With a rich legacy of over six decades in India, Thales has been contributing to the development of the country in the fields of defence, aerospace and ground transportation (railways and metros).The company has been supporting the Indian armed forces by offering full scope of its defence expertise and experience.
Local co-operation
Over the years, Thales has formed various co-operative partnerships with public and private sector industries. The company has a long and successful working association with Bharat Electronics Ltd (BEL). The JV ‘BEL-Thales Systems Ltd (BTSL)’ is a fine example of this association. In March 2016, Thales and BTSL signed a partnership agreement for the joint development of the PHAROS fire control radar that will cater to both domestic Indian and international market requirements. The development works for PHAROS is well on track. The company also has a JV with Samtel for military avionics and airborne sensor systems, and with L&T Technology Services for avionics software.
Stephane Lavigne, VP S&M – India, Thales
Further reinforcing the company’s commitment to the country, Thales has also been liaising with Indian private sector including large players, SMEs and MSMEs to build transfer of technology and supply chain partnerships.
Significant milestone: Rafale
One of the recent milestones for Thales is the selection of the Rafale omni-role aircraft to meet India’s air combat requirements.
Thales, a member of the Rafale team alongside Dassault Aviation, provides a number of state-of-the-art equipment and systems onboard the Rafale. These include the RBE2 AESA radar, the Spectra electronic warfare system, optronics, the communication navigation and identification system (CNI), the majority of the cockpit display systems, power generation systems and a logistics support component.
Another major success has been the Mirage 2000 upgrade programme where the company has been jointly collaborating with Dassault Aviation. Four upgraded Mirage 2000 aircraft have been delivered to the Indian Air Force. The rest of the fleet is being upgraded under the responsibility of Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) with the support of Dassault Aviation and Thales teams as per the contract.
Thales strategy of developing its industrial footprint in India is in line with the Indian government’s policy of “Make in India” and of developing the defence base of the country.
Thales and HAL have had a long-term association, working closely together for over 50 years now.
Growing with universities
With a view to foster an ecosystem for research and consequently secure innovations for tomorrow, Thales has been collaborating with top ranked academic institutions. The company signed a Memorandum of Understanding with IIT Delhi in September 2016 to create a PhD fellowship programme. Thales has formed similar partnerships with the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore and IIT Bombay too.
Thales strategy of developing its industrial footprint in India is in line with the Indian government’s policy of “Make in India” and of developing the defence base of the country. The company looks forward to strengthening its presence in the country by continuing to collaborate with the local industry.
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