SA-Brazil missile venture in full flight

Succesful tests in Sweden of an air-to-air missile being developed jointly by the Brazilian and South African defence industries have brought closer the opportunity for the South African Air Force (SAAF) to start training its fighter-jet pilots with the new equipment.

The R1bn A-Darter missile programme, geared for both countries’ air forces, has completed a series of ground- launched flight tests that are a necessary part of the preparation for the transition to air-launch flight tests.

Denel Dynamics is the prime contractor for the A-Darter, a fifth- generation imaging infrared air-to-air defence missile, but the project is jointly funded by the governments of Brazil and SA. As a result, the programme involves both countries’ engineers, scientists and technicians.

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