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NEUILLY SUR SEINE (BNS): The French defence procurement agency, DGA, has selected Thales to supply 50 electronic warfare (EW) programming stations for seven helicopter families in service for the French armed forces.

Under the agreement, Thales is scheduled to deliver the EW programming stations by the first quarter of 2012, following customer qualification beginning in late 2011.

The helicopters are the French Army aviation unit’s upgraded Cougar, EC725 HUS, Tiger standard 1 and 2, NH90, Gazelle and Puma; and the French Navy’s Panther, according to the company news release.

A key benefit of the contract is commonality, i.e; the new stations can be used with all seven families of helicopters, whereas previous stations were restricted to a single family.

Twenty-six stations have been ordered for French Army aviation and 24 for the French Navy.

Thales self-protection systems equip the majority of helicopters in service with the French armed forces and also provide aircraft and their crews with the crucial protection they need against a broad array of threats – in particular surface-to-air and air-to-air missiles – in all types of theatres of operations.