Thales Air Defence
Encyclopedia
Thales Air Defence Limited, formerly Shorts Missile Systems, is a defence contractor based in Belfast
, Northern Ireland
producing short-range or close air defence missile
s. The company has a turnover of approximately £70m and pre-tax profits of £7m.
Shorts Missile Systems (SMS) was established as a joint venture between Shorts'
owners Bombardier and Thomson-CSF
in 1993. In 2000 Thomson-CSF bought Bombardier's 50% share to become the sole owner. In the same year Thomson-CSF went through a series of mergers and acquisitions to become the Thales Group
, consequently in 2001 Shorts Missile Systems was renamed Thales Air Defence Limited (TADL).
The then Shorts Missile Systems was a partner in Raytheon's
Future Medium Range Air-Air Missile (FMRAAM) project, which was to replace the AIM-120 AMRAAM
missile used by European air forces. In May 2000 the UK selected the MBDA Meteor
to fulfil the requirement.
TADL products have been deployed by 56 armed forces around the world. The company employs around 510 people based in Belfast and Paris
. The company also operates a remote facility in rural County Down
, between Ballynahinch and Downpatrick
where missiles are tested and stored.
Belfast
Belfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...
, Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
producing short-range or close air defence missile
Missile
Though a missile may be any thrown or launched object, it colloquially almost always refers to a self-propelled guided weapon system.-Etymology:The word missile comes from the Latin verb mittere, meaning "to send"...
s. The company has a turnover of approximately £70m and pre-tax profits of £7m.
Shorts Missile Systems (SMS) was established as a joint venture between Shorts'
Short Brothers
Short Brothers plc is a British aerospace company, usually referred to simply as Shorts, that is now based in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Founded in 1908, Shorts was the first company in the world to make production aircraft and was a manufacturer of flying boats during the 1920s, 1930s, and 1940s...
owners Bombardier and Thomson-CSF
Thomson-CSF
Thomson-CSF was a major electronics and defence contractor. In December 2000 it was renamed Thales Group.-History:In 1879 Elihu Thomson and Edwin Houston formed the Thomson-Houston Electric Company in the United States....
in 1993. In 2000 Thomson-CSF bought Bombardier's 50% share to become the sole owner. In the same year Thomson-CSF went through a series of mergers and acquisitions to become the Thales Group
Thales Group
The Thales Group is a French electronics company delivering information systems and services for the aerospace, defense, transportation and security markets...
, consequently in 2001 Shorts Missile Systems was renamed Thales Air Defence Limited (TADL).
The then Shorts Missile Systems was a partner in Raytheon's
Raytheon
Raytheon Company is a major American defense contractor and industrial corporation with core manufacturing concentrations in weapons and military and commercial electronics. It was previously involved in corporate and special-mission aircraft until early 2007...
Future Medium Range Air-Air Missile (FMRAAM) project, which was to replace the AIM-120 AMRAAM
AIM-120 AMRAAM
The AIM-120 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile, or AMRAAM , is a modern beyond-visual-range air-to-air missile capable of all-weather day-and-night operations. Designed with the same form-factor as the previous generation of semi-active guided Sparrow missiles, it is a fire-and-forget...
missile used by European air forces. In May 2000 the UK selected the MBDA Meteor
MBDA Meteor
Meteor is an active radar guided beyond-visual-range air-to-air missile being developed by MBDA. It is to equip the Eurofighter Typhoons of the UK's Royal Air Force , Germany's Luftwaffe, Spain's Ejército del Aire and Italy's Aeronautica Militare Italiana, the British and Italian F-35s , the...
to fulfil the requirement.
TADL products have been deployed by 56 armed forces around the world. The company employs around 510 people based in Belfast and Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
. The company also operates a remote facility in rural County Down
County Down
-Cities:*Belfast *Newry -Large towns:*Dundonald*Newtownards*Bangor-Medium towns:...
, between Ballynahinch and Downpatrick
Downpatrick
Downpatrick is a medium-sized town about 33 km south of Belfast in County Down, Northern Ireland. It is the county town of Down with a rich history and strong connection to Saint Patrick. It had a population of 10,316 at the 2001 Census...
where missiles are tested and stored.
Products
- BlowpipeBlowpipe missileThe Shorts Blowpipe is a man-portable surface-to-air missile which was in use with the British Army and Royal Marines from 1975. It was superseded by an interim design, Javelin, and later the greatly improved Starstreak missile.-Description:...
- JavelinJavelin surface-to-air missileJavelin is a British, man-portable surface-to-air missile, formerly used by the British Army and Canadian Army. It can be fired from the shoulder, or from a dedicated launcher known as Javelin LML—Lightweight Multiple Launcher...
- Javelin is a man-portable surface-to-air missile and is being replaced by Starstreak.
- Starstreak
- A High Velocity Missile (HVM) used in the air defence role. Used in many roles with man-portable, attack helicopterAttack helicopterAn attack helicopter is a military helicopter with the primary role of an attack aircraft, with the capability of engaging targets on the ground, such as enemy infantry and armored vehicles...
and vehicle mounted variants.- HellfireAGM-114 HellfireThe AGM-114 Hellfire is an air-to-surface missile developed primarily for anti-armor use. It has multi-mission, multi-target precision-strike capability, and can be launched from multiple air, sea, and ground platforms. The Hellfire missile is the primary 100 lb-class air-to-ground precision...
- Hellfire
- Built by Thales under licence from the United StatesUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
for the Ministry of DefenceMinistry of Defence (United Kingdom)The Ministry of Defence is the United Kingdom government department responsible for implementation of government defence policy and is the headquarters of the British Armed Forces....
. Hellfire is designed to defeat tanks and other individual targets while minimizing the exposure of the launch vehicle to enemy fire.- Lightweight Multi-role Missile (LMM) -
- has recently been ordered by the MoD as the FASGW(L) missile to be operated by the Royal Navy's new Lynx Wildcat helicopter.