Thales has been awarded a contract to supply the Qatar Armed Forces with a military satellite communications system. The ground segment supplied will provide Qatari ground and naval forces with a long-range communications capability to enhance national security and protect vital interests.
The contract signing ceremony was overseen by the Jean-Yves Le Drian, French Minister of Defence, who was joined by Pascale Sourisse, SEVP International Development for Thales; Major General Hamad Bin Ali Al Attiyah, Qatar Minister of State for Defence Affairs and Eng. Abdulaziz Falah Al-Dosari Assistant for Technology to the Minister of State for Defence Affairs.
The military satcom network complements existing military radio communications systems. As a consequence, Thales will supply the systems needed to transmit and receive communications via satellite, and to process data on the ground. The solution is built around Thales's high-performance System 21 technology to provide secure, high-data-rate transmissions. This fully proven system has been selected by several NATO countries.
The Network Operations Centre, also provided by Thales, will be used for planning and managing the complete system, which will be operated by the Qatari armed forces. The solution will be interoperable with the other communications systems in service within the Qatar Armed Forces, including combat radios and fixed networks.
Eng Abdulaziz Falah Al-Dosari, Assistant for Technology to the Minister of State for Defence Affairs commented, “We are selecting Thales after a rigorous procurement process and over a year of technical evaluation. Thales has been chosen thanks to its technical solution.”
Jean-Bernard Lévy, Thales chairman & CEO added, “I would like to thank Qatar for the vote of confidence they have awarded to Thales. This is a big success, which comes at the end of a long bid process. This significant contract illustrates Thales’s efforts in recapturing international markets. It is a great reward for our teams and confirms their determination and professionalism. All our efforts are now being put towards the quick delivery of the satellite system for the benefit of the Qatari armed forces.”