The SAAF Forum

I remember that Dornier 328 at AAD, was an Ozzie registered one if I recall.

Yup, Viking offered a great deal to lease the aircraft to the SAAF under Op Phakisa, so other Govt departments could benefit (and provide funding).

They were already equipped with search radar, IR, coms, etc. Fantastic opportunity lost.

Although grounded, the SAAF’s C47-TP Turbo Dakotas may live to fly again

Dean Wingrin

Despite not having flown for three years, reports that the C47-TP Turbo Dakota being retired from South African Air Force (SAAF) service appear to be greatly exaggerated.

Although lacking an official announcement, 35 Squadron was advised in May 2024 that the C47-TPs, which it operated from Air Force Base (AFB) Ysterplaat, would no longer fly and were being decommissioned. This was hardly surprising as the last flight of a Turbo Dakota in SAAF service was believed to have been on 22 September 2022.

In September 2024, Armscor informed Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Defence and Military Veterans (PCDMV) that all C47-TPs in the SAAF’s inventory were grounded, with the prospect of them never flying again. The main obstacle was the challenge of finding a maintenance provider.

After 82 years of military service in South Africa, it seemed the C-47 Dakota and its derivatives were finally being withdrawn. A request for maintenance last year had received no valid bids, forcing Armscor to cancel the process for the second time.

“The Dakota C47-TP is a very old aircraft, thus the support for this aircraft is very limited in South Africa and the world,” Armscor stated. “Due to the age of the aircraft, it is no longer supported by the OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer). There are no AMOs (Aircraft Maintenance Organisations) with a Dakota C47-TP stipulated on the Operational Specification.”

Armscor added that since 2018, there have been numerous attempts to secure a support contract for the C47-TP fleet, which had resulted in no valid bids and several amendments to the user requirement specification.

“Discussions are being held with SAAF regarding the future usage of the aircraft due to reasons indicated above,” Armscor stated in its presentation to the PCDMV.

Currently, only five airframes remain viable, three configured for maritime surveillance and two for transport. These aircraft are in various stages of maintenance. Remarkably, at least one transport version continues to undertake ground engine runs, with the squadron maintaining its safety audits and conducting training days. Even without flight operations, the ground and engineering staff ensure their qualifications remain current, particularly through regular ground runs.

The primary obstacle to resuming flights appears to be time-expired fire extinguisher bottles attached to each of the two PT6A turboprop engines. System engineers were reluctant to sign off on the aircraft for flight because of these components. While locally produced extinguishers could be fitted, no one was available to certify their suitability.

Consequently, the decision was made to decommission the entire C47-TP fleet. However, this decision lacked formal authority, which can only be taken at Department of Defence or Cabinet level.

The SAAF had not responded to a request for further information at the time of publication, so the cost of returning the aircraft to service, the quantity of spare parts available, and whether a contract with an AMO has been finalised remain unknown.

However, the maintenance costs of the Turbo Dakota fleet was one of the lowest in the SAAF, and it is possible that 35 Squadron and 2 Air Servicing Unit (ASU), supported by the C47-TP Product System Support Management (PSSM) office, will be responsible for returning one or more aircraft to service. The ASU is currently investigating whether it is possible to return the aircraft to flying status.

However, a senior member of the squadron, who wishes to remain anonymous, stated that there are “so many things counting against that aircraft” and that he was concerned it could be putting the aircrew at increased risk.

African Defence Review analyst Darren Olivier agreed. “As much as many of us have a soft spot for the South African Air Force’s venerable C-47s, and would love to see them flying again in other circumstances, I have to question the wisdom of returning them to active service,” he said.

Despite being equipped with modern navigation systems, the maritime variant relies on basic aviation and maritime radios alongside a colour weather and search-and-rescue radar system. As a result of the grounding, South Africa has been unable to provide airborne maritime surveillance of its territorial waters and Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), which is vital for monitoring activities like illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing and pollution. The SAAF is also hampered in fulfilling its search and rescue obligations as mandated by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) and the International Maritime Organization (IMO).

Olivier said the C47-TP platform “is just too old, with limited capabilities and essentially no growth potential remaining.”

“It would be better,” he continued, “to look to the future and dry lease one or more ISR-equipped King Air sized aircraft, of which there are several available on the market.”

The C-47 Dakota first entered SAAF service in 1943. At one stage in the 1980s, the SAAF had the distinction of operating the largest fleet of Dakotas in the world. The Dakota carried out yeoman service during the Border War from the 1960s through to the end of hostilities in 1988, performing such roles as troop transport, resupply, medical evacuation, paratrooping and other ancillary activities.

Following the end of the Border War, the number of squadrons operating the Dakota was reduced, along with the disposal of airframes.

The early 1990s saw a large number of Dakotas upgraded to Turbo Dakota (or TurboDak) configuration under Project Felstone. This conversion involved replacing the piston engines with two Pratt and Whitney PT6A 65R turboprop engines, lengthening of the fuselage and installing modern avionics. Thereafter, the aircraft were re-designated as the C47-TP Turbo Dakota. Between 1990 and 1995, 29 were converted and ten partially converted to C47-TP status.

35 Squadron has been associated with the Dakota since 1985, when several C-47s were acquired to replace the Avro Shackleton MR3 in the maritime surveillance role.

When 25 and 27 Squadrons were amalgamated with 35 Squadron on 31 December 1990, additional Dakotas were utilised for air transport, leaving the Squadron responsible for both the Maritime and Transport roles. The classic piston-engine workhorses were finally withdrawn in September 1994 and replaced with the Turbo Dakota.

Apart from the Squadron’s maritime role and transport role (consisting of paratrooping, target towing, scheduled passenger services, aero medical evacuation and logistical support), the Squadron also performs other support functions. These include tactical image (photo) reconnaissance and numerous training functions, such as navigator and telecommunication operator training.

As a result of rationalisation that has taken place over the last few years, only five C47-TPs airframes remain in SAAF service, where they serve with 35 Squadron in a variety of roles. The sole Electronic Warfare platform was previously taken out of service.

Numerous projects have been registered over the years to acquire new maritime patrol and/or surveillance aircraft, but no viable replacement for the SAAF’s C47-TP has been found. The SAAF previously had a plan to replace the C47-TPs with proper maritime patrol aircraft under Project Saucepan. When that proved impossible, Projects Metsi and Kiepie were launched to replace the C47-TPs and C212s in the maritime surveillance/patrol and light transport roles respectively. Those projects appear to have been superseded by Project Pelican to address light air transport and maritime capability.

All replacement projects failed due to prolonged financial constraints. The latest effort has seen the SAAF show strong interest in the Embraer C-390 Millennium as a future transport and potential maritime replacement, bit its acquisition, too, hinges on securing the necessary funding.

Thus, the SA Air Force lacks a replacement for the maritime surveillance and transport capabilities previously provided by the aging C47-TPs. It now seems that new life may be injected into the old bird, but it is not without risks.