Denel launches new missiles and UAS

Denel has unveiled a rotary-wing uncrewed air system (RW-UAS) suitable for operating from either land or naval vessels. The helicopter-like craft is designed for the surveillance role, with a variety of sensors.

According to local reports, these include a high-definition colour television camera, together with a thermal imaging camera, plus a laser rangefinder and designator, making it suitable for finding and targeting enemy assets.

Denel failed to respond to African Aerospace enquiries about the new system, but according to specialist South African defence website DefenceWeb, the RW-UAS is 5.9m long, with a five-bladed rotor diameter of 6m, a choice of turbocharged petrol or diesel engines giving it a maximum speed of 200km/h and a maximum endurance, in standard configuration, of up to 10 hours.

For potential buyers seeking a more advanced sensor fit, RW-UAS can carry an optional radar sensor that offers synthetic aperture radar (SAR) and inverse synthetic aperture radar (ISAR) imagery as well as ground moving object indicator imagery.

This makes it suitable for aerial mapping of enemy formations. However, Denel seems initially to be aiming the new aircraft at civilian tasks, such as law enforcement, power line inspections and border patrol.

Denel has also begun deliveries to the South African Air Force (SAAF) of its long-delayed A-Darter agile short-range air-to-air missile. Initial training rounds should have been delivered by the time African Aerospace appears, with an initial batch of live rounds scheduled for delivery in spring 2025.

The missiles are destined to provide a new capability for the SAAF’s Saab Gripen C/D fighter aircraft.

Denel began development of the A-Darter as long ago as 2006, but a long list of problems, notably a chronic lack of funding and the subsequent loss of skilled technical personnel, has repeatedly delayed service entry of the fifth-generation infrared guided missile.

A-Darter has a notably short range – just 7km – but this is partially offset by its large ‘off-boreshot’ capability; that is, it can be fired at a target anywhere within a 180-degree arc from the launch aircraft’s heading.