Above water warfare

Thales above-water combat systems and radars meet a wide range of needs, from maritime security operations to combat operations.  These mission system solutions perform maritime security operations, surveillance, command and combat functions and support weapon systems from both US and European manufacturers.

In a high intensity Above Water Warfare context, the integration of all sensors provides an higher quality and faster tactical picture which provides more time to detect both hypersonic and supersonic missiles. The  combined use of equipment gives a clear, rapid full situational awareness (air, surface) and increase defense capabilities of the whole task group.

Naval forces are exposed to several different threats with complex behaviours, especially unmanned air and surface vehicles. This means a need for superior air and surface detection, tracking and classification performance, and need to track even the smallest surface target. There is also a need for response to protect Navy vessels against those modern threats.
At Thales we continually evolve and develop our capabilities to be ready for today and tomorrows threats. To counter UAS, we provide solutions from detection to neutralization.

Thales offers a complete range of domain oriented solutions for safety, littoral security, ocean security, point defence, local and wide area defence. The Mission Solutions for ships that operate in the maritime safety and security domain and/or in the defence domain with low intensity conflicts are standardized and pre-integrated. This makes them cost-effective, easy to install, easy to operate and considerably reduces delivery times.
 
Mission Solutions are standard configurations of the TACTICOS Combat Management System, integrated sensors, weapons, communication system and navigation system.

TACTICOS is famous for its reliability and its ability to integrate virtually every sensor and effector. Its massive installed base and the unparalleled track record of integration have ensured a continuous evolution. Its solid legacy has made it the world’s most successful combat management system in service with navies on all continents.

Thales is the leading supplier of multi-function radar systems.

APAR Block 2 is the world’s first naval AESA type radar; its performance has been proven in many live firings trials, with the Evolved Sea Sparrow Missile and Standard Missile. APAR is operational on the Anti Air Warfare frigates of the Netherlands, Germany & Danish Navies.  APAR Blk2 is the new X-band multi-function radar and successor of the proven APAR, the first naval AESA radar. With true digital beam forming and gallium nitride amplifiers, it defends in the highest threat scenarios against the latest evolving threats.

The Sea Fire is a fully digital AESA multifunction radar, equipped with four fixed antenna panels, supporting the ships’ simultaneous defence against threats ranging from conventional to asymmetric or hyper-velocity & highly-maneuvering. It brings moderate size frigates the power & performance of destroyers dedicated to extended air defence with advanced surveillance and fire control capabilities using guns and guidance of the ASTER family of missiles.

Thales can support Navies and shipyards in the design of an integrated mast housing several radar systems, communication antennas, optronic sensors, IFF antenna, satellite dish, etc. in one single structure. The Royal Netherlands Navy Holland class offshore patrol ships and the Joint Support Ship HNLMS Karel Doorman have the Thales designed integrated mast.
The advantages of an Integrated Mast include reduced ship-building times, increased performance, easier maintenance and lower lifecycle costs. The size and configuration of an Integrated Mast can be customized depending on platform and mission requirements.

Thales a wide range of surveillance sensors supporting a wide variety of missions for a wide variety of naval platforms. 

The  Gatekeeper and Artemis panoramic EO surveillance systems provide situation awareness in Color and/or Infrared Spectrum. From the Scout Mk3 with its FMCW technology through the successful SMART-S MK2 radars to the new-generation NS50, NS100, NS200,  SM400 Block 2 and SMART-L MM/N, including fully interoperable and secure IFF solutions, Thales caters for every need.

© Thales ARTEMIS IRST - 360° Naval InfraRed Search and Track system	© Thales NS50

Many navies face a new operational paradigm that requires the detection of a wide variety of objects in a complex above-water environment. This situation presents a challenge to both the onboard picture compilator as well as to radar designer. While targets maneuvering at high speed require the earliest detection, requiring a short observation time, slow-moving air and surface targets, obscured by heavy clutter, require a longer observation time.
 
Presenting a solution to this dilemma, Thales has developed the next generation radar systems, purpose-designed to meet 21st century mission needs: dual axis multi-beam radar. This innovative technology is founded on the flexibility, resolution and accuracy afforded by fully digitised active electronically scanned array (AESA) techniques. This combined with the dual axis multi-beam capability enables detection and tracking of all targets in this large spectrum.
 
Thales’s range of 4D dual axis multi-beam AESA radars includes  NS50, NS100, NS200, SM400 Block 2 and SMART-L MM/N.

4D means accurate and instantaneous indication of azimuth, range, elevation and radial velocity. Accurate measurement of velocity enables the prioritisation of high-speed threats such as anti-ship missiles. Just as important, Doppler measurement provides for the discrimination of low speed/low RCS objects in dense clutter. Furthermore, digital dual axis multi-beam AESA confers an inherent capability for agile look forward/look back beam steering, enabling rapid track initiation and higher track update rates.

In addition to the excellent fire control capabilities of the APAR Block 2 and Sea Fire radars, Thales presents various dedicated fire control sensors. The latest member in the large STIR family is STIR1.2 EO Mk2. Combining radar technology with optronics, this sensor is operational in many modern navies. Mirador Mk2 is a full 100% optronic fire control sensor.  It offers impressive performance  as well as the usual advantages a passive sensor has over a conventional radar. One of our latest developments is the Pharos Multi Target Tracking Radar, capable of Guided Ammunition control.

Thales is realizing the contract with the Royal Netherlands Navy to exchange the SMART-L radar on board of the De Zeven Provinciën class ships for the new SMART-L MM/N radar. The last of four radars will be installed in 2023. The new SMART-L MM/N has an impressive range: up to 2000 km. With the same high resolution as the original version, SMART-L MM/N provides the user with true ballistic missile defence capabilities.
In October 2015 HNLMS De Zeven Provinciën, equipped with a prototype of the new SMART-L MM/N, participated in the At Sea Demo organized by the Maritime Tactical Ballistic Defence Forum, off the coast of Scotland. The Thales radar successfully tracked an outer-atmosphere ballistic missile travelling at 7000 km/h and provided real-time cueing information to a US destroyer that launched a SM-3 to destroy the threat. Simultaneously, SMART-L MM/N engaged and tracked two anti-ship cruise missiles that attacked two ships in the squadron. Two years later, an updated demo version repeated this phenomenal achievement in Formidable Shield. The first SMART-L MM/N that was on the test tower at the Thales site in Hengelo was able to witness the event that took place in the Atlantic Ocean off the Hebrides.
 
The radar / IFF combination will offer a near-instantaneous detection and identification capability against high-velocity threats.

RAPIDFire is a last mile defence against any threat (including Small UAV). It provides high kill probability thanks to an innovative very accurate firing chain. Multi-threat, multi-domain, light & compact

Naval RAPIDFire brings very high efficiency and multi-threat thanks to the integrated firing control suite and a new anti-aerial air burst ammunition, in addition to the large panel of standard ones available (armour piercing, point-detonating, …).

Assets: 

• Saving the number of engagements for the user (the high accuracy of the system makes more engagements available to the user with a given amount of ammunition), or saving money (lower cost per engagement thanks to the accuracy and less ammunition fired).
• ‘Real time’ shooting against any threat thanks to the panel of mixed ammunitions in the magazine, which are automatically recognized by the system. 

Thales EWS customers use its multispectral electronic warfare solutions to detect the enemy well before the enemy can detect them, to optimise tactical situation analysis and to gather critical intelligence. As for its entire range of solutions, Thales EWS leverages systems developed for the latest-generation platforms (in the case of EWS Type 45, Horizon, FREMM, etc.), with the capacity for upgrading solutions for warships already in service.

Thales on-board EWS solutions can be used as stand-alone systems with their own operator interfaces, or they can be integrated into a wide variety of combat management systems. They can also be interfaced to multi-function consoles. Features include modularity, extended frequency ranges, channelized receivers, on-board training systems and intrapulse analysis – available on any system and compatible with widely used commercial, off-the-shelf technologies. This means simply that Thales EWS solutions are effective from day one with any legacy systems and have the capacity of evolving with the needs of each vessel.

Key EWS products include Radar Electronic Support Measures (R-ESM, e.g. Vigile), Radar Electronic Countermeasures (R-ECM, e.g. Scorpion 2), active and passive decoy systems, and complete EWS suites.

Thales also develops, produces and integrates complete and integrates complete Communications EW solutions integrating detection, jamming and decoying meeting user requirements for improved tactical situation assessment and enhanced platform survivability. 

Thales EWS solutions achieve their effectiveness and high performance because they are reinforced by the Electronic Warfare Operational Support, which handles the reference classification on the ground, keeps it updated on a permanent basis and distributes the data to on-board platforms, guaranteeing higher quality intercept classification and leading to the most appropriate counteraction against threats.

The AQUILON  Fully Integrated Communication System developed by Thales is an integrated communications system for surface vessels, submarines and ground centres, offering centralised communications management. It comprises a multi-level secure local IP network providing high-data-rate connections between local users and external communications equipment (modems, terminals, radio, satcom, etc.) and a broad range of services (voice, data, intercom, conferencing, databases, video…).

Get to know more about communication systems and Tactical datalink:

• Link Y Mk2 offers the possibility to exchange tactical data between multiple military platforms: reliable, secure and simple
• TopLink ensures optimal situational awareness and command & control capabilities in increasingly complicated and contested environments.  

Access the press release Damen and Thales to build the german MKS 180 frigate of the future

Thales operates at all levels of the support spectrum offering a complete range of services and support packages to suit specific operational and maintenance requirements. If you want to know more, click here

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