Rosoboronexport targets upgrade, replacement market in Africa

The Rusian arms export agency, Rosoboronexport, has display in excess of 250 items of arms and materiel at the Africa Aerospace and Defence exhibition in South Africa. “Cheap, reliable, and high-quality Russian arms are in demand in the African market at the present time. The most popular types of materiel are aircraft, armour, artillery systems, air defence systems, integrated littoral area monitoring systems, and simulators for various types of hardware. Russia offers competitive arms and materiel delivery, repair, overhaul, and modernisation projects to her partners”, A Rosoroboronexport release said. Among the items being promoted include:-. Su-30MK, MiG-29, and Su-27SKM multi-role fighters, and the Yak-130 combat trainer. Ka-50 attack helicopter and its modifications, Mi-24/35 combat transports and their upgraded versions, Mi-17 transport helicopters, Mi-26 heavy-lift helicopter, Ka-31 airborne early warning (AEW) helicopters, Ka-28 shipborne anti-submarine warfare (ASW) helicopters, Ka-226 and Ansat light utility helicopters. Il-76MF/MD and An-38 military air transports armour – the T-90S main battle tank (MBT), the BTR-80A armoured personnel carrier (APC), and the BMP-3 infantry fighting vehicle (IFV). Msta-S self-propelled howitzers, automated artillery fire control systems. Metis-M and Konkurs-M anti-tank guided missiles (ATGM), Krasnopol cannon-launched guided projectiles (CLGP), Grad and Smerch multiple rocket launcher systems (MRLS). S-300PMU2 and Buk-M2E air defence systems, Igla man-portable air defence systems (MANPADS), upgraded Kvadrat, Osa-AKM, and S-125 Pechora air defence systems, ZU-23/ZOM1 anti-aircraft guns, as well Nebo-SVU, Kasta-2E2, and Podsolnukh radars, modernised P-18 and P-19 radars. There is a considerable market demand for upgrading Russian-made helicopters, delivered to Africa earlier. A total of over 700 rotary-wing aircraft, including about 150 Mi-24/35 attack helicopters, have been delivered to Africa over time. Comprehensive modernisation programmes, offered to foreign customers, are based on the block structure approach. They envision adapting helicopter lighting equipment for night vision goggles (NVG), mounting new power plants and main rotors to improve helicopter flight characteristics, and fitting helicopters with state-of-the-art armament and avionics, enabling them to operate by day and night. Upgrades can be introduced directly on the territory of the customer, and can see participation of the customer’s representatives, given the technical facilities required. At the same time, Rosoboronexport is ready to consider projects, aimed at establishing repair and maintenance centres for Russian arms and materiel. Rosoboronexport jointly with Russian designers, and if required in partnership with South African and other foreign companies, is ready to extend service lives of Soviet- and Russian-made pieces of arms and materiel, including fixed- and rotary-wing aircraft, as soon as possible. The Russian arms exporter has offered the integrated wave monitoring system to protect coast-based military and economic installations of African countries. The system is fitted with the Podsolnukh-E over-the-horizon surface wave stationary radar, capable of monitoring areas even outside the economic zone. “As far as its marketing strategy is concerned, Rosoboronexport has significantly stepped up cooperation with such traditional importers of Russian weapons as Algeria, Libya, Angola, Ethiopia, and Uganda. Certain progress has been made in relations with Morocco, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Mozambique, and Burkina Faso. We offer competitive Russian arms and materiel delivery, repair, overhaul, and modernisation projects to our African partners,” head of the Rosoboronexport delegation at AAD 2008 Sergei Svechnikov was quoted in a statement.