Interview | President & CEO, Thales International, Pascale Sourisse

What will be the highlight of Thales’ exhibit at Aero India 2025? What products and systems will Thales showcase?

Thales will be present in full strength at Aero India 2025, displaying on our stand 3.3 in Hall B a variety of cutting-edge technologies in air, land, and naval defence. Thales’ demonstrations highlight our commitment to ‘Make in India for India and the World’ and the ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’ vision, while supporting the Indian armed forces’ modernisation and indigenisation goals.

In the domain of air defence, Thales will display solutions like the Lightweight Multi-role Missile (LMM), STARStreak missile and ForceShield, alongside air surveillance capabilities like the GM 200 MM/A radar and SkyView air command and control system. Thales will also highlight its airborne optronics, including TALIOS.

For the first time in India, Thales will showcase its innovation in avionics through the FlytX suite for helicopters. Among other advanced aeronautics, Thales will feature navigation systems like TopAxyz, TopShield and TopStar M, and connectivity solutions such as SYNAPS-A, Modem 21 Air Compact, and NextW@ve TRA 6030 radio.

Also, for the first time in India, Thales will display its UTM (Unmanned Traffic Management) system for cooperative and non-cooperative drones. As a leader in this market, our portfolio includes multiple C-UAS solutions, starting with EagleShield, an integrated nano, micro, mini and small drone countermeasures solution to protect and secure civil and military sites. In addition, Thales will feature the PARADE system, which provides 360 degree protection of people, properties and activities, as well as Gamekeeper, a holographic radar that allows detection, tracking and classification of unlimited targets simultaneously including micro and mini drones.

In the field of air surveillance, we will showcase the Air Master C radar—the latest addition to our Air Master range of airborne surveillance radars—that is highly adaptable and can be integrated into both manned and unmanned airborne platforms. Integrated at the heart of the radar, AI significantly enhances its performance, with target recognition being 100 times faster.

In the naval field, as part of our underwater solutions for efficient maritime security operations, Thales will feature its Sonoflash sonobuoy, which allows the detection of submarines.

How has Thales aligned itself with government of India’s ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’ vision? What kind o