Manufacturer catalog

KNDS France

KNDS France is the French land-defense operating company of KNDS, producing armored vehicles, artillery systems, guns, turrets, ammunition, robotics, and related defense equipment from the former Nexter industrial base.

8 weapons

KNDS France serves as the French pillar of the Franco-German KNDS group. The company says its 4,500-person French workforce designs, develops, produces, and supports land systems for armed forces, with work spanning armored vehicles, artillery systems, guns and turrets, ammunition, robots, and defense equipment.

The company is central to several French land modernization lines. KNDS describes KNDS France as an architect and industrial prime contractor for programs coordinated with the Direction generale de l'armement, including SCORPION vehicles with partners Arquus, Thales, and Texelis, plus renovation work on the Leclerc main battle tank. Its current product context spans artillery, armor, naval remote weapon stations, and ammunition products.

Armored vehiclesArtillery systemsGuns and turretsAmmunitionRobotics and autonomous systemsCustomer support and services

Notable Systems

CAESAR

155 mm truck-mounted howitzer

KNDS presents CAESAR as a 155 mm, 52-caliber wheeled artillery family, and its 2024 results cite CAESAR export orders among the drivers of group order intake.

Sources: CAESAR 6x6, KNDS 2024 annual results

Leclerc tank

Third-generation main battle tank

KNDS France identifies Leclerc renovation as part of its French program work, while the Leclerc XLR product page covers the modernized main battle tank configuration.

Sources: KNDS France official page, Leclerc XLR

Narwhal 20 mm remote-controlled turret

20 mm naval remote weapon station

KNDS describes Narwhal as one of the KNDS France remote weapon station lines associated with the 20M621 cannon and related training systems.

Sources: 20M621 cannon, Remote Control Weapon System Trainer

Manufacturer History

2015
KMW and Nexter form KNDS
KNDS describes the group as the association of Germany's Krauss-Maffei Wegmann and France's Nexter, creating a Franco-German land-defense group with complementary national industrial bases.
Sources: KNDS 2024 annual results
2024-04-08
Nexter Systems becomes KNDS France S.A.
KNDS announced that Nexter Systems S.A. formally changed its legal name to KNDS France S.A. with effect from 8 April 2024 as part of the group's uniform brand identity.
Sources: KNDS legal renaming announcement
2025-03-27
KNDS reports 2024 growth and land-system demand
KNDS reported 2024 sales of 3.8 billion euro, order intake of 11.2 billion euro, and backlog of about 23.5 billion euro, with SCORPION vehicles, Leclerc upgrades, ammunition deliveries, and CAESAR export among cited activity.
Sources: KNDS 2024 annual results

Predecessors

Nexter Systems S.A.GIAT Industries

Website links

KNDS France official page KNDS legal renaming announcement KNDS 2024 annual results CAESAR 6x6 product page Leclerc XLR product page

KNDS France is the current legal name for the former Nexter Systems S.A.; older product literature may still use Nexter or GIAT Industries for the same French land-systems lineage.

Manufacturer Sources

KNDS France official pagePublisher: KNDS Group | Note: Supports the current KNDS France organization, Versailles address, French land-defense role, workforce, product focus, and SCORPION and Leclerc program context. | Accessed: 2026-07-04
KNDS legal renaming announcementPublisher: KNDS Group | Note: Supports the legal renaming of Nexter Systems S.A. to KNDS France S.A. effective 8 April 2024 and the broader group-company name changes. | Accessed: 2026-07-04
KNDS 2024 annual resultsPublisher: KNDS Group | Note: Supports KNDS group ownership context, 2024 sales, order intake, backlog, product range, and cited activity for CAESAR export, SCORPION vehicles, Leclerc upgrades, and ammunition deliveries. | Accessed: 2026-07-04
CAESAR 6x6Publisher: KNDS Group | Note: Supports CAESAR as a KNDS 155 mm 52-caliber artillery product family and notable system. | Accessed: 2026-07-04
Leclerc XLRPublisher: KNDS Group | Note: Supports the Leclerc XLR as a KNDS modernized main battle tank configuration connected to the Leclerc catalog record. | Accessed: 2026-07-04
20M621 cannonPublisher: KNDS Group | Note: Supports the 20M621 cannon and KNDS France mount lines including NARWHAL, POD NC621, SH20, THL20, P20, and ARX20. | Accessed: 2026-07-04
Remote Control Weapon System TrainerPublisher: KNDS Group | Note: Supports Narwhal as a KNDS France remote-controlled weapon station line referenced by the company's RCWS training product. | Accessed: 2026-07-04
KNDS logo Wikimedia CommonsPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports image provenance and public-domain text-logo status for the KNDS logo used on the KNDS France manufacturer page. | Accessed: 2026-07-04

Produced weapons

CAESAR, 155 mm truck-mounted howitzer, Artillery

2014 Russia-Ukraine War, 2012 Mali War +2 moreCAESAR155 mm truck-mounted howitzerBuilt in: FranceCAESAR is a French 155 mm/52-caliber truck-mounted howitzer family fielded in 6x6, protected Mk2, and 8x8 configurations. Its rapid displacement, NATO 155 mm ammunition compatibility, and guided-projectile options made it a widely exported mobile artillery system documented in Ukraine, Mali, Yemen, and coalition operations against the Islamic State.

20mm GIAT M621 autocannon, French 20x102 mm gas-operated autocannon, Infantry Weapons

20mm GIAT M621 autocannonFrench 20x102 mm gas-operated autocannonBuilt in: FranceThe GIAT M621, now marketed by KNDS France as the 20M621, is a compact French 20x102 mm autocannon used as the gun core for light vehicle, helicopter, aircraft-pod, and naval mounts. Official KNDS material describes it as a gas-operated cannon with electrical priming, 250 daN recoil, 49 kg weapon weight, and integration across SH20, NC621, THL20, Narwhal, P20, and ARX20 mount families.

Bofors 155mm BONUS munition, 155 mm artillery-launched, fire-and-forget anti-armor munition, Munitions

2014 Russia-Ukraine War, 2014 War Against the Islamic StateBofors 155mm BONUS munition155 mm artillery-launched, fire-and-forget anti-armor munitionBuilt in: Sweden / FranceBONUS is a Swedish-French 155 mm artillery projectile that ejects two sensor-fuzed submunitions over an armor target area. BAE Systems describes it as a fire-and-forget round compatible with most existing 155 mm artillery guns, while conflict reporting documents French use against Islamic State vehicles and Ukrainian use against Russian armor.

BONUS 155 mm top-attack submunition projectile, 155 mm artillery-launched, fire-and-forget anti-armor munition, Munitions

2014 Russia-Ukraine War, 2014 War Against the Islamic StateBONUS 155 mm top-attack submunition projectile155 mm artillery-launched, fire-and-forget anti-armor munitionBuilt in: Sweden / FranceBONUS is a Swedish-French 155 mm artillery projectile that ejects two sensor-fuzed submunitions over an armor target area. BAE Systems describes it as a fire-and-forget round compatible with most existing 155 mm artillery guns, while conflict reporting documents French use against Islamic State vehicles and Ukrainian use against Russian armor.

20 mm gun pod, Aircraft gun pod, Munitions

20 mm gun podAircraft gun podBuilt in: FranceThe NC621 is a French jettisonable 20 mm aircraft gun pod built by KNDS France around the gas-operated 20M621 cannon. KNDS describes it as a multi-platform pod for helicopters, light aircraft, and drones, with 180 rounds of 20x102 mm NATO ammunition, a 750-round-per-minute firing rate, link-and-case recovery for aircraft integration, and 14-inch NATO attachment points.

Narwhal 20 mm remote-controlled turret, 20 mm naval remote weapon station, Naval Systems

2023 Red Sea CrisisNarwhal 20 mm remote-controlled turret20 mm naval remote weapon stationBuilt in: FranceNarwhal is KNDS France's remotely operated 20 mm naval turret family for close-in ship self-defense and maritime-security roles. Official KNDS and MBDA material describes it as a lightweight day/night system for platforms from small patrol boats to frigates, with 20A and 20B ammunition-standard configurations, more than 180 systems in service, demonstrated Akeron MP missile pods, and a future 30 mm growth direction.

120mm Giat CN120-26, 120 mm L/52 smoothbore tank gun, Tanks

120mm Giat CN120-26120 mm L/52 smoothbore tank gunBuilt in: FranceThe 120mm Giat CN120-26 is the French L/52 smoothbore tank gun built for the Leclerc main battle tank. Forecast International identifies GIAT Industries as the sole-source contractor for the CN-120 F1 program, while Weaponsystems.net lists the gun as a French EFAB de Bourges development with a vertical sliding breech, autoloader feed in the Leclerc installation, NATO 120 mm ammunition compatibility, and more than 800 examples produced.

Leclerc tank, Third-generation main battle tank, Tanks

2014 Yemen Civil WarLeclerc tankThird-generation main battle tankBuilt in: FranceThe Leclerc is a French third-generation main battle tank built around a 120 mm smoothbore gun, autoloader, three-person crew, and high power-to-weight mobility. In the 2014 Yemen Civil War, UAE-operated Leclercs gave coalition forces heavy protected direct fire during armored pushes around Aden, Al Anad, and later western-coast operations.