French Rafales to benefit from 21 extra Talios pods
The Rafale fighter aircraft carries Talios. (Photo: Thales)
Thales has received a follow-on order for 21 Talios laser designator targeting pods to equip Rafale aircraft.
Thales has received a firm order from the French defence procurement agency (DGA) has ordered an additional 21 Talios laser designator optronic pods, to equip Rafale aircraft in the French Air and Space Force and Rafale M platforms in service with the French Navy.
The pods will be delivered in 2024-2025, Thales announced on 6 May. The latest order will bring to 67 the total number of Talios pods in French service, to support airborne reconnaissance and targeting for attack missions.
In particular, the newly ordered 21 pods will include the Vision Permanent function (overlaying real-time video on a 3D map), a new air-to-air identification mode, a colour sensor and new tactical air reconnaissance modes under the Rafale F4 programme.
‘Talios will ultimately incorporate artificial intelligence algorithms to provide an unprecedented level of assistance in target detection and recognition and further accelerate the decision-making process, particularly in high-intensity engagements,’ Thales claimed.
Related Equipment in Defence Insight
More from Air Warfare
-
![German Navy in “ramp-up” phase as it welcomes first NH90 Sea Tiger delivery]()
German Navy in “ramp-up” phase as it welcomes first NH90 Sea Tiger delivery
With all 31 aircraft set to be delivered by 2030, the helicopters will gradually replace the ageing Sea Lynx fleet which are due to be retired in 2026.
-
![Germany acquires additional 20 H145M helicopters]()
Germany acquires additional 20 H145M helicopters
The order for the extra helicopters comes from an agreement penned in December 2023, with the German Army receiving the bulk of the platforms.
-
![Anduril UK and GKN Aerospace collaborate on British Army ACP bid]()
Anduril UK and GKN Aerospace collaborate on British Army ACP bid
The pair will submit their demonstrator concept for Project Nyx, a development project for the British Army’s Land Autonomous Collaborative Platform.
-
![US Army command’s Picatinny CLIK common lethal drone interface makes progress]()
US Army command’s Picatinny CLIK common lethal drone interface makes progress
The Picatinny Common Lethality Integration Kit is designed to overcome the issue of unique integration methods between lethal payloads and drones as well as avoiding problematic acquisition conditions created by vendor lock.
