Finmeccanica takes part in LAAD 2015, the Defence and Security International Exhibition which is held from 14 to 17 April in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Finmeccanica, attending the exhibition with its companies AgustaWestland, Selex ES, OTO Melara, WASS and Telespazio, is the Italy’s leading manufacturer in the high technology sector, ranking among the top ten global players in Aerospace, Defence and Security.
Finmeccanica has been present in Brazil since the 1970s when Alenia Aermacchi won an important contract to supply the Força Aerea Brasileira with 166 MB-326 aircraft and partly built in Brazil in partnership with aeronautics company Embraer (36 aircraft manufactured by Aermacchi, 130 built in Brazil under licence by Embraer). The Brazilian market was also associated with another landmark product: the AMX light-attack and reconnaissance single-engine aircraft, the result of an Italian-Brazilian joint venture between Aeritalia and Aermacchi (both now Alenia Aermacchi) and Embraer.
Finmeccanica is now present in the country through the headquarters and the offices of its companies, such as AgustaWestland, OTO Melara, Selex ES and Telespazio. The Group’s strategy in the Country leverages on structured industrial and technological co-operation agreements and long-term partnerships, to maintain and grow a deep-rooted presence, with extensive sharing of technology and expertise. Brazil size and resources, along with its financial, technological and commercial capabilities, have today given it the potential to be a global player. The ambitious plans the country has to comprehensively modernize its defence, security, infrastructure and transport network makes the Brazilian market an extremely attractive prospect for Finmeccanica.
HELICOPTERS
Finmeccanica-AgustaWestland has a long standing, significant presence in the Brazilian as well as Latin American markets covering commercial, parapublic and military requirements. Over 180 helicopters operate in Brazil today, performing many roles including law enforcement, emergency medical services, naval missions, executive/corporate transport and offshore transport. Eight Brazilian Navy’s Lynx Mk21A helicopters will undergo midlife upgrading including replacement of the engines and mission avionics including navigation and displays suite. A comprehensive support and training package is also included in the mid-life upgrade contract. These upgrades will give Brazil’s Naval Aviation a significant improvement in its capabilities, with better performance, operational range and aircraft mission effectiveness. AgustaWestland has also experienced a rapid expansion of its presence in the public utility sector in recent years with sales of AW119, GrandNew and AW139 types to carry out law enforcement, emergency medical services, environmental patrol and surveillance across the nation. AgustaWestland do Brasil, with its headquarters in São Paulo, operates as regional support centre providing customer support services to the growing fleet of AgustaWestland helicopters in Brazil and other South American countries.
Services provided include spares, maintenance, product support, engineering services and training for the AW119, AW109 series, Grand, GrandNew and AW139 helicopters and in the near future for the AW189 and AW169. The Group attends LAAD 2015 showcasing a range of Finmeccanica-AgustaWestland military helicopter capabilities including the AW119Kx single engine, the AW109 LUH light twin, the T129 combat helicopter, the AW139 intermediate twin, the AW149 medium multirole aircraft and the AW101 three-engine medium-heavy platform.
DEFENCE ELECTRONICS AND SECURITY
Finmeccanica-Selex ES has been in Brazil for over 30 years beginning by working alongside Embraer on the AMX program and by delivering air traffic control systems for the Brazilian Air Force (FAB), besides working alongside the Brazilian Navy providing fire control systems on their frigates and corvettes together with logistic support. The company’s air domain heritage in Brazil includes a range of airborne radars with over Finmeccanica is Italy’s leading manufacturer in the high technology sector and ranks among the top ten global players in Aerospace,
Defence and Security. Listed on the Milan Stock Exchange (FNC IM; SIFI.MI), in 2014 Finmeccanica generated revenues of about 14 billion Euro. With 273 locations and production facilities in 20 countries, Finmeccanica is a multinational and multicultural group which boasts a significant presence in four domestic markets: Italy, the United Kingdom, the U.S. and Poland. Finmeccanica’s core business activities are in the following sectors: Helicopters (AgustaWestland), Defence Electronics and Security (Selex ES, DRS Technologies), Aeronautics (Alenia Aermacchi). The company also has a significant position in Space (Telespazio, Thales Alenia Space), Defence Systems (OTO Melara, WASS, MBDA) and Transportation (Ansaldo STS, AnsaldoBreda).
140 now in service in the Country, on the AMX, the F5 and the P95. Selex ES has since also been selected to supply the Gabbiano airborne radar for the FAB’s KC-390 program and the company’s Raven ES E-Scan radar and Skyward-G IRST system have been selected for the Gripen NG aircraft by Saab, which was awarded the Brazil’s FX2 new fighter aircraft program together with Embraer in October 2014. In the naval domain fire control radars, and surveillance radars are installed on the Niteroi frigates, of the Brazilian Navy’s Naval Unit fleet, for which logistic support has also been delivered. The company’s weapon system has equipped as well the Barroso class corvette. In the land domain Selex ES has supplied Long Range Surveillance Radars, Precision Approach Radars (PAR), military and civil communication networks such as the SISTAC and TETRA. Selex ES through its long experience in providing integrated solutions and high technology products can provide many applications in the civil sector ranging from Airports to Oil and Gas and Telecoms. The company is actively pursuing the Brazilian market in the civil sector and is already in discussion with Brazilian companies in the Telecoms and IT sector to look at partnerships to grow its business. Selex ES is in the country also through its subsidiary Selex ES do Brazil to be closer to the customers’ needs and readily provide the best operational and logistic support thanks to trained and specialized local personnel. At LAAD Selex ES displays its ISTAR superiority product/capability portfolio on a large three screen display a, besides the models of the airborne systems Raven ES-05 AESA (active electronically scanned array) fire control radar, the infrared search and track (IRST) Skyward – G, the Mode 5 Identification Friend/Foe (IFF) system and the Britecloud Expendable Active Decoy (EAD). At the Brazilian exhibition in the naval sector Selex ES presents a video on the Italian FREMM frigates equipped with its Radar and Combat Management System). In the land domain a video shows the Future Soldier capability and equipment that the company offer to provide the soldier with the most advanced network enabled technologies.
DEFENCE SYSTEMS
In the past Finmeccanica-OTO Melara supplied 105/14 field howitzers to the Brazilian Army and Albatros launchers for Aspide missiles to the Brazilian Navy. After a period of slow down in the commercial activities with the Country, the present land and naval programs of the Brazilian Armed Forces are of great interest to the Group and OTO Melara is in an excellent position to supply land artilleries, naval systems and relevant technology transfers. After the issuance of a Request For Proposal (RFP) in February 2014, OTO Melara 76/62 Super Rapid naval gun mount was selected by the Navy to be installed on board the new Corvettes that are going to be built in the near future. In order to answer at the best to the Brazilian Government requests to nationalize as much as possible the production of the gun and to create a local logistic base to support the operative life cycle of the system, OTO Melara created a subsidiary Company in Rio de Janeiro, OTO Melara do Brazil, whose main task is to conclude industrial agreements with local companies. The Brazilian Army too issued a RFP last November for the supply of 105mm turrets to be installed on the 8×8 Guarani armored vehicles, produced by Iveco do Brazil, and OTO Melara, through its local company, has recently submitted an offer together with ARES Aeroespacial e Defesa that will become the local partner for the production of the turret if it will be selected by the Army. Another collaboration agreement was signed with IMBEL, a company of the Brazilian Ministry of Defence, that is going to receive the necessary technology to carry out the final integration of the 105mm turret. At LAAD the company exhibits the new FORTY LIGHT naval turret, unveiled for the first time last February, and the VULCANO 76 and DART ammunition for the 76/62 naval gun.
Finmeccanica-WASS, leader in the sector of underwater weapons and security, exhibits the heavyweight torpedo Black Shark, the towed array sonar Black Snake, two plastic models representing harbour protection system Black Shield and the surface platform and submarine countermeasures C310 and C303/S. The Brazilian Navy showed its interest in developing with the company some specific programs: among the others the SisGAAz program (Sistema de Gerenciamento da Amazônia Azul) dedicated to harbour and off-shore platform protection and Corvette Barroso modernization program foreseeing the acquisition of antitorpedo defence systems and lightweight torpedo launching systems.
SPACE
Telespazio’s presence in Brazil spans over almost twenty years through its subsidiary Telespazio Brasil. The company has five satellite hubs in Rio de Janeiro and Porto Alegre, and provides telecommunications services for fixed and mobile operators, government agencies and the corporate market. Moreover, Telespazio also markets in Latin America, on behalf of e-GEOS (an ASI/Telespazio company), the data acquired by COSMO-SkyMed satellites, which enable the development of services and applications for maritime security, border control and environmental monitoring. Telespazio presents at LAAD its main activities in the field of satellite communications and geo-information services. In particular, the company will illustrate its role in large programmes such as COSMO-SkyMed, the innovative Italian constellation composed of four radar satellites for Earth observation, and SICRAL, the Italian satellite system for military communications.
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