At DSEI in London, BAE Systems and Thales announced a new stage in their collaboration on Royal Navy submarine sonar, signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that places Thales at the heart of the future enterprise.
Under the proposal, Thales would become the Main Sonar Design Authority and Integrator across the flotilla, consolidating its role in shaping the UK’s underwater warfare capability. The move is framed as an attempt to simplify delivery and accelerate the roll-out of new technology, though the announcement also highlights the challenge of sustaining a sovereign sonar base in a sector that remains highly specialised.
Thales already provides the Sonar 2087 system for surface ships and leads work on submarine sonars.
Paul Armstrong, Managing Director for Underwater Systems at Thales UK, said the deal recognises the stakes in an often invisible domain: “The underwater battlespace is one of the most complex and unforgiving environments in defence, where threats are often unseen but always present. By combining the complementary strengths of Thales and BAE Systems, we are bringing together world-class innovation and proven expertise to deliver cutting-edge sovereign capability for the UK.”
For BAE Systems, the arrangement is intended to bring greater coherence across multiple submarine programmes, including the next generation of attack boats. Henry Parker, Programme Director for Integrated Combat Systems, argued that “this MoU unlocks the opportunity to further improve how we work together across all of our submarine programmes and provides a clear and joint focus in delivering the UK sovereign sonar capability of the future.”
The two companies employ around 500 people in the UK sonar enterprise, with projections that this will rise to more than 660 as the future submarine pipeline gathers pace.
The announcement also comes as the government continues to stress the role of the defence industrial base in both strategic resilience and regional jobs, with Thales pointing to 200 additional staff tied to its sonar work for surface ships.
I have never been very happy about Thales owning these businesses in the UK. I can’t imagine France letting the UK own such sensitive weapons industry sights.