Exercise Vuk’uhlome 2023 reaches climax during Distinguished Visitors Day
Months of hard work, training and tragedy reached a head on Wednesday 22 November when the South African Army hosted its Distinguished Visitors’ Day...
Money recovered from crime will go to fight crime
All three main legs of the South African security machine – Border Management Authority (BMA), SA National Defence Force (SANDF) and SA Police Service...
Embraer to demonstrate C-390 to the SAAF
Brazilian aerospace company Embraer will later this month demonstrate its C-390 Millenium transport aircraft to the South African Air Force (SAAF).
The aircraft will be...
SA Navy looking to replace SAS Drakensberg
The South African Navy will soon start a project to replace its combat support vessel SAS Drakensberg, which is nearly 40 years old and...
Ramaphosa proud of SANDF and wants more funding, but budget remains stagnant
President and Commander-in-Chief Cyril Ramaphosa says he wants improved funding for the South African National Defence Force (SANDF), but little additional money is making...
Ramaphosa extends deployment of soldiers to fight crime
President and Commander-in-Chief Cyril Ramaphosa has extended the deployment of 880 South African National Defence Force (SANDF) soldiers to assist the South African Police...
Slight increase in medium term defence budget
South Africa’s Department of Defence (DoD) is getting slightly more funding from National Treasury, Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana has revealed in his medium-term budget...
Most SAAF aircraft maintenance contracts only partially funded
State defence materiel agency Armscor has maintenance contracts in place for most South African Air Force (SAAF) aircraft, but most of these are only...
Lobese grateful for efficient new inshore patrol vessels, but says more are needed
Chief of the South African Navy, Vice Admiral Monde Lobese, has expressed gratitude that the Navy is receiving new inshore patrol vessels, which are...
Lack of funds pauses DoD military exit mechanism
Defence and Military Veterans Minister Thandi Modise finds herself and those under her responsible for human capital caught between the proverbial rock and a...
Armscor details SAAF C-130BZ Hercules upgrade progress
Marshall Aerospace in the United Kingdom will complete upgrade work on the first South African Air Force (SAAF) C-130BZ Hercules transport at the end...
SA’s new ‘spy bill’ lacks sufficient checks and balances, civilian oversight – ISS
South Africa’s proposed new ‘spy bill’ lacks the civilian oversight mechanisms to avoid abuse of its intelligence services, whilst vastly increasing the scope of...
Incomar grows its fleet as its business expands
Aerospace and defence company Incomar is adding new aircraft to its fleet to further assist flight testing and development work, with business and trainer...
SAAF in crisis as aircraft serviceability drops to less than 20%
The continued emasculation of the SA National Defence Force (SANDF) was vividly brought to the fore by Defence and Military Veterans Minister Thandi Modise...
Department of Defence performance declining, annual report reveals
Mainly due to funding constraints, South Africa’s Department of Defence (DoD) is missing more of its performance targets.
In a presentation to the Portfolio Committee...
Paramount’s naval business pivots to international markets as local market conditions worsen
Paramount Maritime Holdings will pivot to international markets after closing its Cape Town shipyards Nautic Africa and Veecraft, and move closer to its global...
No maintenance contracts in place for multiple SAAF aircraft types
Armscor does not have maintenance contracts in place for three of the South African Air Force’s (SAAF’s) aircraft types, with challenges finding a C-47TP...
Second SA Navy inshore patrol vessel on track for month-end handover
The South African Navy (SAN) will at the end of this month commission into service its second multi-mission inshore patrol vessel (MMIPV) as part...
SA soldiers in DR Congo suspended for sexual abuse
The ugly spectre of sexual exploitation and abuse (SEA) by soldiers deployed on peacekeeping duties has again raised its head in the Democratic Republic...
“Procurement challenges” and “lack of capacity” keep SA Navy in harbour
That the SA Navy (SAN) needs to rebuild is borne out by the hours at sea recorded by the maritime service of the SA...
Milkor’s flagship UAV takes flight
Milkor has flown its Milkor 380 unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) for the first time, marking a giant milestone in the development of its flagship...
SA Army division-level exercise not affected by Lohatla fire
Deaths and damage in the wake of Friday’s runaway fire at the SA Army Combat Training Centre (CTC) in the Northern Cape Province will...
Runaway veld fire claims the lives of six SANDF soldiers
A runaway veld fire that swept through the South African Army’s Combat Training Centre (CTC) at Lohatla claimed the lives of six soldiers, and...
Seven companies vying for Armscor APC tender
The South African Army’s search for new armoured personnel carriers (APCs) to replace its current border patrol vehicles is seeing seven South African defence...
New timelines for Project Hoefyster
Denel is proceeding with work to complete the development of the Badger infantry fighting vehicle (IFV) under Project Hoefyster, and expects to establish a...
To The Point International sets its sights on new turret range
Vernon Kroeger, CEO of Midrand-based To The Point International, working closely with Vision24 Technologies, is well advanced with the development of a number of...
SA Navy holds memorial service for fallen submariners
Family, colleagues and friends gathered at a moving commemoration service at the Wynberg Military Base Sports Complex in Cape Town on Wednesday to honour...
SA arms exports to Poland on hold, not denied – NCACC
South Africa’s National Conventional Arms Control Committee (NCACC) has not blocked arms exports to Poland, but placed them on hold – however, it is...
Denel says it is making progress with its turnaround strategy
Denel is forging partnerships with the UAE, Turkey, and Saudi Arabia, selling assets and restarting production as it continues to implement its turnaround strategy.
Interim...
SAAF Oryx pilot recalls ill-fated DRC flight
The rigours of operational deployments in hostile areas were illustrated with pathos by SA Air Force (SAAF) Oryx pilot Captain Mathew Allan when recounting...
SA arms exports up in first half of 2023
If current trends continue, South Africa is set to export far more military hardware and munitions this year than last, as exports in the...
Department of Defence running out of money for salaries as it faces more huge...
The Department of Defence (DoD) has significantly overspent on employee salaries, to the tune of R12 billion over the last seven years, and is...
Alkantpan hosts successful Denel capability demo
Proof Denel can still make the grade came at Armscor’s Alkantpan test range last month with pride of place going to a VLAP (velocity...
Presidency publishes Lady R report summary but new questions arise over UAE involvement
The South African Presidency has published the long-awaited executive summary of the report looking into the arrival of the Lady R cargo vessel in...
SA Navy Chief seeks improved African maritime security through cooperation, exercises
SA Navy (SAN) Chief, Vice Admiral Monde Lobese, gave delegates to last week’s IMDEC (International Maritime Defence Exhibition and Conference) in Ghana an insight...
No evidence of Lady R loading weapons – Ramaphosa
There was nothing untoward or suspicious about the December arrival of a Russian cargo ship in the Simon’s Town naval harbour, South African President...
South African Air Force, Lesotho Defence Force strengthen ties
Members of the Lesotho Defence Force (LDF) are in South Africa under a cooperation agreement aimed at furthering air arm training.
Ad Astra intern Nondumiso...
South Africa and Germany aiming to hold long-delayed naval exercise in 2024
South Africa and Germany will next year hold the eighth iteration of the Good Hope naval exercise, after a six-year hiatus compounded by the...
Underfunded SANDF will implode ‘sooner or later’
Defence experts maintain that due to the decline of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF), South Africa would be defenceless if attacked.
Analyst Helmoed...
SANDF needs to up its ICT game in the face of sophisticated threats –...
The South African National Defence Force (SANDF) needs to modernise its information and communication technology (ICT) and ensure its information systems are secure in...
Lack of maintenance contract grounds SAAF C-208 Caravans
The SA Air Force (SAAF) has had to ground its Cessna 208 Caravan light transport aircraft with age and funding cited as guilty partners.
The...
RDM developing artillery ammunition with 150+ km range
Rheinmetall Denel Munition (RDM) continues to evolve its ammunition portfolio, with the development of a ramjet-powered 155 mm artillery round that will have a...
SAAF to help ATNS with air traffic control amid staff shortage
The South African Air Force (SAAF) is to deploy Air Traffic Controllers (ATC) to civilian airports around South Africa due to a staff shortage...
Change of plan for aspirant South African Air Force officers who failed fitness test
Goalposts have been moved – temporarily it appears – for a component of the SA Air Force (SAAF) officers’ forming course (OFC).
The shift is...
SA Navy submarine SAS Manthatisi’s presence off the Cape explained
The woes that the suffering South African Navy continues to have to endure make for depressing reading. So to see one of her capital...
DCD launches new vehicle as it celebrates its 125th anniversary
DCD Protected Mobility launched a new weapons platform vehicle at its fourth military attache and advisory corps (MAAC) demonstration day, which witnessed its armoured...
Ammunition and electronic systems dominate SA’s 2022 defence exports
Ammunition and electronic systems accounted for the majority of South African defence exports last year, according to the latest National Conventional Arms Control Committee...
SAS King Shaka – MMIPV number two – busy with sea trials
The seagoing component of the SA Navy's Project Biro is approaching the 66% completion mark with the second multi-mission inshore patrol vessel (MMIPV) working...
SANDF salaries and personnel numbers remain a thorny issue
The man at the helm of personnel in the SA National Defence Force (SANDF) told a recent, and reportedly overdue, communication period the South...
RDM aiming to double production, expand facilities as artillery demand soars
Rheinmetall Denel Munition (RDM) is running 24-hour-a-day shifts at its plants across South Africa and is investing hundreds of millions of rands in their...
