Thales IFF systems selected for French Navy vessels
Thales’ Identification friend or foe (IFF) equipment will be installed on the French Navy's Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier and the two French Horizon-class frigates under contracts awarded by the French Defence Procurement Agency (DGA).
The equipment – part of Thales' BlueGate product family - was selected by DCNS for the vessels, to overcome the limitations of the systems currently in use.
The IFF system will provide the vessels with an effective Mode 5/Mode S capability. The upgrade to the latest NATO IFF standard will enable the warships to perform military missions with advanced levels of security, dependability and integrity (Mode 5), and better identify civil aircraft (Mode S).
The BlueGate IFF system was tested and validated during the international Bold Quest exercise in June 2013 in the US. The exercise provided the opportunity to demonstrate BlueGate's interoperability with allied systems.
Hervé Derrey, vice president for Thales's Radiocommunications business, said: 'We are delighted that DCNS has once again decided to work with Thales to equip these vessels. Thales offers a fully validated long-range Mode 5 / Mode S IFF system that is perfectly tailored to the French Navy's requirements. This latest success is a further endorsement of Thales's BlueGate IFF products and their exceptional performance, demonstrated during the Bold Quest exercise last year, and the ability of our identification systems to meet the operational requirements of the world's leading naval forces, including the navies of NATO member states.'
Thales’ BlueGate IFF systems are already installed on the French Navy's Jean-Bart anti-aircraft frigate and successfully passed Sea Acceptance Tests in October 2013.
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