Ireland procures towed array sonars from Thales
In June, officials from the Irish government signed a contract with Thales DMS France for the acquisition of variable depth sonars (VDS) to be delivered by 2027 to the Naval Service.
Ireland Government press release issued 15 June, 2025
The Tánaiste and Minister for Defence, Simon Harris, today announced the signing of a multi-million euro contract with Thales DMS France for the provision of towed sonar capability.
The sonar, the first of its kind in Ireland, will be used for monitoring and surveillance in the subsea domain, thus significantly enhancing maritime security.
The new sonar capability will be used on Irish Naval vessels to monitor activities in the Irish Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and, in particular, in the vicinity of subsea communication cables or gas pipelines.
Commenting on the award of the contract, the Tánaiste said:
“This significant investment in sonar capability will provide the Naval Service with a state-of-the-art sonar system, which will enable them to build a picture of our subsea, thus contributing to the important task of protecting our critical underwater infrastructure.
“This is one of many strands of work being progressed to address the threats in our maritime domain. It will serve as an important first step in creating a “pattern of life” in the subsea domain, with future projects further enhancing this capability.
“This investment will contribute to the Programme for Government commitment to focus on the protection of critical undersea. It also responds in part to the need identified in the report of the Commission on the Defence Forces, under Level of Ambition 2, for a number of maritime capabilities including the enhancement of sub-surface capabilities to monitor sub-sea cables.
“My department is also progressing the development of the country’s first National Maritime Security Strategy and a public consultation on this new strategy will be launched in the coming days.”
On the awarding of the contract, the Chief of Staff of the Defence Forces, Lieutenant General Rossa Mulcahy said:
“This advancement in capabilities of the Naval Service, through the procurement of towed array sonar, will enable our ships at sea to monitor the subsurface space within our maritime area. This capability will greatly enhance the Defence Forces’ situational awareness across domains and is a welcome advancement in the continued development and transformation of the Óglaigh na hÉireann.”
While the Naval Service and Air Corps regularly monitor activity on Irish seas, this new acquisition will enhance awareness below the surface, contributing to the overall maritime picture available to Naval Service and the wider Defence Forces. An enhanced maritime picture is also important for detecting illegal activities such as illegal fishing, drug trafficking, terrorism and espionage.
It is anticipated that this new capability will be available to the Naval Service in 2027.
Naval News comments:
Given the type of vessels currently in service with Ireland’s Naval Service (An tSeirbhís Chabhlaigh), the VDS being procured is likely the CAPTAS-1, which is available in a modular (containerized) form.
Contacted by Naval News, Thales declined to comment.
