The ERC was originally a private venture by
Panhard aimed at the export market. It was developed in the latter half of the 1970s as a heavier, six-wheeled successor to Panhard's highly successful
AML range of armoured vehicles.
Design The ERC and VCR are a family of six wheel armoured reconnaissance vehicles. The ERC is the cannon-armed turret model. The
VCR is the armoured personnel carrier version. ERC is the French abbreviation of term
Engin à Roues, Canon or Gun-armed Wheeled Vehicle. The ERC shares many components of the VCR vehicles. Two main versions of the ERC were developed: first the ERC F1 90
Lynx, then the ERC F4 90
Sagaie. The
Lynx appeared about 1977 and the
Sagaie followed approximately two years later in 1979. The
Lynx was developed primarily as an armoured reconnaissance vehicle. The
Sagaie was also an armoured reconnaissance vehicle, with the added secondary role of tank-destroyer.
Production history The first production order for the ERC 90 F1
Lynx was in October 1979 from
Argentina, for 36 units, to be used by
Argentine Marines to patrol the long border between Argentina and
Chile. The second large order was from
Mexico, for 42 units in early 1981. Both countries ordered the ERC
Lynx version because it could elevate or depress its 90mm cannon over a wider range for operations in steep mountain terrain. Further export orders followed. Both nations also appreciated the all-terrain mobility of the
Lynx which is enhanced by the capability to raise or lower the central pair of wheels depending on terrain condition, especially in sandy or muddy ground. All versions of the ERC are also equipped with two hydrojets behind the rear wheels and require no preparation for amphibious operations. To make the new FDF "more muscular" a new unit was activated, the 31st Heavy Half Brigade (31 DBL), with two regiments. One regiment was to be armed with vehicles mounting the
HOT wire-guided missile, and the other with cannon-armed vehicles that could provide both reconnaissance and a limited tank-killing role. The French Army had at first planned on equipping the second regiment with the
AMX-10RC, but were told that this vehicle was not suitable for transport by the French Air Force
Transall C-160 or its allies'
Hercules C-130 aircraft, due to size and weight issues. In addition, most of the bridges in Africa had only a 6 to 8 ton load capacity. So instead of the larger AMX-10RC, which was already in service with the French Army, the French Army Staff took the surprise step in December 1980 of ordering the
Sagaie for the future FDF. To date, the
Sagaie has proved very useful for the French Army in its African bases and even in urban conditions during the
Siege of Sarajevo. The last known combat uses of the
Sagaie were with French troops stationed in Ivory Coast on a peace-keeping mission between two rival factions, and in
Mali in 2013.
Sagaie upgrade The French Army has upgraded 160 of its 192 ERC's in service with a diesel
MTU 4-cylinder 170 hp engine, coupled to an automatic gearbox made by Renk and have made enhancements to the turret to improve observation, fire control and command.
ERC-90 Sagaie 2 (twin-engine) A weakness of the Sagaie is its low
power-to-weight ratio. The Sagaie 2 is an ERC, extended with two Peugeot XD 3T four-cylinder turbocharged diesel 98 hp engines, the same engine used on the VBL (Light Armoured Vehicle). Six were ordered by
Gabon. A prototype equipped with two PRV V6 engines was built as a private venture, but none were ordered. ==Variants==