The record
France's armed forces have never used the Defender widely, so Bob Morrison rarely gets to photograph the ones they do run. On the NATO exercise TRIDENT JUNCTURE 2018 he found two consecutively numbered French Defender 110 station wagons from the 6072 series waiting to escort the armoured vehicles shown at the Distinguished Visitors Day more than a hundred kilometres south to rejoin the battlegroup. Their chassis numbers made them model-year 2007 vehicles with the 2402 cc Ford Duratorq Puma engine, betrayed by the convex bonnet. They appeared to be special-to-role conversions: fold-down CONVOI EXCEPTIONNEL boards and three orange beacons on the roof, a fold-back roof board, red and white hatched reflective strips, a spare-wheel rack on the left inside the rear compartment instead of the rear-door spare, and the rear door window plated with a frame to accept a drop-in signboard. The tac sign front and rear included a wagon wheel, the symbol of a Transportation or Movements formation of the Train. How many were converted is not stated in the source.
The registry's model is the Defender 110 station wagon in olive with the Puma bonnet, roof board and beacons, reflective strips, bonnet board, plated rear window and plates from the photographs; the spare is carried inside, so none is shown.
