First Astrium/DCNS partnership in naval telecommunications

Paris, 28 November 2008 – Astrium Services and DCNS have been selected by the French armament procurement agency (DGA) to supply the Telcomarsat system. Fifty-four ships in the French navy will be equipped with this military telecommunications system provided by commercial satellites. The solution and services on IP support, offered by Astrium Services and DCNS will be based on off-the-shelf products. ...

• Sailors will have 24-hour link to French national territory from anywhere in the world

•  Astrium services is expanding its range for the French Ministry of Defence

•  DCNS is deploying the naval component for this new satellite military telecommunications system

 
 
Paris, 28 November 2008 – Astrium Services and DCNS have been selected by the French armament procurement agency (DGA) to supply the Telcomarsat system. Fifty-four ships in the French navy will be equipped with this military telecommunications system provided by commercial satellites. The solution and services on IP support, offered by Astrium Services and DCNS will be based on off-the-shelf products.

 
“This successful joint bid with DCNS confirms the French navy’s confidence in us, and is now encouraging us to enhance our offer on the naval telecommunications market. Following on from ASTEL-S and Passerel, Telcomarsat is expanding the range of services that we provide to the French Ministry of Defence. I’m extremely proud that Astrium Services is helping to enhance the operational effectiveness of the French navy, and is improving communications between the French military – wherever personnel are based around the world – and the French national territory”,  Eric Béranger, CEO of Astrium Services said after the new contract was signed.

 
Christian Foissey, senior vice-president for services at DCNS explained that “this partnership ensures the management of the global system for the ground and naval segments. And this bid demonstrates the forceful determination of DCNS to be a major player in ship-borne communication systems.”

 
The four-year Telcomarsat project is worth twenty five million euros and will provide the SYRACUSE military network that is currently in use with additional solutions by extending global coverage. It will also provide broadband telecommunications to ships that are not equipped with the SYRACUSE system.

Telcomarsat will:

-          Provide the French navy with ship-borne communications capabilities provided by commercial (C-, Ku- and L-band) satellites, which will be used:

o       for operational purposes (connecting operational applications)

o       for general purposes (providing email for the French navy, connecting administrative applications for personnel and equipment)

-          Provide the DIRISI (the French Ministry of Defence’s telecommunications operator) with complementary capabilities in its teleport infrastructures for commercial satellites in metropolitan France and the French overseas departments and territories (La Réunion, New Caledonia and Martinique) – to allow ships connection to defence infrastructure networks throughout the world.

-          Provide sailors with broadband connections for their private communications (telephone and internet access).

Astrium

Astrium, a wholly owned subsidiary of EADS, is dedicated to providing civil and defence space systems and services. In 2007, Astrium had a turnover of €3.5 billion and 12,000 employees in France, Germany, the United Kingdom, Spain and the Netherlands. Its three main areas of activity are Astrium Space Transportation for launchers and orbital infrastructure, Astrium Satellites for spacecraft and ground segment and its wholly owned subsidiary Astrium Services for the development and delivery of satellite services.

 EADS is a global leader in aerospace, defence and related services. In 2007, EADS generated revenues of €39.1 billion and employed a workforce of more than 116, 000.

 

Media Contacts

 Jeremy Close (Astrium UK)                                          Phone:   01438 773872

Matthieu Duvelleroy (Astrium FR)                                Phone: + 33 (0) 1 77 75 80 32

Mathias Pikelj (Astrium GER)                                        Phone: + 49 (0) 7545 89123

Francisco Lechón (Astrium SP)                                    Phone: + 34 91 586 37 41

 

www.astrium.eads.net

About DCNS

 The DCNS Group is a front-ranking European player in the world market for naval defence systems. To meet customer demands for more comprehensive and integrated solutions, DCNS acts as prime contractor for naval shipbuilding and support by combining its own development, marketing and production capabilities with those of selected partners. To manage the complexity of naval shipbuilding projects, DCNS draws on its own in-house expertise in naval architecture, principal warship systems engineering, the management of ship assembly and integration, and equipment design naval bases and production as well as through-life support. The DCNS Group has 13,000 employees and generates annual revenues of approximately 2.8 billion euros.

Press contact:

 
Emmanuel GAUDEZ                                               Tel.: +33 (0) 1 40 59 55 69
                                                                                       +33 (0) 6 61 97 36 63

 

www.dcnsgroup.com