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French defense contractor to provide surveillance system for Britain's biggest aircraft carriers

Xinhua, May 23, 2015 Adjust font size:

Britain's Ministry of Defense (MOD) announced Friday it had chosen a new helicopter-borne surveillance system from a French defense contractor to protect the Royal Navy's two future flagship carriers.

The two 65,000-ton carriers, Queen Elizabeth and Prince of Wales, which form the Queen Elizabeth class, are currently under construction. They are described as future flagships for Britain, and will be the largest British warships ever built. The first will start sea trials in 2018.

French multi-national defense contractor Thales was named as the winner of a competition to provide the radar and mission system at the heart of the Crowsnest project, created to act as the Royal Navy's eyes and ears for its next generation aircraft carriers.

The system provides long-range air, maritime and land detection, as well as the capability to track potential threats.

Thales' advanced multi-mode radar and sensor systems have been used in anti-piracy operations in the Indian Ocean, in Iraq and more recently in Afghanistan and also provided crucial airborne surveillance and control for the 2012 Olympic Games in London.

"It is essential our ships and particularly our future aircraft carriers will have the best possible protection. The Crowsnest system onboard our new Merlin Mk2 helicopter will deliver an essential surveillance and intelligence capability, providing early warnings to our personnel of any potential threats," British Defense Procurement Minister Philip Dunne said.

Crowsnest will also support wider fleet and land operations, replacing the Sea King helicopter's Airborne Surveillance and Control capability in use since 1982 and due to be retired in 2018, the MOD said in a statement.

The MOD's prime contractor Lockheed Martin UK will now conclude the project's 27 million pounds (42 million U.S.dollars) assessment phase, expected in 2016, using the Merlin helicopters onto which the Crowsnest system will be fitted.

Crowsnest is part of Britain's future aircraft carrier capability, which, besides the two Queen Elizabeth Class Aircraft Carriers, will deliver fifth-generation Lightning II fast jets to operate from them across the world. Endi