Marshall wins 14 year contract from Thales to produce sonar modules for Royal Navy
28 April 2025
Partnerships
Marshall’s story is one of enduring partnerships built on trust, reliability and collaboration.
We do our best work together, whether we are leading a flagship programme as prime contractor, supporting the world’s largest defence OEMs, or seeking out new growth opportunities with strategic partners.
This is a legacy we are carrying forward in the face of rapid technological change, a shifting geopolitical landscape and evolving customer requirements.
Prime contractors
Marshall has earned an international reputation as a trusted sub-contractor and partner among the world’s largest primes and OEMs, thanks to our excellence in design, manufacturing and integration, combined with our commitment to delivering for customers.
Lockheed Martin
Marshall has supported the Lockheed Martin C-130 Hercules tactical airlifter since 1966, when we were appointed the UK’s designated technical centre for the Royal Air Force’s fleet of 65 aircraft. Less than 10 years later we became the world’s first authorised Hercules Service Centre, opening up export work that has remained at the heart of Marshall’s MRO and engineering operations.
Over the decades, we have grown our expertise alongside our relationship with Lockheed Martin and the success of the Hercules programme, becoming the first Heavy Maintenance Centre for the C-130J Super Hercules, gaining unique authority to manufacture parts, and most recently achieving recognition as the first Centre of Excellence for centre wing box changes.
Lockheed Martin Air Mobility VP Danya Trent and VP of Business Development Nick Smythe visiting Marshall's Cambridge headquarters
Boeing
Since the 1970s, Marshall has conducted extensive modification and servicing programmes on Boeing platforms including the 727, 747 and 777 airliners and the E-3D AWACS Sentry aircraft.
In 2009 we became Boeing’s exclusive supplier of auxiliary fuel tanks for the globally successful P-8 Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft, end customers for which include the United Kingdom, United States, Canada, Australia, India, New Zealand and Norway. The tanks significantly extend aircraft flight range, giving operators additional time to complete the mission before returning to base.
With over 1,200 tanks produced to date, we have achieved an uninterrupted 100% on-time delivery record for over a decade, earning Boeing’s coveted Blue Supplier status.
Thales
Marshall has a well-established legacy of supporting Thales on manufacturing and systems integration programmes for the UK Ministry of Defence.
In 2025, Thales awarded Marshall a long-term contract to manufacture, maintain and support key components of anti-submarine sonar arrays that provide a critical edge for the UK’s Royal Navy.
Under the new contract, which will run from 2025 through 2039, Marshall has become a leading supplier for Sonar 2076 and Sonar 2087. Sonar 2076 is equipped on Astute class submarines in addition to the next-generation Dreadnought class, while Sonar 2087 is in use on existing Type 23 frigates and will also be equipped on their upcoming replacement, the Type 26, including variants for export.
Thales project team visit to Marshall’s Cambridge headquarters in 2025
Strategic partners
We understand the value of joining forces with partners who share our long-term strategic outlook and our sense of service, and who possess strengths and market knowledge that complement our decades of expertise and unique capabilities.
AMMROC
Marshall has entered a strategic partnership with AMMROC, the Middle East’s leading provider of military maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) solutions.
This exciting partnership will harness each organisation’s respective strengths, enabling us to jointly identify, explore and pursue new opportunities and markets that align to shared strategic goals.
In February 2025 we announced an initial 18 month joint project under which Marshall will deploy engineering expertise to support AMMROC in attaining UAE Military Design Organisation Approval (MDOA), dispatching a cadre of engineers to AMMROC’s state-of-the-art MRO facilities in Al Ain city.
AMMROC-Marshall contract signing event at IDEX 2025
Dowty (GE Aerospace)
Marshall and Dowty are among the earliest companies to have supported the C-130J Super Hercules.
As the manufacturer of the composite R391 propeller that powers the C-130J in conjunction with the Rolls-Royce AE 2100 turboprop, Dowty and Marshall have collaborated frequently to provide the best possible support for individual C-130 operators—from procurement of new parts and components to repair, overhaul and replacement.
This long-standing relationship was cemented further in 2025, when the two companies entered into an agreement establishing a standardised pricing framework for repair and overhaul of C-130J propellers and laying the groundwork for C-130J operators to access Dowty products and services through Marshall.
“Dowty is extremely proud to continue on this exciting journey with Marshall Aerospace, with whom we have an already strong collaborative partnership.
“Our local synergy, joint experience, and expertise are hallmarks of the alliance we have built to date and will hold us in good stead for the duration of this agreement and beyond.”
Paolo Riccio
Rest of World Services Leader, Dowty
Qinetiq
As the longest-serving Hercules Service Centre for Legacy C-130 models and the first Heavy Maintenance Centre for the C-130J Super Hercules, our ongoing partnership with QinetiQ reinforces our purpose of protecting people in critical situations.
In 2020, Marshall signed an exclusive agreement with QinetiQ to market, sell and install the latest generation of lightweight armour (LAST Armor® LWA) for the C-130 Hercules.
The new armour is half the weight and offers air crew the same threat protection as the previous LAST Armor. It also saves fuel, reduces the impact on the aircraft’s centre of gravity and allows the C-130-30 variant its full cargo carrying capacity.
Through this agreement, Marshall became the first company to certify the new lightweight armour, signing a deal later the same year for certification and installation on the Royal Danish Air Force’s fleet of C-130Js.
Romaero
Marshall and Romaero, a leading European aerospace maintenance and manufacturing specialist, have entered into a strategic collaboration providing a broad framework for programmed depot maintenance (PDM) of current and future C-130 Hercules aircraft operated by the Romanian Air Force (RoAF).
Our agreement establishes a comprehensive framework for Marshall and Romaero to deliver all anticipated aspects of sustainment for RoAF’s C-130 fleet. Working together, we will develop and present plans for programmed depot maintenance, including supply chain management for equipment and materials.
Marshall will also provide engineering support on repairs, airworthiness assessment and technical publications, enhancing Romaero’s in-country work to keep the RoAF aircraft mission-ready and mission-capable.
