SAAF must get BVR capability to be relevant on the African continent

If the Southern African Development Community (SADC) as a region and South Africa as a country wish to be taken seriously on the continent, a Beyond Visual Range (BVR) capability must be introduced for the SA Air Force’s Gripen C/D fighters.

Otherwise the Air Force has no chance to achieve air superiority in a given theatre, according to an Air Force official.

Presenting a paper at the South African Joint Air Defence Symposium (SAJADS) in Pretoria yesterday, Lieutenant Colonel Musa ‘Midnite’ Mbhokota, Officer Commanding 2 Squadron at AFB Makhado, explained that the SA Air Force (SAAF) did get a BVR capability with the Cheetah C in the 1990s, using the V4 R-Darter missile and using a fire control radar which could accommodate it.

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