The South African Army has received all components of its Artillery Target Engagement System (ATES), concluding Project Klooster, which had been running since the early 1990s.
In its 2014/15 annual report, the Armaments Corporation of South Africa (Armscor) stated that the project was “finally completed during the reporting period. The programme which comprised 16 sub-projects and various programme phases to validate the requirements and qualify the solutions, delivered two regiments of fire control and target engagement systems as well as equipment for training at the SA Army School of Artillery.”
During the 2014/15 period the system was commissioned and handed over to the SA Army Artillery Formation, and was taken into operational use.
The ATES consists of Brigade, Regimental, Battery and Launcher level command and fire control elements, providing the South African Artillery Formation with a digitized command and control solution, Armscor said. The system is equipped with unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) operating up to 60 km, long range observation systems (EAOS) capable of operating up to 20 km, and basic observation systems (BAOS) operating up to 10 km, providing for day and night battlefield surveillance and target acquisition capabilities.
The ATES, type classified the AS2000 in SA Army Service, is the successor to the AS80 under Project Dibula. AS2000 allows gunners to manage their guns and rocket launchers, analyse muzzle velocity, compute and track meteorological data and effect technical and terminal fire control. It also allows artillery commanders to command and control their guns and fire units as well as to communicate and transfer data.
The Artillery Target Engagement System includes the Basic Artillery Observation System (man portable observation post equipment including thermal imaging, day zoom camera, LH40C hand held laser rangefinder), the Enhanced Artillery Observation System (Ratel fitted with a 30 metre hydraulic mast topped with a day/night camera, laser designator and laser rangefinder for day and night observation out to 30 km), the Gun Muzzle velocity analyser for G5 and G6 artillery, the Vulture UAV, fire control computers, artillery command computers, digital communications for the artillery, and the S700 meteorological system.
