The lone airworthy C-130BZ Hercules on the 28 Squadron asset register showed it’s still up to the task during a two-week search and rescue (SAR) training camp at Langebaanweg, just short of 680 nautical miles from its Air Force Base (AFB) Waterkloof home.
The training camp used Air Force Base (AFB) Langebaanweg as its headquarters and base of operations showing, according to lieutenant colonels AL Olinsky and VJ Starke, the SA National Defence Force (SANDF) – specifically its airborne service – still has the professionalism, commitment and willingness to prepare for the mission of saving lives. This extends to the SA Navy (SAN) and 4 Special Forces Regiment, as other military elements activated for the camp and from the civilian side the National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) and the Maritime Rescue Co-ordination Centre (MRCC) of the national Department of Transport.
The C-130BZ Hercules (401) was the training camp’s airborne hub and was the platform around which all involved integrated their specific SAR capabilities during the 16-29 August camp. The venerable C-130BZ has notched up sixty-plus years in South African Air Force (SAAF) service as a versatile medium transport recognised for tactical airlift and strategic capabilities. Missions successfully completed include humanitarian and supply operations, medical evacuation, paratrooping and SAR.
The co-operation shown in the training camp was noted as a significant achievement. The MRCC presence added experience from an organisation operating in the demanding maritime rescue and emergency response environment. Its Emergency Operations Centre is a communications and co-ordination point in broader emergency networks, including the SA Navy, NSRI and other emergency services in the provincial and local government sectors. The SA Navy and NSRI participation strengthened the maritime dimension of the training, the SAAF reported, noting maritime SAR requires co-ordinated employment of aircraft and surface assets, often over significant distances and in challenging environmental conditions.
Langebaan-based 4 Special Forces Regiment added specialised capability and experience to the training camp. In summary, the combination of organisations taking part showed effective national capability is strengthened when specialised organisations train together and understand how their respective capabilities can complement one another, 28 Squadron reported.
The SAR training camp goes down as more than training – it was a demonstration of commitment and willingness from South African military personnel and rescue professionals to continue developing their skills to serve the people of South Africa. This is further embodied by it being an investment in preparedness, an investment in people, an investment in co-operation and ultimately, an investment in the ability to save lives, the SAAF said.
The Air Force is expecting another C-130BZ to rejoin the fleet after maintenance work by Marshall Aerospace in the United Kingdom. The aircraft, tail number 409, exited South Africa in August 2023 bound for the United Kingdom for what was at the time estimated to be an 18-month maintenance period.
Expected date of completion of work and delivery was around mid-2026, but it is not clear when the aircraft will return. Once back in South Africa the four-engined workhorse, in addition to other new equipment, will have an ADS-B (Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast) system making it South African Civil Aviation Authority (SACAA) compliant. The aircraft’s outdated secondary flight display (SFD) system was also to be upgraded.
The maintenance and upgrade spend of R1 billion in ring-fenced funding on SAAF medium lift capacity was approved by National Treasury (NT) in the 2023/24 financial reporting period. The money will go to upgrading the remaining six 60-year-old plus Lockheed Martin-built aircraft still in SAAF service. The SAAF originally had nine serviceable C-130s. Two were written off following what are termed “accidents” with another cannibalised for parts.
Marshall Aerospace in the early 2000s worked on the SAAF Hercules fleet under Project Ebb, among others fitting digital avionics, giving the aircraft so-called “glass cockpits”. Marshall Aerospace added a digital autopilot, flight displays, a navigation systems upgrade, communications and self-defence integration and enhancements to the electrical generation system. Three aircraft were upgraded in the UK and the remaining six in South Africa by Denel. Since the completion of these upgrades, in-country maintenance of the fleet has been performed by Denel.
Fully upgrading and maintaining all six remaining C-130s will cost just over R4 billion but it’s not clear how or if this will be funded.
According to African Defence Review Director Darren Olivier, there are six SAAF C-130BZs in the fleet that can be made airworthy: 401, 402, 405, 406, 408, and 409. Once 409 returns from the UK, 405 will then be flown to Marshall for its own upgrade and service.
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