Grintek Ewation wins major EW maintenance deal
Date: 30 September 2010
Grintek Ewation has been awarded a R23 859 454 contract to maintain its electronic warfare (EW) and communication intelligence systems aboard the Denel Oryx medium utility helicopter and Douglas C47TP Dakota aircraft.
The contract, ELGS/2010/112, awarded last week, follows a similar deal in February. The SAAF then awarded the company business worth R2 280 702 for the "maintenance of the Oryx communication jammer, communication intelligence system and Dakota communication intelligence electronic warfare systems" as an extension of master contract ELGS/2005/152.
In July, Sysdel, the small Pierre van Ryneveld-based defence electronics house, benefitted from a contract worth nearly R1.8 million for "limited product supply support of the open loop tracker, Dakota electronic intelligence, ESM/electronic intelligence and Oryx radar standoff jammer systems for the SAAF." [ESM = electronic support measures] The contract was an extension of ELGS/2006/540. It is not clear what the total value of the latter is. The Armscor system does show Sysdel was awarded a R4 million contract on March 17 this year.
The SAAF lost its main EW platform, the Boeing B707-320C due to old age and high costs in 2006. By then the type was no longer being used as EW platforms due to the obsolescence of the EW equipment. It had been planned that the Airbus Military A400M would take over this function at 60 Squadron, but the cancellation of the acquisition has scuppered that.
The Dakota, or Douglas C47TP, was used as the training platform for the B707. The Oryx EW programme, described as stand-off radar jammers and codenamed Project Deer, was completed in June 2007.
The wikipedia notes EW "refers to any action involving the use of the electromagnetic spectrum or directed energy to control the spectrum, attack an enemy, or impede enemy assaults via the spectrum. The purpose of electronic warfare is to deny the opponent the advantage of, and ensure friendly unimpeded access to, the electromagnetic spectrum."
The Sysdel website shows the company was involved in all the above programmes as well as the outfitting of some SAAF Cessna C208 Caravan aircraft as EW platform. Several C208 were fitted with electro-optical pods in the run up to the soccer World Cup (Project Koiler), giving the light utility useful specialist functions.
Source: DefenceWeb
