Giat

Giat is a commune in the Puy-de-Dôme department in Auvergne in central France.

Geography

The Chavanon (locally called la Ramade) flows southeastward through the south-western part of the commune.

See also

References

GIAT 30

The GIAT 30 is a series of 30 mm cannon developed to replace the DEFA 550 series weapons on French military aircraft.

Introduced in the late 1980s, the GIAT 30 is a revolver cannon with electric ignition and automatic recocking. Unlike the DEFA cannon, the revolver chamber is electrically operated, rather than gas operated, improving both reliability and rate of fire.

Two versions of the GIAT 30 are offered.

GIAT 30M 781

Primarily intended for helicopter use and offered in several fixed, podded, and turreted installations. It is 1.87 m (6 ft 2 in) long with a total system weight of 65 kg (143 lb). It is designed to fire the ADEN/DEFA 30x113mm B rounds. The weight of the projectile vary from 244 g (8.6 oz) for HEI to 270 g (9.5 oz) for APHEI-SD. Typical muzzle velocity is 810 m/s (2. 657 ft/s) with a rate of fire of 750 rounds per minute.

Given its considerable recoil, it is typically used for single shots or controlled bursts rather than continuous fire. The 30 M781 is used on the Eurocopter Tiger, and is also offered for naval use as part of the NARWHAL (NAval Remote Weapon High Accurate and Light) system.

Nexter Systems

Nexter (formerly known as GIAT Industries or Groupement des Industries de l'Armée de Terre, Army Industries Group) is a French government-owned weapons manufacturer, based in Roanne, Loire.

Group organization

The Nexter group is divided in several smaller entities, with the main one being Nexter Systems. The other sub-companies are :

History

The GIAT group was founded in 1973 by combining the industrial assets of the technical direction of Army weapons of the French Ministry of Defense. The company was nationalized in 1991. On 22 September 2006 GIAT became the core of the new company Nexter.

For many years GIAT struggled to turn a profit. The company was operated at a loss. A 2001 report by the Cour des Comptes and a 2002 report by the National Assembly described the situation as critical. Not until April 2004 did the board of directors present the public with a financial statement showing a profit of several hundred million Euros. This was mainly due to increased export sales, and the modernization of the Leclerc Main Battle Tank (MBT) and several other armored platforms.