Article Posted on : - Feb 15, 2017

BENAGLURU (PTI): Thales and defence PSU Bharat Dynamics Ltd (BDL) on Tuesday signed an agreement to assess opportunities for transfer of technology of the flagship STARStreak missile capability to India.

Under the MoU, Thales, a global technology player in aerospace, transport, defence and security markets, and BDL seek to jointly offer a 'Make in India' solution to help grow international demand for this product.

The MoU was signed in the presence of UK government representatives at AeroIndia 2017 air show, which began at the Yelahanka airbase here on Tuesday.

The STARStreak missile is in service in the UK Army and has been procured by the defence forces of a number of countries worldwide.

The fastest missile in its category, STARStreak is unique due to its three laser-guided darts, which cannot be jammed by any known counter measure. It has the capability to defeat any air target even armoured helicopters as the last line of defence, a Thales release said.

Thales is investing in the transfer of technology to India for the STARStreak missile.

In the spirit of cooperation between the two countries, including under the Indo-UK Defence Equipment Cooperation MoU, this initiative has the full support of the UK government, it said.

The association will play a strategic role not only in supporting the 'Make in India' vision of the Indian government, but also in giving a boost to the excellent bilateral relations between India and the UK, it said.

Alex Cresswell, Executive Vice-President for Land and Air Systems activities at Thales, said: "We are proud to join hands with Bharat Dynamics Ltd for the strategic transfer of technology of our flagship STARStreak missile from the UK."

"Sharing technology has been one of the key ingredients of Thales' strategy for India. We would continue to work in this direction and realise our objective to make in India and export from India through such endeavours," he said.

V Udaya Bhaskar, CMD, BDL, said the company is "strongly" looking forward to business opportunities outside India to supply the latest defence equipment.

With 62,000 employees in 56 countries, Thales reported sales of euro 14 billion in 2015.