Spain’s Dragón Armored Vehicles Arrive in Almería After Decade of Delays

Almería, Spain – The first 40 VCR 8×8 Dragón armored vehicles arrived this week at the Álvarez de Sotomayor base of the Legion in Almería, following over a decade of delays and an industrial dispute that hampered collaboration among several companies. These Spanish-made vehicles are designed to modernize the Spanish Army’s mechanized infantry. “Thanks to this program, the interoperability of the Spanish Army is improved,” Defense Minister Margarita Robles stated during the delivery ceremony.

The VCR 8×8 Dragón wheeled combat vehicle project was developed by Tess Defence, a consortium comprising four military companies: Indra, which took command of the project in late 2024; Escribano; Santa Bárbara (belonging to General Dynamics, GDELS); and SAPA. The Ministry of Defense tasked the consortium with manufacturing an armored vehicle capable of transporting up to nine people, offering versatility for combat, reconnaissance, and support operations.

Persistent delays ignited an internal conflict among the firms within Tess Defence, marked by mutual accusations. Tensions particularly escalated between Indra and Santa Bárbara, even as the government expressed dissatisfaction over the delays, imposing fines, but refraining from siding with either party. Indra sought to invigorate the project by attempting to purchase GDELS facilities in Asturias. Following a refusal, it opted to acquire El Tallerón from Duro Felguera and reconfigure production.

These operations enabled the delivery of the first operational Dragón vehicles throughout last year. One month later, the Ministry of Defense dispatched the initial 40 units to the Legionnaires in Almería, which arrived this week.

Vehicles like the Dragón combine the offensive capabilities of a conventional main battle tank with the flexibility of a light tank. They serve both for infantry transport and for reconnaissance and support operations. The Dragón vehicles come in various configurations, including infantry combat, recovery, sapper, and reconnaissance and command. They boast a maximum speed of 100 km/h, can navigate a 60% gradient (a road rarely exceeds 20%), and ford areas up to 2 meters in length.

Each vehicle can transport a maximum of nine people: three crew members and a squad of up to six soldiers. In its standard infantry combat design, the VCR features a Bushmaster II cannon redesigned by Escribano and an engine from Sapa. Indra provides the navigation and reconnaissance systems. Santa Bárbara contributes the armored chassis, based on the Piranha V structure.