Romania Selects Thales to Supply Four Deployable Radar Systems for Its Air Force

Romania's defence ministry has selected Thales, the French defence equipment maker, to provide radar systems that will support both civil and military airspace surveillance and approach and landing operations, the company said on Tuesday.

Four systems, delivered by 2030

The ministry intends to buy four radar systems under a multiannual contract, and Thales said the systems will be delivered in phases to four Romanian Air Force locations, with deliveries scheduled by 2030. The package is built around deployable Ground Controlled Approach radar systems, which give air traffic controllers precise, real time information on an aircraft's position relative to the runway centreline and glide path during approach and recovery.

Thales said the package combines its STAR NG primary surveillance radar, an S-Band system designed for approach control with coverage of up to 60 nautical miles, with its RSM NG secondary radar, which combines NATO Mode 5 and EUROCONTROL Mode S identification with ADS-B detection in a single system. Four Precision Approach Radars are also part of the package, to support the safe control of aircraft during approach and landing in poor weather and low visibility.

What the controllers get

Thales said the approach radars support approaches and recoveries when visual references are limited, so air force personnel can manage aircraft movements safely in demanding conditions, including at locations where fixed infrastructure is not available or is not sufficient. The STAR NG is a scalable radar designed for approach control across civil and military applications, including airports and air base environments, and the secondary radar handles aircraft identification across the key defence and civil standards in one unit, the company said.

Built to move, not to sit at one base

The company said the systems will improve the Romanian Air Force's ability to relocate operations and work from alternative sites, reducing its reliance on fixed airbase infrastructure and strengthening operational resilience. The radars will feed real time target data to national and NATO command and control systems, around the clock and in all weather conditions, Thales said.

A border watched closely since 2022

Romania is a NATO member and shares a 614 kilometre, or 381 mile, border with Ukraine. It has repeatedly reported Russian drone incursions into its airspace since Moscow's full scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, and it has started shooting down drones that enter its airspace. The radar purchase is the latest step in that airspace watch, putting mobile surveillance and landing systems at four locations rather than tying the capability to a single fixed site.