The sonar suite features high-performance acoustic sensors, including bow, flank, and obstacle-avoidance sonars, an intercept array, a passive towed-array sonar, an underwater voice communication system, an echo-sounder, and signal processing racks. This cohesive suite of equipment will provide an unprecedented panoramic view of the underwater environment, making it possible to detect, locate, and classify all types of threats at short, medium, and long ranges across a wide range of frequencies.
Sylvain Perrier, RNSC Program Director for Naval Group, said: “The highly capable Thales sonar suite was a key component of Naval Group’s bid for this program and will make a significant contribution to the acoustic superiority of the Orka-class submarines. We know we can count on Thales to meet the demanding requirements of COMMIT3 and to work hand in hand with the Dutch industry on the RNSC program.”
This program is an opportunity for Thales to align with the Dutch government’s policy of support and empowerment of strategic national industries. It will consolidate the company’s engagement with the naval defense ecosystem in the Netherlands within the framework of the RNSC program, as illustrated by a recent contract with the Dutch company Optics11, to use its OptiArray technology in the passive towed-array sonar.
“We are proud that Thales’s advanced sonar suite has been selected to equip the Royal Netherlands Navy’s Orka-class submarines. This partnership will enhance the technological superiority of the Dutch armed forces and reflects our ongoing commitment to providing innovative, dependable solutions in support of the defense capabilities of allied nations,” said Sébastien Guérémy, Vice President, Underwater Systems, Thales.
