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Thales to create a new Underwater Training Centre for the UAE Navy


Tawazun has selected Thales’s expertise in the field of underwater warfare training simulation. The Underwater Training Centre (UWTC), to be built for the United Arab Emirates' Navy (UAE Navy), will be located at the Al Taweelah Naval Military School.


Thales to create a new Underwater Training Centre for the UAE Navy (Picture source : Thales)


The naval warfare capabilities of the UAE Armed Forces are evolving rapidly as a result of recent equipment acquisition programmes. The long term operational effectiveness of these new systems, which relies on the knowledge, skills and reactions of operators, is highly dependent on their training levels. To achieve this major ambition of creating a core of highly skilled operators, Tawazun has selected Thales’s expertise in the field of underwater warfare training simulation. The Underwater Training Centre (UWTC) will be located at the Al Taweelah Naval Military School.

By leveraging Thales’ position as a world leader in sonar systems and related products for naval forces, the UWTC will provide initial training through a Generic Sonar Simulator (Surface ship, helicopter, Maritime Patrol Aircraft, submarine) as well as a fully realistic simulation with real time processing, operational sonars and high fidelity modelling for equipment previously provided by Thales to the UAE Navy. Thales’ aim is to support the Navy in training the current and future generations of UAE Naval crews operating in the underwater warfare domain.

This Training Centre will be fully autonomously managed by the UAE Navy, with courses controlled by them. The curriculum and training courses specific to the current and future Naval Crews operating in the underwater warfare domain will benefit from a dedicated Instructor Training and coaching programmes.

As the UAE Navy needs access to instruction and training resources based on the latest technologies to make the right decisions at every decisive moment at sea, Thales will be providing the most highly advanced simulators on the market, integrating key digital technologies such as big data analysis and artificial intelligence.

Thales is the world’s leading developer of sonar and related naval defence systems, supplying some of the most powerful Naval forces around the world. The Group has been forging close partnerships with these customers for over 60 years and are a testament to the sustainable competencies and unique expertise in naval systems the group brings to bear.