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Thales' first Compact FLASH dipping sonar system passed Factory Acceptance Test

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EURONAVAL 2014 Show Daily - THALES COMPACT FLASH
 
 
 
Thales' first Compact FLASH dipping sonar system passed Factory Acceptance Test
 
Thales announced yesterday at Euronaval 2014 in Paris that its first Compact FLASH dipping sonar system has passed its Factory Acceptance (FAT) Test in Brest, the first test for this new variant of the highly successful FLASH family of dipping sonars.
     
Thales announced yesterday at Euronaval 2014 in Paris that its first Compact FLASH dipping sonar system has passed its Factory Acceptance (FAT) Test in Brest, the first test for this new variant of the highly successful FLASH family of dipping sonars. Thales' Compact FLASH dipping sonar system at Euronaval 2014
     
This important milestone will be followed by a delivery from Brest to AgustaWestland in Yeovil, England, where it will be installed in the Super Lynx 300 naval helicopter. The FAT was witnessed by a dedicated Project Team from AgustaWestland who have now 'signed-off' the successful test result.

Speaking in Brest, Loic Bellanger, Compact FLASH Programme manager, Thales explained "The Compact FLASH variant has a new all-electric drive for the reeling machine, a lighter cable and drum and a new system architecture. This FAT is the culmination of a successful development phase followed by extensive bench and lake testing and we are very proud to now prepare for first delivery, on schedule, to our important customer AgustaWestland".

Compact FLASH, which has been specifically developed for the AgustaWestland Super Lynx 300 and AW159 naval helicopters, uses the same FLASH Submersible Unit, Transmitter/Receiver unit and acoustic processing as installed in larger Anti-Submarine Warfare helicopters thus providing the same unrivalled ASW capability to smaller 5-6 tonne class helicopters.

Also under production in the Thales Brest facility is Compact FLASH Sonics, which integrates Compact FLASH with sonobuoy processing, it is also under contract with AgustaWestland for installation in the AW159 ASW helicopter being manufactured in Yeovil for the Republic of Korea Navy.

Benoit Lafouasse, Programmes Director for mine warfare and airborne acoustic systems activities, Thales added "We are delighted to have achieved this first-of-class milestone, on schedule, following a very challenging programme regarding timescales and very much look forward to building on our excellent working relationships with AgustaWestland as we progress through to the delivery and support phases of our programmes with them".