. Prototypes testing began in 1976. The first production vehicle was delivered in 1979 to the 2nd ''Regiment de Hussards'' in

Sourdun Sourdun () is a commune in the Seine-et-Marne department in the Île-de-France region in north-central France. Demographics Inhabitants of Sourdun are called ''Sourdunois''. See also *Communes of the Seine-et-Marne department The following ...

. The vehicle features a powerful GIAT 105 mm gun mounted in a welded aluminum turret. The TK 105 turret houses three crew members, while the driver sits in the front of the hull. A COTAC

fire control system A fire-control system (FCS) is a number of components working together, usually a gun data computer, a Director (military), director and radar, which is designed to assist a ranged weapon system to target, track, and hit a target. It performs th ...

is provided for gun aiming. It has a six wheel drive. The AMX-10 RC uses skid steering to turn the hull.

Engine

The AMX-10 RC initially used the

Hispano-Suiza Hispano-Suiza () is a Spanish automotive company. It was founded in 1904 by Marc Birkigt and as an automobile manufacturer and eventually had several factories in Spain and France that produced luxury cars, aircraft engines, trucks and weapons. ...

HS 115-2, multi-fuel, liquid-cooled, supercharged V8 engine with at 3,200 rpm. In 1985, the Baudouin 6F11 SRX supercharged

diesel engine The diesel engine, named after the German engineer Rudolf Diesel, is an internal combustion engine in which Combustion, ignition of diesel fuel is caused by the elevated temperature of the air in the cylinder due to Mechanics, mechanical Compr ...

was selected to equip the last production AMX-10 RC vehicles as a production cut-in, as well as for eventual retrofit to all AMX-10 RC vehicles of the French Army. This engine has , but governed at at 3,000 rpm in the French army. A 24 volt electrical system with six 12-volt/100-ampere-hour batteries is standard. Two waterjets are used for water propulsion, mounted on each side of the hull at the rear.

Transmission

The AMX-10 RC vehicles use an unspecified preselector gearbox with four forward and four reverse gear ratios. The clutch is electro-magnetically operated and the gearbox is fitted with a torque converter. A power take-off unit operates the two waterjets. The AMX-10 RC is skid steered and can perform a pivot turn.

Suspension and running gear

The 6x6 AMX-10 RC is fitted with a hydropneumatic suspension system with variable ground clearance and tilt, provided by Messier Auto-Industry. A centralized lubrication and tire inflation system is fitted. A shock damper is mounted at each wheel station.

Armament

French Army AMX-10 RC armored vehicle prepares to fire during exericse

The AMX-10 RC is fitted with a 105/47 F2 MECA 105 mm medium-pressure gun, mounted in a GIAT Industries TK 105 three-man turret. The F2 cannon fires 105×527R proprietary ammunition. The turret uses a SAMM CH49 electrohydraulic gun control system. No stabilization system is fitted. An ANF1 7.62 mm machine gun is mounted coaxially to the main armament. Two electrically operated smoke grenade launchers are mounted on each side of the turret. 38 main-gun rounds, 4,000 rounds of 7.62 mm ammunition, and 16 smoke grenades are carried. The F2 105 mm medium-pressure rifled gun fires four types of 105×527R ammunition: OFL 105 F3

APFSDS Armour-piercing fin-stabilized discarding sabot (APFSDS), long dart penetrator, or simply dart ammunition is a type of kinetic energy penetrator ammunition used to attack modern vehicle armour. As an armament for main battle tanks, it succeeds arm ...

, OE 105 F3 HE, OCC 105 F3 HEAT-FS and the BSCC 105 F3 target practice round. The APFSDS, which uses the penetrator from the GIAT OFL 90 F1 mm APFSDS round, is capable of defeating a NATO single heavy tank target at a range of 1,200 metres and the NATO triple heavy tank target at a range of 2,200 metres. The AMX-10 RC has been upgraded many times. The DIVT-13 LLTV was replaced by using DIVT-16, 18 and 19 CASTOR thermal sights taken from decommissioned AMX-30B2 MBTs. For the 1991

Gulf War , combatant2 = , commander1 = , commander2 = , strength1 = Over 950,000 soldiers3,113 tanks1,800 aircraft2,200 artillery systems , page = https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-PEMD-96- ...

, the AMX-10 RC was provided with extra-high-hardness steel add-on armour and an EIREL infrared jammer. The original muzzle brake was replaced by a more efficient one, with a 10% recoil reduction, after the introduction of the OFL 105 F3 APFSDS in 1987. The flotation barrier and the water pump jets were removed, with their intakes sealed. The AMX-10 RCR introduced a FINDERS C2R battlefield management system. One improvement considered, but not implemented, was the installation of the TML 105 modular light turret, armed with a more powerful 105 mm G2 high-pressure gun, as the F2 gun was not compatible with NATO munitions. A central tire inflation system is available for added traction over soft terrain. The AMX-10 RC is equipped with an

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...

(Nuclear/Biological/Chemical) protection system and may conduct reconnaissance in

radioactive Radioactive decay (also known as nuclear decay, radioactivity, radioactive disintegration, or nuclear disintegration) is the process by which an unstable atomic nucleus loses energy by radiation. A material containing unstable nuclei is conside ...

environments.

AMX-10 RCR modernisation

In 2010, Nexter completed the modernisation of 256 AMX-10 RC vehicles to the RCR (''Rénové''; renovated) configuration. This programme integrated various systems and additional armour, active self-protection by

SAGEM SAGEM (, translated as "Company of General Applications of Electricity and Mechanics") was a French company involved in defense electronics, consumer electronics, and communication systems. Founded in 1924, SAGEM initially specialised in mechani ...

, LIRE (''Leurre InfRarougE'', infrared flare), the SIT (''Système d'Information Terminal'') V1 battlefield management system, Galix smoke grenade launchers, changes in the

NBC protection Chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear defense (CBRN defense) or Nuclear, biological, and chemical protection (NBC protection) is a class of protective measures taken in situations where chemical, biological, radiological, or nuclea ...

and improvements in the suspension. Speed gearboxes and tactical communications were completed with Thales Communications & Security PR4G VS4. The integration was done by DCMAT (''Direction Centrale du Matériel de l'Armée de Terre'', Land Army Central Matèriel Directorate).

Variants

* AMX-10 RC: initial production model with amphibious capability. * AMX-10 RC ''surblindé'' (uparmored): fitted with add-on armor and without amphibious capability. * AMX-10 RCR ''revalorisé'' (upgraded)

Prototypes

* AMX-10 RTT: APC version. * AMX-10 RAC: fitted with the TS 90 turret armed with a 90 mm gun. * AMX-10 RAA:

AAA AAA, Triple A, or Triple-A is a three-letter initialism or abbreviation which may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Gaming * AAA (video game industry) - a category of high budget video games *'' TripleA'', an open source wargame Mu ...

version first presented at

Eurosatory Eurosatory is the largest international exhibition for the land and air-land defence and security industry. It is held every two years in the Paris-Nord Villepinte Exhibition Centre, Paris, France. In 2022, it gathered over 1,700 exhibitors and ...

in 1981. It featured a large turret armed with two 30 mm autocannons. * AMX-10 RC with TML 105: AMX-10 RC fitted with the ''Tourelle Modulaire Légère'' (Light Modular Turret) featuring a stabilized G2 high-pressure 105 mm gun, GALIX launchers and new sights. A two-man configuration with a bustle-mounted autoloader was available as an option.

Operational history

The French army's AMX-10 RC has been deployed to many theaters of operation since it was introduced, including the

First Gulf War The Gulf War (1990–1991) was an armed conflict between Iraq and a multinational military coalition led by the United States, triggered by the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait in August 1990. Persian Gulf War may also refer to: * Shatt al-Arab conflict ...

, the

War in Afghanistan War in Afghanistan, Afghan war, or Afghan civil war may refer to: *Conquest of Afghanistan by Alexander the Great (330 BC – 327 BC), the conquest of Afghanistan by the Macedonian Empire * Muslim conquests of Afghanistan, a series of campaigns in ...

, in

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, Kosovo, and Ivory Coast. During the

Russo-Ukrainian War The Russo-Ukrainian War began in February 2014 and is ongoing. Following Ukraine's Revolution of Dignity, Russia Russian occupation of Crimea, occupied and Annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation, annexed Crimea from Ukraine. It then ...

, the AMX-10 RC saw action in the

2023 Ukrainian counteroffensive In early June 2023, during the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Ukraine launched a Counter-offensive, counteroffensive against Russian forces Russian-occupied territories of Ukraine, occupying its territory with a goal of breaching the front lines ...

in Zaporozhia. First promised in January 2023, they entered Ukrainian service four months later with the 37th Marine Brigade. Ukrainian crews underwent a month of training in France to learn how to operate the vehicle. On 2 July 2023, amid the Ukrainian counteroffensive, it was reported that although they are good for fire support, the lack of a stabiliser for the main gun and their light armour made them unsuitable for

frontal assault A frontal assault is a military tactic which involves a direct, full-force attack on the front line of an enemy force, rather than to the flanks or rear of the enemy. It allows for a quick and decisive victory, but at the cost of subjecting the a ...

s. In one instance, fragments from 152mm artillery shells exploding nearby were able to pierce the armour, causing the stored ammunition to explode, destroying the vehicle and killing the crew of four. French military experts had warned that the AMX-10 RC was useful in providing fire support and for exploiting gaps in the frontline, but that it was not designed to cope with modern anti-tank weaponry or to be used as a substitute for

main battle tanks A main battle tank (MBT), also known as a battle tank or universal tank or simply tank,Ogorkiewicz 2018 p222 is a tank that fills the role of armour-protected direct fire and maneuver in many modern armies. Cold War-era development of more po ...

. The vehicle can also have problems with its gearbox if used for prolonged periods on hard roads. One AMX-10 RC was captured by forces of the Russian Federation and displayed in a military exhibit in Moscow on 15 August 2023. According to Oryx, as of 1 May 2025, 6 of the 38 AMX-10 RCR in Ukrainian service were confirmed lost: three destroyed, two abandoned and one captured by Russian forces.

Operators

* : 6. * : 248 in service in December 2021. * : 198. * : 12. * : 38

Missions

Armoured reconnaissance Armoured reconnaissance also Combat reconnaissance vehicle is the combination of terrestrial reconnaissance with armoured warfare by soldiers using tanks and wheeled or tracked armoured reconnaissance vehicles. While the mission of reconnaissan ...

* Armoured support * Flanking security

References

External links

Video of AMX-10 RC firing

Giat-industries.fr

Armour.ws

Ixarm.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Amx-10 Rc Armoured cars of France Fire support vehicles Military vehicles introduced in the 1980s Reconnaissance vehicles of the Cold War Six-wheeled vehicles Tank destroyers of France Wheeled reconnaissance vehicles Wheeled amphibious armoured fighting vehicles