Alan Dron
Aerospace and electronics group Meggitt comes to the Show having increased its presence in the uninhabited air vehicle (UAV) market with the April acquisition of Houston, Texas-based S-TEC Unmanned Technologies (SUTI).The deal to acquire its new US operation is designed to complement Meggitt's existing UAV and towed target capabilities and increase the breadth of its activities in this field. "Our real thrust at Farnborough this year is to promote Meggitt to the aerospace industry as a total systems supplier, whereas previously we could have been viewed as a components supplier," says Terry Timms, managing director of Meggitt Defence Systems. The company's operating units include Meggitt Aerospace Systems and Meggitt Aerospace Equipment, which produce a wide range of equipment from valve technology to solid state cockpit displays.
"In Defence Systems over the past four to five years, we've been assembling a group of companies and products by acquisition and organic development," says Timms. "We do everything now from free-flying or towed targets to scoring systems both electronic and acoustic and offer our customers the ability to go into the field and do a complete turnkey operation.
"Our competitors may have a free-flying target, or a scoring system or a towed target, but not all three," he claims.
The acquisition of S-TEC and SUTI has expanded Meggitt's presence in this field. "We now have our target products in 38 countries around the world. Everybody forecasts that to be a high-growth market, but... I think most people recognise it's yet to fully mature."
The US acquisition brings the Sentry UAV into the Meggitt stable. This has been around for 15 years, says Timms, but always in the US domestic market, where it was sold to "a non-disclosure customer". Meggitt has entered the Sentry in five competitions since acquiring it.
Source: Flight Daily News
