EFA | |
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The EFA folded into truck. | |
Place of origin | France |
Specifications | |
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Armour | none |
The EFA or Engin de Franchissement de l'Avant (forward crossing apparatus) is a field-deployable river crossing apparatus, used by combat engineers in the French Army. It may either be used as a bridge (deployed in a series), or as a ferry.
Crew:The crew consists of four people:
- 1 head gear
- 1 driver
- 1 pilot
- 1 crewman
The EFA is the heir of the first self-propelled bridging vehicle invented in 1955 by the French military engineer and general Gillois Jean (born in Châteaubriant 1909). Tray Gillois entered service with the French army in 1965. A version modified by EWK was successively adopted by the American, British and German militaries. At the time of its introduction it was able to carry vehicles up to a maximum weight of 25 tons, the current version supports loads of about 50 tons. It takes between 45 and 65 minutes to form a bridge 100 meters long. Tray Gillois avoids the heavy and bulky convoys, barges brought in by road, which are sensitive to enemy attacks. It takes about half a day to create a 100 metre deck.
See also[]
- Bailey bridge
- Pontoon bridge
External links[]
- Description page on the site of the French Ministry of Defence
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The original article can be found at EFA (mobile bridge) and the edit history here.