Samtel-Saab ink MoU for new generation head-up display

New Delhi, Feb 16 : Samtel Display Systems (SDS), one of India's leading private sector aerospace companies, has inked a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Swedish major Saab to jointly develop, manufacture and market a new generation head-up display (HUD) for helicopters, it was announced here Tuesday.

"RIGS is a new-generation advanced lightweight HUD designed by Saab to provide helicopters with a cost-effective display solution," a statement jointly issued by Samtel and Saab said.

RIGS gives all-weather capability, ideal for flying and landing helicopters in challenging conditions, by presenting landing information and images from enhanced vision sensors, enabling pilots to see through darkness, smog, smoke and various levels of snow, rain and fog.

Safety is, therefore, enhanced via early detection of runway incursions and improved awareness of terrain during night and day operations.

The announcement of the MoU was made by Micael Johansson, a senior vice president of Saab and Puneet Kaura, executive director of SDS at the DefExpo land and naval systems exhibition.

"SDS is already in advanced stages of developing HUDs for fighter aircraft. Subsequent to this MoU, SDS will now also be involved in the development of RIGS HUD together with Saab. SDS and Saab will jointly market RIGS in India to potential Indian customers for the Indian commercial and military airborne market," the statement said.

"SDS will be involved in the development of RIGS electronics and software and will also develop and manufacture parts of the RIGS HUD. Initially, the parts manufactured by SDS will be for the Indian market, with the potential of serving international market in the long run," the statement added.

"SDS may also, at a later stage, leverage its relationship with HAL (Hindustan Aeronautics Limited) for the joint marketing activities of RIGS," the statement pointed out.

According to Kaura: "Our current goal with reference to this MoU is to help Saab serve the Indian market in the HUDs segment. But we are hopeful that through our focus on quality, along with cost effectiveness, this collaboration will extend to other international markets as well over the next few years".

This is the second MoU to be signed between Saab and SDS. The first identifies SDS as an offset partner if the Indian Air Force chooses the Saab Gripen for its order for 126 combat jets.

"India is a very important market for us and is an important cornerstone of our overall global strategy. We are very confident about SDS' technological and manufacturing capabilities and are happy to partner with them. This collaboration marks our next step towards consolidating our position in the Indian aerospace and defence market," Saab's Johansson said.