Scorpion to aid Rafale mission effectiveness
Rafale aircraft in French service with receive new helmet-mounted sights and multifunction cockpit displays. (Photo: Thales)
DGA orders new helmet-mounted pilot sights and multifunction displays from Thales for Rafale multirole fighters.
Thales is providing new avionics equipment for Dassault Rafale fighter aircraft in service with the French Air and Space Force and French Navy.
The company announced on 22 July that it will supply 350 Scorpion helmet-mounted sight and display systems and 400 digital multifunction displays (MFDs) under a contract from French defence procurement agency DGA.
The value of the deal was undisclosed.
‘This new equipment will further enhance the operational effectiveness of the Rafale F4 standard,’ Thales noted, adding that the Scorpion systems and MFDs will ‘deliver enhanced tactical situational awareness and slave the weapon or mission systems to the pilot’s line of sight to improve the effectiveness of air operations’.
The 400 digital multi-function displays on order will replace lateral displays on in-service French Rafale aircraft. The new equipment offers a larger display area, an improved touchscreen interface and greater processing power.
With its display symbology, Scorpion blends diverse information from onboard sensors. ‘Coupled with the weapon system, the display can be used to designate and track targets anywhere in the crew’s field of view in daylight and at night,’ Thales claimed.
Related Equipment in Defence Insight
More from Air Warfare
-
![AI-controlled F-16s advance towards autonomous multi-aircraft operations in US]()
AI-controlled F-16s advance towards autonomous multi-aircraft operations in US
The US plans to progressively expand VENOM/AIR testing from single-aircraft flights to multi-platform autonomous operations over the next 12–24 months, generating data that could support future US military AI programmes, including Collaborative Combat Aircraft.
-
![AIM-260 JATM deal puts Australia’s missile-industrial ambitions in focus]()
AIM-260 JATM deal puts Australia’s missile-industrial ambitions in focus
While a potentially accelerated acquisition timeline could strengthen the RAAF’s long-range air combat capability, Canberra’s continued reliance on US missile production is also put under the spotlight in parallel to its push to build a sovereign industry.
-
![Attack drones versus CUAS – the future of warfare or just another trend?]()
Attack drones versus CUAS – the future of warfare or just another trend?
Demand signals for counter-drone technology are strong and the market is becoming crowded, but is this really the beginning of a new phase of warfare or will commentators be talking about something else 10 years from now?
