Thales Defense & Security, Inc. (TDSI) announced that it received an order from the NATO Support and Procurement Agency (NSPA) for Scorpion Helmet Mounted Display (HMD) retrofit kits to support U.S. Air Force (USAF) F-16 HMD modernization.
The Scorpion HMD kits provide a modern digital platform allowing for enhanced pilot situational awareness with full-color symbology and a single display for both day and night operations. These kits will replace the Joint Helmet Mounted Cueing System (JHMCS) and allow the USAF a common Scorpion HMD solution across Air Force, Air National Guard, and USAF Reserve F-16s.
Thales Visionix, a division of TDSI, will manage the contract. The Scorpion system is baselined with Visionix’s precision Hybrid Optically based Inertial Tracker (HObIT), providing precise tracking through a fusion of inertial-optical technology.
Jim Geraghty, Vice President of Visionix at Thales, stated: "Modernization efforts around helmet-mounted displays for aircraft are essential to pilots as they provide critical real-time information directly in their line of sight, enhancing situational awareness, decision-making, and operational efficiency while reducing the need to divert attention from the aircraft’s instruments and environment. Already supporting F-16 Air National Guard pilots with superior awareness and tracking capability, Scorpion kits will now enhance holistic USAF air dominance."
This order, issued by NSPA supporting USAF F-16 modernization efforts, is the first of several anticipated delivery orders. The contract arrangement also allows a procurement option for any F-16 NATO partner to modernize with Scorpion kit capability with similarly configured aircraft. Initial kits are anticipated to be delivered to the USAF in late-2025.
