France Orders 3,000 Thales O-NYX Night Vision Goggles

The French armed forces have placed an order for 3,000 O-NYX goggles with Thales.

The additional 3,000 night vision goggles ordered by the French Armament General Directorate (DGA) will be delivered in 2021 for deployment into French Army units alongside the 3,500 O-NYX goggles already delivered.

Weighing less than 350 g, O-NYX goggles have a low-profile design that shortens the distance between the eyes and the center of gravity of the equipment to minimize neck strain. They offer a 51° field of view, expanding the observed scene by 70% compared with conventional goggles. The goggle can work for up to 40 hours on a single charge and can run on standard AA batteries when needed.

The O-NYX program is part of moves to replace small equipment — items like handguns, helmets and bullet-proof vests — under the current French defense spending plan. For the O-NYX program, Thales’s partner Photonis enhanced the performance of its image intensification tubes and worked with the DGA and the French Army to validate its latest 4G tube technology, which increases optical performance by 50-60% compared to existing solutions.