Series Production Contract Worth EUR 570 Million Awarded for TAURUS KEPD 350
Unterschleissheim, 08 August 2002
Following the positive decision taken by the German Bundestag on 3 July 2002, the Federal Office for Defence Technology and Procurement (BWB) today awarded the contract worth a total of EUR 570 million to TAURUS Systems GmbH for "production investment, series production and the establishment of logistic supportability" for the precision standoff guided missile system TAURUS KEPD 350. This guided missile system is planned as armament for the German Luftwaffe's combat aircraft Tornado IDS and Eurofighter/Typhoon - the latter in its air-to-ground role.
In the production investment phase, which is to begin before the end of this year, all the equipment required for series production is to be purchased and set up. From mid-2004 up to 2009, a total of 600 missiles are to be delivered. In addition, the scope of the contract covers the manufacture of all logistic equipment and documentation required to bring the missile into operational service and also training courses for personnel. For this purpose a further 14 training missiles are to be built.
"We are proud to have provided the required proofs of functionality for TAURUS KEPD 350 within the extremely short development time of just under five years and - as a consequence - to have received the series contract. Also in the future we wish the trust placed in us by our German customer to be justified and will certainly be a reliable partner to the contract. Thanks to this initial order for 600 missiles and the excellent price/performance ratio we offer, we now have a solid economic base that in future will enable us to also market TAURUS KEPD 350 outside Germany," stated Dr. Wolfgang Blaschke, Managing Director of TAURUS Systems GmbH.
"The production investment and series production contract for the precision standoff missile system TAURUS KEPD 350 is of utmost economic and strategic significance to TAURUS Systems GmbH and EADS/LFK. It makes an important contribution towards the retention of core capacities and key capabilities in the German missile industry. Furthermore, together with other important national orders for TRIGAT LR, METEOR, MEADS and TRIFOM/POLYPHEM that are still pending, it creates a basis from which we can in the future play a serious shaping role in European industrial structures," comments Werner Kaltenegger, Head of the EADS/LFK Business Unit and CEO of LFK-Lenkflugkörpersysteme GmbH.
TAURUS Systems GmbH, which has its registered offices in Schrobenhausen, is the prime contractor with overall system responsibility for TAURUS KEPD 350. It is a subsidiary of LFK, who have a two-thirds stake, and the Swedish company Saab Bofors Dynamics, who have a one-third stake. Further to this, approx. 45 medium-sized companies will be participating in the production investment and series production phases of TAURUS KEPD 350. Contracts are due to be concluded with the subcontractors shortly. A number of companies located in Germany's new Laender are also shortlisted. In all, approx. 700 high-tech jobs will be secured in the medium term through the series production contract for TAURUS KEPD 350
TAURUS KEPD 350 is ideally tailored to meet the operational requirements the Luftwaffe has to fulfil when on out-of-area peacekeeping and peacemaking missions:
* The great deployment range of this guided missile system - over 350 kilometres - ensures that both the crews and their aircraft are protected.
* The precise terrain-following flight with the newly developed navigation system, an important design feature of which is multiple redundancy, opens up various options in military tactics and as well as a range of different mission profiles. Collateral damage to civil facilities in the immediate vicinity of a predefined target is avoided.
* The powerful MEPHISTO warhead with its unique intelligent ignition system PIMPF can be used to effectively combat point targets (such as bunkers, bridges, ammunition depots, aircraft shelters, runways or warships in port) and area targets (such as aircraft on the ground or air defence/antiaircraft installations). In this way the Luftwaffe requirement for a capability to effectively combat a broad spectrum of targets is fulfilled by a single guided missile system. The MEPHISTO warhead was developed under the leadership of TDW Gesellschaft für verteidigungs-technische Wirksysteme, a subsidiary of EADS/LFK.
* The integrated mission planning system enables rapid determination of a flight path that is adapted to the specific threat and ensures a high probability of success. The mission planning data can be transferred without modification into the missile's navigation system.
Thanks to the operational advantages and excellent performance features it offers, TAURUS KEPD 350 is attracting the interest of foreign air forces. Because of the modular concept of TAURUS KEPD 350, it can be excellently adapted to meet changed requirements in the future. In addition to the planned arming of the Tornado IDS and Eurofighter/Typhoon with this missile, integration into other carrier aircraft such as the JAS 39 Gripen, the F-16, the F/A-18, F-111 or P3C is also possible.
EADS/LFK-Lenkflugkörpersysteme GmbH is a Business Unit of EADS and is integrated into the organisational structures of the Defence and Civil Systems Division (DCS). With annual revenues amounting to € 30.8 billion and a workforce of approximately 100,000, EADS European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company is the largest aerospace company in Europe and the Number 2 in the world. EADS business operations cover the civil aeronautics, helicopters, space, military transport and combat aircraft sectors as well as defence technology and services. EADS has a number of holding interests, including 80 percent in Airbus, 75 percent in the space company Astrium, 100 percent in the helicopter manufacturer Eurocopter, 43 percent in the Eurofighter programme and 37.5 percent in the world's second largest guided missile producer MBDA.
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