Thomson-CSF changes name to Thales

Thomson-CSF (Paris, France) announced it has changed its corporate name to Thales. The company says it made the move for a variety of reasons, including brand name difficulties and because its former identity "no longer adequately reflected the reality of the group today."

Changes to subsidiaries include:

• Thomson-CSF Sextant is renamed Thales Avionics;
  
• Thomson-CSF Sextant In-Flight Systems is renamed Thales Avionics In-Flight Systems; and
  
• Thomson-CSF Sextant Auxilec is renamed Thales Avionics Electrical Systems.

"We have changed significantly since the days when we were known simply as a French defense company," said Thales chairman Denis Ranque. "Today, we are a global dual-technology group with substantial businesses in the aerospace, defense and IT and services markets. By assuming a new name and identity at this important point in our history, we are clearly signaling the scale of that change."

The company has operations in nearly 30 countries and has more than 65,000 employees worldwide, half of them based outside France. The company's new Internet address is www.thalesgroup.com.

Thales (which the company says is pronounced ta'les) was a Greek mathematician and philosopher who lived from approximately 625 to 547 BC.

Edited by David Robb
Managing Editor, AerospaceOnline.com