In March 2017, the first in the series production of Thales SEARCHMASTER® multi-role surveillance radars was accepted and declared ready for delivery to its first export customer, in line with production timescales.
The SEARCHMASTER® multi-role surveillance radar is the first multi-role radar developed in its category (under 80kg) to meet the needs of both maritime and ground surveillance as well as providing tactical air support in both of these environments. Using Active Electronic Scanning Antenna (AESA) technology, the radar is tailored to fly on all platform types.
The SEARCHMASTER® was selected in 2014 by the French defence procurement agency (DGA) as part of the Altantique 2 (ATL2) maritime patrol aircraft upgrade programme for the French navy. The production of the radar was launched in 2016 at Thales Campus in Bordeaux and several international customers have already selected the radar for their requirements.