Elbit Systems unit wins British Army contract

Elbit Systems Ltd. (Nasdaq: ESLT; TASE: ESLT) joint venture with Thales UK, UAV Tactical Systems Ltd. (U-TacS), has won a $110 million Thales UK contract to provide an urgent intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition and reconnaissance (ISTAR) support capability for the British Army.

Elbit System owns 51% of U-TacS, and Thales UK owns 49%.

The program will begin immediately, and continue over the next few years. Elbit Systems will provide its Hermes 450 unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), train the UK Ministry of Defence staff in use and maintenance of the system, and the provision of contractor logistic support and program management services. This work will be managed from the U -TacS facility in Leicester, UK, which has 100 employees. U -TacS also provides the core UAV systems for the Thales UK Watchkeeper UAV system for the British Army.

Elbit Systems president and CEO Joseph Ackerman said, "We are proud to be a part of another winning team together with Thales UK in a project based on the high-end tactical Hermes 450 UAV, globally recognized as a brand name for UAV customers worldwide."

Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes.co.il - on June 7, 2007

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