Thales Sonar Upgrades for Submarines

Thales UK announced that it has been awarded a contract by BAE Systems to upgrade three Trafalgar-class and three Astute-class submarines with the Sonar 2076 Stage 5 system. 

These submarines are currently fitted with the 2076 Stage 4 system. Once all the work is completed, 2076 Stage 5 will be fully deployed across the Royal Navy’s (RN’s) nuclear-powered attack (SSN) submarine fleet.

The Stage 5 Inboard Replacement (Stage 5 IR) contract is the latest in a series of developments to improve the capability, efficiency and through-life cost of the Sonar 2076.

Stage 5 IR achieves the UK Ministry of Defence’s (MoD’s) requirement for reduced through-life costs and the need for rapid capability insertions of new hardware, software functionality and new algorithms to meet the RN’s changing mission requirements.

The upgrade also delivers an open architecture that allows a high degree of commonality with the future Astute and Vanguard-class replacement (Successor) submarines, and supports the MoD’s vision for the evolution of a common sonar and combat system across the RN submarine flotilla.

S2076 Stage 5 is currently being deployed on the first-of-class platform and this is scheduled to complete by the middle of the year. Work on the Stage 5 IR contract will start immediately with equipment procurement and manufacture, with the platform upgrades planned for later this year through to late 2011.

(www.thalesgroup.com/uk)