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Thales UK welcomes contract signature for new aircraft carriers

03 July 2008

Defence Secretary Des Browne said in a Written Ministerial Statement: "This is a historic day for everyone in defence. The two aircraft carriers will provide our forces with the world-class capabilities they will need over the coming decades. They will support peace-keeping and conflict prevention, as well as our strategic operational priorities.

Today's contract signing seals the future for thousands of jobs, and ensures that we will have a Royal Navy fit for the 21st century."

Commenting on today's MoD announcement Alex Dorrian, CEO Thales UK, says: "This is tremendous news for Thales UK, representing the most important step forward so far in this hugely significant programme. This means that the Aircraft Carrier Alliance, of which Thales UK is a founding partner, can now begin construction of these ships. We are proud to have been involved from the very early stages in the design of what will be the Royal Navy's largest and most powerful warships.

"Within the Alliance of MoD and industry, Thales UK is responsible for leading the platform design, power and propulsion and aviation teams. Thales is also working with BAE Systems in delivering the CVF's mission systems, including the development and manufacture of the communications element. In the longer term, the company is committed to playing a full role in supporting the carriers in service."

The Thales UK-led CVF design and procurement teams are based in Bristol. Our Crawley-based naval communications business will be responsible for the communications aspects.

The carriers will provide our front-line forces with the modern, world-class capabilities they will need over the coming decades. The work on the carriers will create or sustain 10,000 jobs across UK at the peak of its production.

Notes to editors:

Thales UK's Bristol-based design office: Here a team of currently 200+ naval architects, CAD modelling experts, marine engineers and aviation specialists have worked on the CVF design since 1998.

Thales UK's Crawley-based naval communications business: Here a team of around 40 systems engineers work on a number of significant warship programmes for the Royal Navy, including CVF and the Type 45 destroyer.

About Thales and Thales UK

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 2007 revenues in excess of £8.3 bn.

Thales UK employs 9,000 staff based at more than 50 locations. In 2007 Thales UK's revenues were over £1.2 bn.