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Thales and SABCA selected for French Alphajet upgrade

28 January 2008

Neuilly-sur-Seine, 28 January 2008 – In partnership with Belgium-based aerospace company SABCA (part of the Dassault Group), Thales has been selected by the French defence procurement agency (Délégation Générale pour l’Armement) of the French Ministry of Defence to upgrade the avionics on 20 Alphajet trainer aircraft operated by the French Air Force.

The contract is worth around 20 million euros and calls for integration by SABCA of an avionics suite developed by Thales. The suite comprises a head-up display (HUD) in the front cockpit, a head-up repeater in the rear seat, a Totem 3000 inertial/GPS navigation system as well as associated screens and control panels.

This upgrade will give France a highly advanced training system to prepare pilots at the French-Belgian flight training school in Cazaux, southwest France, for the Rafale and other latest-generation aircraft. More than 40 Alphajet trainer aircraft may be deployed at Cazaux, making it a unique facility for European cooperation.

This success is a further endorsement of Thales's proven capabilities in the upgrade of military aircraft avionics, including all navigation and display functions. It also confirms SABCA's capabilities in aerospace.

About Thales
Thales is a leading international electronics and systems group, addressing defence, aerospace and security markets worldwide. Thales' leading-edge technology is supported by 22,000 R&D engineers who offer a capability unmatched in Europe to develop and deploy field-proven mission-critical information systems. To this end, the group's civil and military businesses develop in parallel and share a common base of technologies to serve a single objective: the security of people, property and nations. The group builds its growth on its unique multi-domestic strategy based on trusted partnerships with national customers and market players, while leveraging its global expertise to support local technology and industrial development. Thales employs 68,000 people in 50 countries with forecast 2007 revenues in excess of €12 billion.