Thales has been chosen by Romanian helicopter manufacturer IAR Brasov

to supply the TMS 2000 sonobuoy to equip IAR-330 Puma helicopters operated by the Romanian navy. The TMS 2000 offers a rapidly deployable anti-submarine warfare (ASW) capability. The operational performance of sonobuoys has improved over recent years, making them an increasingly serious threat to any submarine seeking to avoid detection. The advantage of the TMS 2000 processors is that installation requires only minor modifications to the aircraft. Sonobuoys are released over the sea by a fixed- or rotary-wing aircraft and send acoustic data to the processor via a VHF link to a receiver that processes data in real time. “The processors will give the Romanian navy a decisive ASW capability to detect submarines in the Black Sea, in particular as part of NATO missions,” according to Thales.