A wealth of operational experience for Colonel Ledoux
Colonel Simon Ledoux took command of the 54ème régiment d'artillerie in Hyères, succeeding Colonel Xavier Tarot on July 22.
A new chapter has begun for the 54ème régiment d'artillerie (RA) of Hyères. On July 22, a change of command ceremony took place at Quartier Vassoigne, marking the assumption of office by Colonel Simon Ledoux.
He succeeded Colonel Xavier Tarot at the head of this elite French Army unit. The ceremony was presided over by General Marc Galan, commander of the 19ème brigade d'artillerie, to which the regiment has been attached since 2024.
A unique regiment
Created in 1910 and based in Hyères for over forty years, the 54ème RA is a cornerstone of the French defense system. With its 1,000 artillerymen, it is the only surface-to-air artillery regiment in the French Army, positioning itself as the expert in anti-aircraft combat and one of the national reference entities in anti-drone warfare.
Its history, marked by engagements from Verdun to the Sahel, has earned it three citations in army orders.
True to its motto "Croire, Oser, Agir", the regiment is one of the most deployed, with a continuous presence on four continents. Its missions extend from protecting the space center in French Guiana (operations Titan and Harpie) to stabilizing the Middle East in Lebanon (DAMAN mission), as well as defending NATO's eastern flank in Romania (Aigle mission) and participating in the Sentinelle operation on national territory.
A dense track record
Colonel Xavier Tarot's two years at the helm of the 54ème RA were marked by a profound transformation and intense operational activity. Notably, the regiment changed subordination at the end of 2024 to join the new 19ème brigade d'artillerie, integrating into the French Army's new organization aimed at accelerating the intelligence-acquisition-fires loop.
This period was paced by major missions, starting with the protection of the airspace of the Île-de-France region during the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. The regiment also multiplied large-scale exercises (AEGIS, DIODORE 2025, VOLFA AEGIS 2025) to maintain a very high level of readiness.
In parallel, units were deployed to external operational theaters while pursuing a crucial innovation effort in the field of anti-drone warfare and the modernization of its weapons systems, pending the delivery of major new equipment.
A soldier specialized in surface-to-air defense
Colonel Simon Ledoux, the 21st commanding officer of the 54ème RA, brings a wealth of operational and technical experience. His career began in 2001 as a non-commissioned officer in transmissions before joining the Académie Militaire de Saint-Cyr Coëtquidan in 2005 to become an artillery officer, specializing in surface-to-air defense.
He knows the regiment well, having already served there as chief of the operations and instruction office between 2022 and 2024. Deployed multiple times on operations, he commanded, prior to his appointment, the 64th class of the Ecole militaire interarmes.
Colonel Simon Ledoux is a Chevalier of the Légion d'honneur, an Officer of the Ordre national du Mérite, and holds the Croix de la Valeur militaire. He is married and has three children.
Article from the print edition of La Gazette du Var