Germany’s Rheinmetall AG said March 27 it recently signed a contract with South Africa for an undisclosed amount to modernize its existing air defense systems.
The work includes logistics and training and is to be completed by 2017.
Photo: Rheinmetall AG
Among other items, the contract includes supplying Oerlikon Skyshield fire control units, which will substantially improve the performance and accuracy of South Africa’s current twin-gun systems as well as significantly expanding the operational spectrum of its air defense capabilities. A number of guns will be retrofitted with upgrade kits to accommodate Rheinmetall’s state-of-the-art Ahead airburst ammunition.
The new Skyshield technology will enable the South African armed forces to protect sensitive installations such as the House of Parliament, power plants, stadiums and other critical military and civilian assets from a wide array of aerial threats, including asymmetric terrorist-type attacks.
Because Skyshield air defence systems can be transported without much effort, they can basically be deployed anywhere depending on the evolving threat situation.
Since the 1980s, South Africa has fielded air defense technology from the former Oerlikon Contraves, which Rheinmetall took over in 1999.