French Company Thales selected to supply Australian army with its Hawkei armoured vehicle 1312116

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Defense News - Australia
 
 

Tuesday, December 13, 2011, 11:09 PM
 
French Company Thales selected to supply Australian army with its Hawkei armoured vehicle.
French defence company Thales was named as preferred bidder for a A$1.5 billion ($1.53 billion) contract to supply the military with light armoured vehicles, heading off rivals with its locally-designed Hawkei.
     
French defence company Thales was named as preferred bidder for a A$1.5 billion ($1.53 billion) contract to supply the military with light armoured vehicles, heading off rivals with its locally-designed Hawkei.
Thales Hawkei armoured vehicle at Defence Exhibition Eurosatory 2010 in Paris.
     

Federal Defence Minister Stephen Smith announced Thales’ Hawkei prototype vehicle had beaten two overseas vehicles during testing for the Land 121 Phase Four program.

The Hawkei would replace part of the army’s fleet of Land Rovers with light protected mobility vehicles.

Thales will develop up to six other prototypes and enter contract negotiations to supply up to 1300 Hawkei to the Australian Defence Force.