[7] The Serval under the SCORPION programme will be available in four main variants: VPB (armored patrol vehicle), SA2R (surveillance-target acquisition-intelligence-reconnaissance), NCT (tactical communications node) and GE (electronic warfare).

[3] The Serval VPB, the most common variant, will consist of up to 10 subvariants, most of them comparable to those adopted for the Griffon VTT family: Infanterie (light infantry carrier, notably airborne and mountain infantry), MMP (medium-range missile), EPC (command post), OA (artillery observation), MO81 (81 mm dismounted mortar), MO120 (120 mm towed mortar), GEN (combat engineering), SAN (medical evacuation), RAV (refuelling) and SATCP (dismounted Mistral 3 very short-range surface-to-air missile system).

[12] "Already available, already qualified, already tried and tested in more ways than one", according to the French Army's Technical Section (STAT), the Serval has been chosen to form the "high protected" segment of the VLTP range of vehicles.

[13] Of all the applications envisaged for the Serval, surface-to-air defence and anti-drone warfare are the latest introduced; functions anticipated by the French Army to fill the gap left by its current patchwork of specialized equipment but finally brought to the fore by the 2024-2030 LPM.

The former would have the merit of carrying more powerful sensors, like an X-band radar capable of detecting threats several tens of kilometers away, discriminating appropriately and anticipating more accurately.

Some have deemed the equation rather antithetical to high-intensity warfare, which means maintaining combat capability with disrupted, degraded or possibly even destroyed resources.

[16] Complex and costly, this concept seems to be disappearing in favor of a single vehicle capable of acting autonomously to compensate for any failure in the chain of command, a prime target for an adversary on equal terms.

[17] Development of the ARX 30 remote controlled weapons station benefitted from the work carried on the RapidFire system by Nexter and Thales for the French Navy.

The other concept, soon to be "resurrected", represents the Serval Mistral, which integrates an ATLAS RC remotely-operated turret on the vehicle, thus granting the ability to accompany the advance and carry out fire actions while remaining on board.

The Serval Mistral will carry the entire environment needed to build up complete capabilities, including an X-band radar for detection and a specific command component for deconfliction logics.