General Atomics

Thales to demo land domain capabilities at 25th IAVC

Thales in the UK’s Land team is gearing up for its first event of 2025 – the International Armoured Vehicles Conference (IAVC) – being held next week at IAVC’s new home in the Farnborough International Exhibition Centre, from Tuesday 21st to Thursday 23rd January.


        
Above: The Bushmaster protected mobility vehicle.
Courtesy Thales

Now in its 25th edition, Thales will join over 1,400 delegates, from more than 50 nations at IAVC, to showcase the latest versions of its tried and tested systems and innovative technical solutions, including:

  • Bushmaster: Thales’ combat proven and highly adaptable protected mobility vehicle. Bushmaster is already in service with nine nations and been successfully deployed on operations in the Middle East, Europe, Africa and the Pacific. With constantly evolving design-enhancements, Thales will be debuting it very latest version (5.5), in service with New Zealand’s Army, in the UK for the first time.
  • DigitalCrew: Thales’ all-new virtual member of the crew. Domain, platform and sensor agnostic, DigitalCrew provides enhanced situational awareness for soldiers in armoured vehicles, while reducing the cognitive burden on operators with its autonomous detection, tracking and AI-powered classification capabilities.



Above: Thales’ DigitalCrew.
Courtesy Thales

Thales will also be exhibiting the Panoramic Above Armour Gimbal (PAAG) – its advanced 360-degree electronic surveillance and sighting system, featuring state-of-the-art sensors that give vehicle commanders and crews a crucial tactical advantage on the frontline.

Elsewhere across the show site, Thales is demonstrating the sensors and digital solutions at the heart of Britain’s armoured vehicle capabilities, including:

  • PAAG on Moog’s Dingo vehicle.
  • Orion and DNGS T3 sighting systems, integrated with DigitalCrew, as well as the local situational awareness system, smoke grenade launchers and Acusonic shot detection system, on the Ajax vehicle.
  • The Kongsberg Remote Weapon Station – manufactured by Thales – integrated with the SharpView RWS Thermal Imager and SharpAim Laser Range Finder Module, plus Acusonic on the Boxer vehicle.

Jonathan Welch, Head of Sales OME (Optronics and Missile Electronics), Thales, said: “We’re incredibly excited to be sharing our very latest technological solutions at this key international event in the calendar for armoured vehicle manufacturers.
 
“As we heard at DVD 2024, the Army’s Land Mobility Programme is progressing apace, with the first tenders opening. IAVC 2025, therefore, provides the best opportunity to showcase the mature solutions that Thales has to offer – including its highly adaptable Bushmaster 5.5, the very vehicle that was delivered to the New Zealand Army in 2023.”

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