Technological innovations in the defence industry have always played a crucial role in the overall innovation for civil applications. Many systems and equipment originally destined for military use has been adopted by the general population in everyday applications and have been used to connect people across continents and increase overall efficiency and productivity. A locally produced solution allows countries to be self-reliant when solving modern problems efficiently and remains a driving force for sustainable economic growth.

The development of locally produced defence equipment and solutions has for a long time been the backbone of establishing South Africa’s capability to maintain their own sovereignty and assist the rest of the continent in peacekeeping operations. The decline in new developments in the South African defence sector has left its mark on the economic growth and technological development within the country. Without locally produced modern systems, the capability to perform any internal or peacekeeping operations is thinly stretched and the SANDF is reliant on outdated equipment, exposing some key areas where improvements could be made.

Milkor is one of the few private companies in the South African defence industry that has realised the importance of building local capabilities and developing equipment that could compete with the rest of the world. Milkor is at the forefront of defence industry innovation, showcasing a number of cutting-edge innovations over the last couple of years.

“We work closely with the Department of Defence, Armscor and the SAAF and are dedicated to providing locally produced systems to combat the immediate requirements South Africa has to resolve,” says Communications director Daniel du Plessis.

The development of the Milkor 380, Africa’s first category 4 and largest unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) ever produced, epitomises their capability to deliver world leading technologies to the South African defence and security branches. This is the first UAV of this size to be fully developed (hardware, software and testing) and manufactured in South Africa.

Capable of 35 hours of flight time and the ability to carry up to 210 kg of external payloads for various types of sensors, the Milkor 380 can be used across multiple sectors to combat existing issues in border security, maritime surveillance, conservation efforts and other reconnaissance operations throughout the country.

“The production of the Milkor 380 UAV allows the South African government to become completely self-reliant in reconnaissance, surveillance and intelligence operations, eliminating the need for foreign acquisition of such systems,” says du Plessis.

Milkor has already begun manufacturing of the first systems intended for implementation by the South African government with a total of 5 systems being manufactured by the end of 2023. Locally produced at their facility in Cape Town, Milkor has spent the last seven years building key personnel that could deliver a complete solution including long term maintenance and training support for these systems.

With the country’s unemployment rate currently at 32.9%, projects such as this open the door to sustainable long term job creation and assistance in building key skills development within the country. Milkor has developed a strategy in utilizing some of the most skilled individuals in the industry for UAV development programs and combining them with talented engineers from the top universities in South Africa. This allows for sustainable growth of new skills being developed among the youth of South Africa, while reducing the requirement to seek employment in another country.

Issued by JT Communication Solutions on behalf of Milkor – www.milkor.com

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