Thales inks in-service support deal for Canadian Navy’s ships

Defence company Thales has been awarded an in-service support contract for the Canadian Navy’s minor warships and auxiliary vessels.

This contract will ensure the fleet remains operationally fit and includes the flexibility to increase or reduce the number of vessels serviced in response to the RCN’s ever changing operational needs, including Operation REASSURANCE, Canada’s largest overseas mission to NATO assurance and deterrence in Central and Eastern Europe.

It includes an initial service period of five years for up to $450 million CAD (approx. €305 million) with additional one-year options to extend services for up to nineteen years in total.

The Royal Canadian Navy’s (RCN) fleet of Minor Warships and Auxiliary Vessels (MWAV) includes about 100 vessels from 24 different classes, including the Kingston-class Maritime Coastal Defence Vessels, Orca-class training vessels, tugs, dive tenders, research vessels, range vessels, and auxiliary support vessels.

Thales also provides ISS to Canada’s Arctic and Offshore Patrol Ships (AOPS) and Joint Support Ships (JSS), known as AJISS.

To build a sustainable domestic ISS sector that drives continuous capability, the company is collaborating with Indigenous businesses and communities like the Malahat Nation, start-ups, academia, Canada’s innovation superclusters and small and medium-sized businesses.