Thales gets weapon sights deal

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LONDON, July 12 (UPI) -- Thales UK reports that General Dynamics UK has contracted it to supply the primary and secondary sighting systems for Scout reconnaissance vehicles.

The Scout will be a key variant in the British army's specialist vehicle fleet when it goes into service.

The primary sight enables the vehicles' commander to maintain a 360-degree view of surroundings, has a thermal imager to identify targets and a wide-area search-and-detect capability that automatically detects and tracks potential targets from thermal signature.

The primary sight also includes provision for an optional laser target designator and the Scout SV demonstration phase will mark the first use of a vehicle-mounted, under-armor LTD by the British army.

The secondary sight is for the gunner and gives him the ability to detect and identify targets at extended ranges and accurately engage targets at the full range of the main armament.

It also includes a high-definition color TV camera for daylight use, as well as a long-range day optical channel.

Thales said both sights are integrated with a sensor processor unit which, combined with the sights' stabilization systems, enables the vehicle's turret to be rapidly traversed onto the target while on the move.

"Thales UK looks forward to working closely with General Dynamics UK to deliver this significant capability into service on schedule and to specification," said Alex Cresswell, managing director of Thales UK's land defense business.

Lockheed Martin UK, the Scout SV turret subcontractor, will integrate the sights onto the turret for the Scout SV program.