Navantia & Thales Partner to Upgrade Royal Thai Navy Fleet with Advanced IFF Systems

Navantia & Thales Forge Strategic Tie-Up to Modernise the Royal Thai Navy

Mohd Hanif Ismail - : Nov 14, 2025 - : 3:33 pm

In a significant move for Southeast Asian maritime security, Spanish shipbuilder Navantia and European defence prime Thales have formalised a partnership to upgrade key assets of the Royal Thai Navy (RTN), including Offshore Patrol Vessels (OPVs) and an amphibious Landing...

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Under the deal, Thales will supply three of its Identification Friend or Foe (IFF) systems as part of Navantia’s modernisation of two Pattani-class OPVs and its upgrade of the RTN’s HTMS Chang LPD. This was confirmed in a press release by Navantia during the Defense & Security 2025 exhibition in Bangkok.

According to Navantia, the IFF interrogators to be provided will enhance real-time situational awareness, particularly against increasingly fast and complex maritime threats. The system integrates closely with the OPVs’ radar and combat management suites — a critical element in ensuring robust identification of both friendly and potentially hostile contacts.

The partnership marks the first time Navantia and Thales have formally collaborated in Thailand. Their agreement underscores both companies’ commitment to reinforcing the RTN’s sensor and command infrastructure, especially as Navantia presses ahead with fleet modernisation contracts signed earlier in 2025. The companies’ joint venture comes against the backdrop of Navantia’s broader programme: earlier this year, the Spanish firm won a contract to upgrade HTMS Chang with its CATIZ Combat Management System and DORNA Fire Control System.

Navantia’s 2025 deal to modernise two Pattani-class OPVs further emphasises its deepening role in the Asia-Pacific defence market. Jose Ignacio Navas, Navantia’s Commercial Director for Asia, said the IFF collaboration “reaffirms Navantia’s commitment to delivering state-of-the-art solutions and supporting the strategic needs of the RTN.”

On the Thales side, the company brings decades of experience in the Thai defence ecosystem: over 80 per cent of the RTN’s warships currently use Thales sensors, fire-control, sonars, and command-and-control systems. Nicolas Bernardin, Country Director for Thales in Thailand, stated that the IFF systems will “bring new life into the sensor suites” of HTMS Pattani, HTMS Narathiwat and the HTMS Chang, reinforcing the navy’s interoperability and maritime awareness.

The IFF solutions in question include the TSA3520 interrogator — optimised for medium and long-range surveillance — and the TSC4000 transponder, which is already widely used across naval and airborne platforms globally.

Strategic Implications & Asia-Pacific Angle

The collaboration comes at a time when Thailand is increasingly focused on modernising its maritime capabilities to address both traditional and non-traditional security challenges in the Asia-Pacific region. With rising strategic competition in the South China Sea and increasing demand for disaster-relief and humanitarian missions, the enhancement of RTN’s command, control and identification systems enhances both deterrence and operational flexibility.

For Navantia, this represents a consolidation of its footprint in Southeast Asia: following the contract to upgrade HTMS Chang as well as the Pattani-class vessels, the company is cementing its role as a key partner in Thailand’s ship modernisation programme. Similarly, Thales strengthens its long-standing presence in the Thai market, building on its historic support since the 1990s, when it began supplying radars and combat systems to the RTN.

By combining Navantia’s combat systems and integration expertise with Thales’ secure identification capabilities, the RTN is poised to significantly enhance its situational awareness, interoperability and resilience — critical advantages in an increasingly contested maritime domain.