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Thales to supply Royal Navy with 6th combat management system for T31 frigate program

Thales will provide £70m combat system for Type 31 Photo: Babcock

The UK defense ministry and Thales have agreed on a £70 million contract to equip the Royal Navy with the T31 mission system’s sixth ship-set.

The installation will take place at Portsdown Technology Park, the designated shore integration facility of the Royal Navy.

The purpose of the facility is to enable Royal Navy personnel on board the advanced Type-31 frigates to safely and effectively utilize the mission systems and equipment, which will be installed on all five vessels.

The sixth Type 31 ship will be equipped with simulators for testing and improvement. This is a critical part of the Type 31 capability insertion project, allowing integration into the Royal Navy fleet. Thales will join Naval Combat Systems Integration Support Services (NCSISS) and MoD’s Maritime Combat Systems (MCS) teams in Portsmouth, supporting integration, trials, and demonstrations to ensure operational readiness.

“This contract award demonstrates the commitment of Thales to growing our above water systems business in the UK. It also creates and sustains skilled engineering roles, supporting our ambition to create careers and investment for UK prosperity,” said Alex Cresswell, CEO and chairman, Thales in the UK.

Since being selected to provide the combat systems in 2019 for the new Type 31 frigates, Thales has established a new business line in Crawley. The business was officially established in 2021 and now has over 60 employees in the UK. This contract award has led to the creation and sustainment of 30 roles.

Announced on May 9, this is the first contract for Thales in the UK’s new above water systems business line.