Thales Airborne Systems is finalising workshare on its Sky Master II Airbus A320 airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) aircraft programme and has chosen Air France Industries for a major part of the mission system installation work.
Talks are meanwhile under way with Airbus over the European manufacturer's participation in the project and the provision of design data. Airbus will have to investigate the impact on the A320's handling characteristics of installing a large dorsal-mounted electronically scanned array radar on the forward fuselage, and perform windtunnel tests.
The AEW&C platform will also require a more powerful electrical supply and auxiliary fuel tanks in the cargo hold. "Air France Industries will be a partner working with us, the question is more to finalise the scope of the work," says Thales Airborne Systems AEW&C programmes director Yves Destefanis.
Thales is developing the Sky Master II as a competitor to the Boeing 737AEW&C equipped with Northrop Grumman's MESA radar and Raytheon's Airbus A321-based solution incorporating the Israel Aircraft Industries (IAI) Phalcon radar.
Thales says all the Sky Master II system, including the radar, electronic support measures, communications, command and control and self-protection equipment and satellite communications, can be produced in house, although "we are looking for partners" in specific markets.
The Phalcon airborne early warning system on offer to India is more advanced than that sold to China before USpressure sunk the deal, says Israeli sources. It is understood that the Phalcon's radar will have longer detection and identification ranges and the antenna will have improved transmit/receive modules.Source: Flight International
