With Thomson-CSF's acquisition of UK's Racal Electronics PLC completed only on June 15, the new integrated organization is making its first public appearance at Farnborough even before it becomes officially effective on September 1. Transitions are then expected to continue for a further three months in the new group's three business areas, covering defense, aerospace and information technologies and services.

The group's new integrated British defense company, Thomson Racal Defense Ltd (TRD), combines the UK group's military activities with those of its partner's related British subsidiaries. Chief executive of TRD, headquartered in Bracknell, Berkshire, is Richard Moon, former CEO of Racal Defense Electronics.

With the integration of Racal, 25% of Thomson-CSF is now in the UK and 50% outside France, and the merged group becomes the UK's second largest supplier of defense systems. UK Thomson-CSF sales by destination in 1999 comprised 63% domestic, 10% Asia-Pacific, 8% North America, 5% Europe and 3% to the Middle East. Combined global revenues of Thomson-CSF and Racal approach $7.7 billion, from approximately equivalent civil and military contracts. The merger is expected to boost UK turnover to around $2 billion.

Some 55% of this will be from defense-related business, through a number of major programs. In one of the largest of these, Thomson-CSF, teamed with Raytheon, BMT Defense Services and Lockheed Martin, was one of two leading UK groups recently selected as prime contractors for the pre-assessment phase of a program to provide the Royal Navy with two new 43,000 ton aircraft carriers.

TRD participation in other major UK projects includes the future organic AEW (FOAEW), future offensive air system (FOAS), and future strategic tanker aircraft (FSTA), plus Royal Navy GKN Westland Sea King AEW Mk 7 and Lynx HMA 8 helicopter upgrades. Further tactical data management systems are being provided by the UK Racal Avionics subsidiary for RAF Boeing Chinook medium-lift helicopters. Thomson-CSF is also a key member of the consortium developing the infra-red search and track system (IRST) for the Eurofighter, for which TRD is developing key elements of what is claimed as the world's most advanced mission support system.

By John Fricker