Under the Rafale F4 standard development programme, Thales say it will enhance the aircraft’s onboard sensors and improve connectivity.
The improvements will be aimed at enabling greater interconnectivity between the Rafale and other assets deployed on a mission. In a statement, the company said:
“Collaborative combat is now crucial for taking part in coalition operations, countering new types of threats and conducting sovereignty operations.
In particular, Thales will prepare for the introduction of the CONTACT radio; secure, intelligent communications server technology; and a Syracuse IV satellite communications capability.
To ensure high survivability, new threat detection and jamming capabilities will be developed for the aircraft’s SPECTRA electronic warfare system.”
Patrice Caine, Chairman & CEO, Thales, said:
“This contract is a further endorsement by the French Ministry for the Armed Forces of the industrial know-how and advanced technology expertise of French defence contractors.
The Rafale F4 standard’s sensors and communication systems will be a key driver of the shift towards collaborative combat, and Thales’s capabilities in connectivity and artificial intelligence will enable Rafale air crews to make the best choices in every decisive moment.”
Further improvements are to include updates to the air-to-ground mode of the RBE2 active electronic scanning array (AESA) radar. In addition, the TALIOS optronic pod will be updated to incorporate artificial intelligence to analyse tactical data almost instantaneously in flight and extract and identify targets.
