USAF orders Thales landing systems

Thales has been awarded an order from the US Air Force (USAF) for three Deployable-Instrument Landing Systems (D-ILS) for military airfield environments, the company announced on 9 November.

D-ILS is a mobile system that can be set up, activated, broken down and relocated quickly to provide precision guidance capability to aircraft on final approach in airfields. 

According to the company, the Thales D-ILS offers greater supportability, maintainability and reliability than the legacy precision approach radar deployable systems, with capabilities equivalent to a fixed-based instrument landing system at fixed bases and tactical airfields. 

The order is part of an August 2015 D-ILS contract announcement. It includes the setting up of a production line at the Thales site in Clarksburg, Maryland. The Clarksburg manufacturing facility will be modified by Thales to manufacture up to one system per month from 2017.