NEWS & EVENTS - GENERAL
6 May 2001
Museum Mustang performes wheels-up landing
General
The SAAF Museum's P-51D Mustang made a wheel-up landing at AFB Waterkloof this morning after one of the undercarriage legs did not extend. Extent of damage to the aircraft or injuries to the crew (pilot Lt. Col Neil Thomas and a passenger) is not...
4 May 2001
69 SANDF members in DRC
General
A total of 69 SA National Defence Force (SANDF) specialist members of staff have been deployed for peacekeeping duties in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the SANDF said on Thursday. Most of them would be working from Kinshasa, the SANDF said in...
3 April 2001
Government property custodian starts selling redundant military bases
General
The Department of Public Works has held a one-day conference for property developers, investors and financiers interested in buying and developing redundant state property, including a number of military bases. They included, in the Western Cape, for...
28 March 2001
SANDF spent R14.02-million in Mozambique
General
South African National Defence Force assistance to flood-ravaged Mozambique earlier this month cost R14.02-million (US1.76-million). President Thabo Mbeki told Parliament in a letter this week that 83 SANDF personnel were deployed in Mozambique from ...
19 March 2001
SAAF not looking for VIP pilots
General
Despite newspaper reports to the contary, the SAAF is not looking to hire commercial pilots for its new VIP jet, rumoured to be the Boeing 737-700.According to a SAAF insider, there is a process being followed for the acquisition of, the intergration...
16 March 2001
Eurocopter expands southern African presence
General
The SA Police Service has recently acquired three Eurocopter AS350 B3 Squirrel helicopters for its air wing. The SAPS also operate 16 BO-105 and two BK-117 helicopters. The SA Air Force operates a further 10 BK-117's. Eurocopter has maintenance c...
13 March 2001
SAN ships built to accommodate Lynx only
General
Senior naval sources say the hangars and flight deck of South Africa's four Meko A200SAN corvettes are being built with AgustaWestland's Lynx naval helicopter in mind. Although the military has short-listed the ultra- sophisticated and very e...
7 March 2001
Official SAAF statement re: AFB Ysterplaat
General
Sorry about the delay, but the pressures of (paying) work has kept me too busy, but herewith the official SAAF statement:'SAAF BULLETIN 2 March 2001: No 05/2001 SAAF Short-Term Plan - AFB Ysterplaat The South African Air Forc...
7 March 2001
Future of Ysterplaat Museum assured
General
The future of the SAAF Museum at AFB Ysterplaat has been assured with the SAAF accepting a business plan written by Dean Wingrin with the assistance of Kirk Kirnear.A new Section 21 company (non-profit company) will be formed to take over the running...
5 March 2001
AFB Ysterplaat to close!
General
It was announced today that the SAAF is scaling down operations at AFB Ysterplaat with immediate effect and that they would vacate the base by March 2002.As the deed of lease states that the property must remain an airfield, there is the possibility ...
2 March 2001
The SAAF's first Hawk hatching
General
BAE SYSTEMS announced in its annual results this week that the construction of the first of 24 Hawk lead-in fighter trainers for the SA Air Force was underway. "BAE SYSTEMS has been contracted to supply the South African Air Force with 24 dual-s...
25 February 2001
SAAF to help in Mozambique floods ... again
General
President Thabo Mbeki on Sunday authorised that the SA National Defence Force and medical officials depart for Mozambique to help flood victims. Foreign affairs spokesman Ronnie Mamoepa said Mbeki was responding to an urgent request from the Mo...
22 February 2001
New jet for President Mbeki
General
The 2001/02 Defence Force budget, announced by Finance Minister Trevor Manual today, has made allowances for a total of R300 million to be spent over the next two years to buy a long-range aircraft to be used mainly by the President.The defence vote ...
9 February 2001
Air Force to mothball surplus helicopters?
General
While Parliament is probing the Government's controversial R43 billion arms procurement package, the Air Force is considering "storing unused helicopters until they are needed in a few years' time". It says it has surplus helicopter...
27 January 2001
'Pi' Pienaar passes away
General
Captain "Pi" Pienaar, DSO, DFC, passed away on Sunday 21 January 2001. Probably best known for his encounter with a Messerschmitt Me262 while flying a Mosquito during World War II, his achievements however stretch much further than th...
18 January 2001
VIP flight budget overspent
General
Increasing diplomatic intervention in foreign countries, coupled to the declining rand, has been blamed for VIP jets of the Air Force having already begun two months ago to exceed their flight quota for the current financial year.The jets are mainly ...
8 January 2001
Transall sale hits controvosy
General
Top Armscor officials are likely to meet in Pretoria this morning to discuss reports of about R2 billion damages suit against the state armaments agency. This follows reports yesterday that two disgruntled US businessmen had given a local attorney a ...
4 January 2001
Further Transall details revealed
General
It has been reaveled that Heli-Lift Ltd of the UK was awarded a tender on 10 November 2000 for marketing and sales distribution rights for eight aircraft, together with spares and other related equipment. The contract is worth R170 million (&po...
8 December 2000
New appointments
General
* Colonel M.M.M. Mangethe Mdlalose of the SA Air Force is promoted to the temporary rank of Brigadier General, without pay of rank, and appointed as Chief of Staff, Regional Joint Task Force West with effect from 1 January 2001 and promotion to the s...
27 November 2000
Pilot killed in Cheetah C crash
General
A SAAF pilot died after his Cheetah C aircraft crashed at AFB Louis Trichardt in the Northern Province. The aircraft, from 2 Squadron, was on a test flight and the pilot, Capt. Piet Koster, made no distress call and did not eject. Apparently the airc...
27 October 2000
New VIP jet?
General
It is rumoured that the new VIP transport aircraft for the State President has been short listed to the Boeing 737 Business Jet and the Airbus A319, presumably the Corporate Jet version.It is not certain where the funds will come from as the SAAF bud...
19 October 2000
17 Military bases for sale
General
Seventeen SA National Defence Force bases will be put on the market from January, Public Works Minister Stella Sigcau has announced in Parliament. The disused bases, worth a few million rand, should attract private buyers because many border urban ar...
13 October 2000
Transall on/off sale off again!
General
The Afrikaans daily, Beeld, reports the National Conventional Arms Control Committee (NCACC) has placed the sale of eight ex-SAAF C160 Transall transports on hold for reasons not altogether clear. The paper said the disposal service of Armscor (the D...
6 October 2000
Armed forces creak to a halt
General
A CONFIDENTIAL defence department report has painted a grim picture of decrepit machinery and shortages of ammunition and fuel in South Africa’s armed forces.The reports states that the airforce would have to ground 88 aircraft and 46 helicopte...
6 October 2000
Which bases are closing?
General
I can now reveal which airforce base is due to close which I first alluded to on 17 April this year!AFB Ysterplaat may cease to be a AFB from early 2001. It is still to be decided whether keep it open as a civil airport for light aircraft or to devel...
Museum Mustang performes wheels-up landing
General
The SAAF Museum's P-51D Mustang made a wheel-up landing at AFB Waterkloof this morning after one of the undercarriage legs did not extend. Extent of damage to the aircraft or injuries to the crew (pilot Lt. Col Neil Thomas and a passenger) is not...
69 SANDF members in DRC
General
A total of 69 SA National Defence Force (SANDF) specialist members of staff have been deployed for peacekeeping duties in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the SANDF said on Thursday. Most of them would be working from Kinshasa, the SANDF said in...
Government property custodian starts selling redundant military bases
General
The Department of Public Works has held a one-day conference for property developers, investors and financiers interested in buying and developing redundant state property, including a number of military bases. They included, in the Western Cape, for...
SANDF spent R14.02-million in Mozambique
General
South African National Defence Force assistance to flood-ravaged Mozambique earlier this month cost R14.02-million (US1.76-million). President Thabo Mbeki told Parliament in a letter this week that 83 SANDF personnel were deployed in Mozambique from ...
SAAF not looking for VIP pilots
General
Despite newspaper reports to the contary, the SAAF is not looking to hire commercial pilots for its new VIP jet, rumoured to be the Boeing 737-700.According to a SAAF insider, there is a process being followed for the acquisition of, the intergration...
Eurocopter expands southern African presence
General
The SA Police Service has recently acquired three Eurocopter AS350 B3 Squirrel helicopters for its air wing. The SAPS also operate 16 BO-105 and two BK-117 helicopters. The SA Air Force operates a further 10 BK-117's. Eurocopter has maintenance c...
SAN ships built to accommodate Lynx only
General
Senior naval sources say the hangars and flight deck of South Africa's four Meko A200SAN corvettes are being built with AgustaWestland's Lynx naval helicopter in mind. Although the military has short-listed the ultra- sophisticated and very e...
Official SAAF statement re: AFB Ysterplaat
General
Sorry about the delay, but the pressures of (paying) work has kept me too busy, but herewith the official SAAF statement:'SAAF BULLETIN 2 March 2001: No 05/2001 SAAF Short-Term Plan - AFB Ysterplaat The South African Air Forc...
Future of Ysterplaat Museum assured
General
The future of the SAAF Museum at AFB Ysterplaat has been assured with the SAAF accepting a business plan written by Dean Wingrin with the assistance of Kirk Kirnear.A new Section 21 company (non-profit company) will be formed to take over the running...
AFB Ysterplaat to close!
General
It was announced today that the SAAF is scaling down operations at AFB Ysterplaat with immediate effect and that they would vacate the base by March 2002.As the deed of lease states that the property must remain an airfield, there is the possibility ...
The SAAF's first Hawk hatching
General
BAE SYSTEMS announced in its annual results this week that the construction of the first of 24 Hawk lead-in fighter trainers for the SA Air Force was underway. "BAE SYSTEMS has been contracted to supply the South African Air Force with 24 dual-s...
SAAF to help in Mozambique floods ... again
General
President Thabo Mbeki on Sunday authorised that the SA National Defence Force and medical officials depart for Mozambique to help flood victims. Foreign affairs spokesman Ronnie Mamoepa said Mbeki was responding to an urgent request from the Mo...
New jet for President Mbeki
General
The 2001/02 Defence Force budget, announced by Finance Minister Trevor Manual today, has made allowances for a total of R300 million to be spent over the next two years to buy a long-range aircraft to be used mainly by the President.The defence vote ...
Air Force to mothball surplus helicopters?
General
While Parliament is probing the Government's controversial R43 billion arms procurement package, the Air Force is considering "storing unused helicopters until they are needed in a few years' time". It says it has surplus helicopter...
'Pi' Pienaar passes away
General
Captain "Pi" Pienaar, DSO, DFC, passed away on Sunday 21 January 2001. Probably best known for his encounter with a Messerschmitt Me262 while flying a Mosquito during World War II, his achievements however stretch much further than th...
VIP flight budget overspent
General
Increasing diplomatic intervention in foreign countries, coupled to the declining rand, has been blamed for VIP jets of the Air Force having already begun two months ago to exceed their flight quota for the current financial year.The jets are mainly ...
Transall sale hits controvosy
General
Top Armscor officials are likely to meet in Pretoria this morning to discuss reports of about R2 billion damages suit against the state armaments agency. This follows reports yesterday that two disgruntled US businessmen had given a local attorney a ...
Further Transall details revealed
General
It has been reaveled that Heli-Lift Ltd of the UK was awarded a tender on 10 November 2000 for marketing and sales distribution rights for eight aircraft, together with spares and other related equipment. The contract is worth R170 million (&po...
New appointments
General
* Colonel M.M.M. Mangethe Mdlalose of the SA Air Force is promoted to the temporary rank of Brigadier General, without pay of rank, and appointed as Chief of Staff, Regional Joint Task Force West with effect from 1 January 2001 and promotion to the s...
Pilot killed in Cheetah C crash
General
A SAAF pilot died after his Cheetah C aircraft crashed at AFB Louis Trichardt in the Northern Province. The aircraft, from 2 Squadron, was on a test flight and the pilot, Capt. Piet Koster, made no distress call and did not eject. Apparently the airc...
New VIP jet?
General
It is rumoured that the new VIP transport aircraft for the State President has been short listed to the Boeing 737 Business Jet and the Airbus A319, presumably the Corporate Jet version.It is not certain where the funds will come from as the SAAF bud...
17 Military bases for sale
General
Seventeen SA National Defence Force bases will be put on the market from January, Public Works Minister Stella Sigcau has announced in Parliament. The disused bases, worth a few million rand, should attract private buyers because many border urban ar...
Transall on/off sale off again!
General
The Afrikaans daily, Beeld, reports the National Conventional Arms Control Committee (NCACC) has placed the sale of eight ex-SAAF C160 Transall transports on hold for reasons not altogether clear. The paper said the disposal service of Armscor (the D...
Armed forces creak to a halt
General
A CONFIDENTIAL defence department report has painted a grim picture of decrepit machinery and shortages of ammunition and fuel in South Africa’s armed forces.The reports states that the airforce would have to ground 88 aircraft and 46 helicopte...
Which bases are closing?
General
I can now reveal which airforce base is due to close which I first alluded to on 17 April this year!AFB Ysterplaat may cease to be a AFB from early 2001. It is still to be decided whether keep it open as a civil airport for light aircraft or to devel...
