VIGIL CONSILIUM
Context, not headlines
PUBLIC ALPHAEvolving coverage — see the methodology and the corrections log.
Equipment Catalogue · Shared across conflicts

VAB

Force Atlas / Equipment / VAB

Recognition context, not a stat sheet. The catalogue covers major publicly documented systems relevant to the conflicts Vigil covers — not an exhaustive order of battle. No quantities, availability or current allocations are recorded. See the methodology.
Armoured personnel carrier

VAB

The French infantry’s wheeled workhorse throughout Serval and Barkhane.

Historical / withdrawnEvidence: Documented
Silhouette · not to scale

Record

FamilyVAB
VariantsVAB 4x4
OriginFrance
EraFrench service since 1976; Mali 2013–2022
Appears inMali (Serval / Barkhane, historical)

Conflict relevance

This is the catalogue's single record for this system. It is relevant to the module below; each module's Force Atlas shows how it is used there.

Mali · Force Atlas

Operators

France · Historical operator

Battlefield role

The French intervention's standard troop carrier: VABs moved infantry across the vast distances of Serval's dash north and Barkhane's corridor patrols, where protection against mines and ambush mattered more than firepower.

Limitations

An ageing design with limited mine protection by MRAP standards; its relevance to the module is historical — it left with the French withdrawal in 2022.

Branch & service operators

Related key events

11 Jan 2013Campaign link

Launch of Operation Serval

After a jihadist column pushes south toward Sévaré and the road to Bamako, France intervenes at Mali's request with airstrikes and a rapid ground force.

PartialConfidence: highStatus as of 2022-08Reviewed 2026-07-19Sources: Established historical recordMethodology