₦airaland Forum

Exnavyboy62:
I'm just being my brother's keeper, nothing serious to worry about

Obsessions and other mental health issues are worrying, especially if left unattended.
May I suggest that you urgently seek professional help?

GreenandGold:
That's very optimistic of him.

I don't doubt the Western Cape's ability to add new power within the province in the given timeframe, however, that could be enough to supplement Eskom to maybe as far as Stage 8 load-shedding and to cater to the forever-growing demand within the province.. But moving out of Eskom is going to be hard because even Koeberg (which forms the base of the WC grid) is owned by Eskom.

jl115:
With IPPs I think to generate 5700mw by 2035 won't be a problem at all, it's feeding that generation to the grid which I see as the major issue

All the solar and wind generation projects currently underway don't mean shit if we're still fumbling along adding 200-300km of new transmission lines to the grid per annum. To fully utilise all that new generation, 2 things need to happen:
1) complete breaking up Eskom into 3 separate generation, transmission and distribution companies; the generation company gets to compete with the independents and can keep functional coal stations (GreenandGold, the idea of getting rid of coal is a red herring driven by the coal lobby), the transmission company should actually be Eskom's core business, with a clean balance sheet so it can go to the market and issue the bonds required to fund grid expansion, the distribution company should hand over to capable provinces and metros and keep the rest.
2) With the transmission company unencumbered by historical debt and able to issue bonds, it can then concentrate on ramping up and adding the required 2000km per annum transmission lines to fully utilise all that new generation.

But as always with the ANC clowns, anything requiring the state to take a back seat (with the resultant diminishing feeding trough for politicos and their mates) is anathema.
At the recent Africa Energy Indaba, we openly laughed at Gwede Mantashe when he complained that SA finance is investing in energy projects all over the planet but not at home!

Exnavyboy62:
What do you think about the SAAF maritime squadron getting them as replacement for it's AW-159 and oryx helicopters??

What's the SAAF maritime squadron? AW-159 helis in the SAAF?
What's with the obsession with things SA?

Faithful007:
Lol. Maybe

As for the bolded.....

And with that, the Hang Seng action for which I was waiting, begins. Outta here!

Faithful007:
Lol. Sad I never got to ask him what J/Uke actually meant.

Probably a good thing. Spared us a long lecture on the Khazarian roots of European Jewry.

BTW, haven't had an interesting joust here since my last one with you. This time I want to pronounce on a subject superficially, and it must be something on which we disagree. Haven't found one yet, but get your intellectual dukes up!

GreenandGold:
This looks much easier on the eye

No doubt. But I remain convinced there's a role for 90mm in this world. With infantry out in the open and no mortars or artillery, 30mm or 90mm?

Faithful007:
Lol.

Kagame wouldn't sponsor IS though.

I wouldn't be so sure. When he was fighting with Uganda over pillaging the DRC, he funded and armed the ADF, which is a DRC-based Ugandan anti-Museveni movement. They pledged bayat to ISIS only when the US/EU forced him to stop support. Indirectly, he's responsible for their resurgence and current depravity.
Nobody has clean hands in the DRC imbroglio, and that includes SA.

GreenandGold:
I guess whatever Kagame is mining in the eastern DRC is making him super rich... of course, the Israelis and French are on it as well.

Another of my theories is that the Congolese leadership is deliberately making FARDC (National military) very weak. I mean, logic would say you would train and equip your troops accordingly if you live in a country that has neighbours who are constantly invading and countless militia. What is stopping the government from paying troops proper salaries for their region and equip the whole force accordingly?

In Pic: Congolese troops seen without body protection

Your first point: not a single one of Rwanda's mineral exports is found on Rwandan soil. The French not so much, since they supported the wrong side during the civil war/genocide. Israel, UK and to a lesser extent Kenya are the main conduits for Rwandan exports of stolen DRC minerals.

Your 2nd point: the DRC has over 40 armed groups supported by both the Congolese govt and all its neighbours. So for example, after M23, the FIB wanted to go after the FDLR, the 2nd biggest group. These are the remnants of the guys who perpetrated the genocide in Rwanda, and fled to DRC when Kagame won the war. This would have removed Kagame's justification to meddle. The DRC govt instructed the FARDC not to co-operate with the FIB ops against the FDLR. And according to UN rules, if the host country is not involved, MONUSCO cannot conduct operations. That's just 1 out of over 40 groups, with many state sponsors.
That's why the East African Community thought they should have a crack at it, outside the UN red tape.
I doubt they'll succeed, because the main spoiler, Rwanda, is a member and there's no appetite, for a myriad reasons, to forcefully confront Kagame.

Hiya Nemesis4you
Met someone today at Africa Energy Indaba 2023 who said she worked at CSIR.
Assumed our CSIR and asked her if we could have "more discussions" next I'm in her neck of the woods.
Her reply: "You come up to Delhi often?"

Moral of the story: accent is no reliable indicator of anything!

GreenandGold:
Damn, how do I forget the mortar shells, that's our bread and butter... in fact when I was reading the M23 article you posted, I was like "oh so now the Rwanda-M23 has seen how effective mortar is and now they are trying to copy the legends of the game".

According to someone who was there during FIB1 in 2013, when Rwanda DF crossed the border to re-supply M23 at night, it was SF small teams behind the lines that called in mortar fire and obliterated them. Incriminating evidence was collected on the scene and this resulted in that famous week when M23 calls to Kigali went unanswered and Rooivalke did their thing.
Alas, the remnants made it across to Rwanda, were not imprisoned as happened to those who fled to Uganda - the RDF put them up in their barracks and the leaders in hotels -and 10 years later they're back to inflict more mayhem!

GreenandGold:
I would feel my brain cells exploding when reading the conspiracies..

With Mozambican ISIS, he would probably say: It's funded by Zionists via the Saudis so that Kagame would deploy his troops in Moza to undermine both Tanzania and South Africa in SADC. Then go on to post pictures from the dark parts of the internet as proof... to be honest, I was always outmatched, I was never ready for his responses on any given day.

Damn, he lived in his own world

He wasn't wrong about Kagame's megalomania though. I would part ways with him when he went all primitive/tribalist and ascribed to it some grand Tutsi conspiracy spanning east and some parts of southern Africa.

Faithful007:
Funded by J/Uke and the Zionist Saudis

Really miss that dude.

Don't forget the Tutsi Supremacists!

GreenandGold:
I know a dude who wanted to join the military, but only got discouraged by the salary .... he's the guy who wrote the above

But don't you think a 90mm shell will make a logistical nightmare.. I mean, you already have:

- 5.56×45mm NATO
- 7.62x51mm NATO (R1 and SS 77)
- 7.62 x 39mm (AK47 for the SF)
- 7.62×54mmR (KPM for the SF)
- 12.7×99mm NATO (for the Hornet and Casspirs)


I think planners and generals would avoid having such a large shell with foreign deployment, a mortar attack hitting the 90mm storeroom would set the whole base on explosive fire.

(Ukraina ammo storage exploding)

I heard that guy was keen on the airforce when they came to his university, but his eyes let him down.
You forgot the 20mm for the SF Hornets and Casspirs; 35mm anti-air for drone defence around the main Mihluri Base in Macomia; 40mm grenades for MGL and AGL; and our beloved 60mm, 81mm and 120mm mortar bombs (what's a Saffer deployment without mortars?).
Already, so many things things to go boom. But we maintain a 15km cordon sanitaire radius around Mihluri Base, meaning many things would have to go catastrophically pear-shaped for that battalion HQ to come under fire. And remember, unlike Bangui, we chose the area and built the base from scratch, with a maximalist approach towards defence. So storing 90mm shells does not significantly alter the risk profile.

And as Patches used to say, one can never have too much dakka dakka!

GreenandGold:
Believe it or not, my great-grandfather (on my mother's side) lived in this place... back in the 90s we would visit as kids. It has a very strong Mozambican influence. Ethnically, Swazi, Thonga (Tsonga) and the Zulu populations overlap and have intermarried each other.

..and yes, those fish traps (kraals) are legit, as kids we never ventured close to them as they also have a tendency of trapping Zambezi sharks.

I was about to mention the traditional fish traps, which are the only allowed method of fishing all along that Kosi Bay UNESCO World Heritage Site. Stupendously beautiful piece of earth.

GreenandGold:
Actually, you have a point... I mean a Casspir (or Mfezi) is a huge target to miss with an RPG should the main convoy get itself ambushed, even an amateur militia could take out a minimum of 2 Casspirs in this convoy... so yep, a pair of our "GE Techs" should be deployed on a 5-15km ahead scout mission as suggested.

A recon section is 12 pax in 2 Mambas, though in Moz it is rumoured they sometimes add a Casspir from which their tactical gizmos are controlled, with a 20mm for additional dakka. An interesting fact I just picked up in an old manual from Angolan ops: optimally, normal distance between recon section and the rest of the company on patrol is usually 10km; if the terrain is difficult, this is shortened to 5km to enable quicker response for backup if caught in an ambush; if terrain is permissible, this is stretched out to 15km.

So, our 30mm with the recon section 5-15km ahead; and the 90mm with the main body of the convoy.

I have absolutely no idea why presumably reasonable adults ignore the evidence before them, and continue to treat M23 as if it's an independent actor.
Why waste time talking to the puppet, when the puppet-master's address in Kigali is known?

M23’s declared ceasefire in east DR Congo fails as fighting resumes

The ceasefire declared in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo by the M23 rebel group on Tuesday did not hold as clashes were reported in some villages in Masisi territory, North Kivu.

This is the latest failed ceasefire commitment.

Fighting resumed just hours after M23 issued a press release announcing an “effective ceasefire”.

By 12pm Tuesday, the M23 had said it had decided to stop fighting, adding that the decision was in line with consultations between them and Angolan President João Lourenço, the mediator in the Congolese crisis through the Luanda peace process.

https://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/tea/news/east-africa/m23-ceasefire-fails-to-hold-in-east-drc-4150188

DRC army says M23 attacked Burundi troops in North Kivu

Just a day after their deployment, Burundian troops were attacked by the M23, according to the Democratic Republic of Congo army.

Colonel Kaiko Ndjike, spokesman for the governor of North Kivu in DRC, condemned a new violation of the ceasefire by the M23, which launched an attack on Monday targeting the Burundian troops.

The DRC army added that the attack also hit a camp for internal displaced people.

“These attacks were carried out with 82 and 120 mortars causing enormous damage,” Ndjike said.

The incident took place in Saké, about 30 kilometres from Goma, North Kivu where the Burundian army was to be deployed as part of the East African regional force ordered by the East African Community (EAC) heads of states.

The attacks came as Angola, which is mediating between the DRC government and the M23 rebels, announced that the rebels had promised a ceasefire by noon of March 7, 2023. Angolan President João Lourenço had ordered the establishment of an ad hoc verification mechanism to ensure compliance with this decision.

On Monday, a few hours before the deadline set by the rebels and the Angolan mediation, fighting was reported in North Kivu between the DRC army and the M23 rebels. This happened just after the DRC and Burundi signed a defence agreement.

Alain Tribert Mutabazi, Burundi's Defence Minister and former combatant, and his DRC counterpart Gilbert Kabanda, committed their countries to strengthening military cooperation.

But President Lourenço insisted the rebels and the DRC government must respect the ceasefire.

The attack on the Burundian troops' camp may reignite the escalation of the war.

https://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/tea/news/east-africa/drc-army-says-m23-attacked-burundian-troops-4148856

Egyptian Air Force becomes first Rafale export user to reach 10 000 flight hours

The Egyptian Air Force (EAF) has become the first Dassault Rafale export customer to reach 10 000 flying hours on the type, having flown the Rafale since 2015.

To celebrate the milestone, Dassault Aviation and the Egyptian Air Force hosted a ceremony last week in Egypt. “This important milestone confirms the Rafale’s technological and operational excellence, and attests to the quality of the training of Egyptian crews received in France. It also demonstrates the effectiveness of the systems and personnel put in place by Dassault Aviation to support the implementation of the aircraft in Egypt. Lastly, it illustrates the great skill of the Egyptian Air Force, which has carried out the transformation of its pilots and mechanics to the Rafale with ease and fluidity,” Dassault said.

“Egypt has chosen the Rafale, recognizing its unique ‘game-changer’ character, to ensure its role in full sovereignty as a key player in the regional and international arena, in a demanding geopolitical context. This celebration around the 10 000 flight hours of the Rafale salutes the great mastery of the Egyptian Air Force, the excellence of the Rafale, and honours Dassault Aviation, which has maintained strong relations with Egypt based on trust and commitment for nearly 50 years”, said Eric Trappier, Chairman and CEO of Dassault Aviation.

Egypt ordered an initial 24 Rafales in 2015, and another 30 in 2021. Egyptian Rafales have been armed with MICA air-to-air missiles, HAMMER stand-off weapons, Al Tariq guided munitions , and SCALP cruise missiles.

https://www.defenceweb.co.za/aerospace/aerospace-aerospace/egyptian-air-force-becomes-first-rafale-export-user-to-reach-10-000-flight-hours/

First Israeli offshore patrol vessel for Cote d’Ivoire arrives home

Cote d’Ivoire has ordered two OPV-45 offshore patrol vessels (OPVs) from Israel and the first of these has been completed and has just arrived home.

In December 2020, Israel Shipyards began construction of two OPV-45 offshore patrol vessels for Cote d’Ivoire. At the time, Israel Shipyards did not reveal who the customer was, only saying the vessels would be delivered in the next two years.

The first vessel, Esperance (P2202), departed Haifa, Israel, on 10 February and was seen in Malta on the 13th, Las Palmas on the 20th, and Dakar, Senegal, on the 26th. She arrived in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire, on 6 March, according to ship tracking data.

The OPV-45 design was launched at the IMDEX show in May 2019 as a cost-effective solution mainly for the export market, especially in the Asia-Pacific, Africa and South America. In September 2019 Israel Shipyards said it had sold two OPV-45s but did not announce the customer, but later announced a sale in the Gulf of Guinea region. The agreement includes ongoing support and training as well as the creation of a maintenance programme within the framework of the company’s Integration Logistic Support (ILS) services.

The OPV-45 design is 45.7 metres long, has a beam of 8.6 metres and displacement of 300 tons. It can accommodate between 16 and 21 crew, and has additional berth for up to 24 personnel. The vessel can carry a 7.2 metre rigid-hull inflatable boat (RHIB) in an automated launch-and-recovery system on the aft deck, which can also take 20 foot containerised modules for different missions.

Weapons options include stabilised naval gun systems of up to 30 mm on the foredeck and 12.7 mm machineguns elsewhere on the vessel. Israel Shipyards said the African customer’s vessels will be equipped with day/night observation systems as well as stabilized weapon systems, both Israeli-made.

It has been reported that MAN will provide the engines for the vessels under a contract for two MAN 16V175D-MM engines rated at 2 960 kW, as well as ALPHA FPP propellers with struts and Alphatronic 3000 propulsion control systems. The ships will be able to reach a top speed of 24 knots and an endurance of 3 000 nautical miles at 12 knots.

The OPV-45 has been designed for a wide range of naval, para-military and homeland security missions, including open sea patrol and surveillance, the protection of facilities and exclusive economic zones, anti-terror/smuggling/illegal activity interdiction, intervention force boarding/landing, close-range naval combat operations, and enhanced search and rescue missions. The OPV 45 can also be equipped for minimizing illegal immigration transits, fishing protection and control, and anti-pollution activities.

Cote d’Ivoire will also be receiving a single P400 patrol vessel as it overhauls and expands its navy. This was revealed by Vice Admiral N’Guessan Kouamé Célestin, Chief of Staff of the Ivory Coast Navy, in April 2022.

The P400 is most likely an ex-French naval vessel – the P400 class has an endurance of 15 days at sea and is fitted with a 2.5 tonne crane that can lift boats out of the water. Armament includes a 40 mm Bofors gun, a 20 mm F2 cannon and two AA-52 machineguns. The class was acquired by France in the early 1980s and subsequently retired. P400s have been sold to Kenya and Gabon.

https://www.defenceweb.co.za/featured/first-israeli-offshore-patrol-vessel-for-cote-divoire-arrives-home/

Ghana’s police get Marauder APCs, helicopters

The Ghana Police Service has taken delivery of a vast quantity of new equipment, including Marauder armoured personnel carriers, and helicopters.

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo handed over 600 motorcycles, 100 Toyota Hilux vehicles, and six Marauders on 21 February and also commissioned upgrades to National Police Headquarters. The Marauders were painted in the colours of the police’s Counter Terrorism Unit.

These were on display at the 66th Independence Anniversary Parade on 6 March, during which the police also flew three newly acquired helicopters: one Airbus H125M (AS550 Fennec), and two Aerospatiale Gazelles.

In 2018, Akufo-Addo first revealed that the new helicopters would be acquired and two years ago said new hangars had been built at the National Police Training School while six pilots completed training in South Africa.

Paramount, which manufactures the Marauder, said it is a “proud partner of the Ghana government and police. Congratulations on strengthening police and building security.”

The company has supplied equipment to Ghana in the past, providing 20 Maverick internal security vehicles to the country between 2013 and 2015, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). Ghana also received a dozen Hunter Light Strike Vehicles from South Africa’s OTT Technologies around this time.

Both the Hunters and Mavericks were displayed during the 66th anniversary celebrations in the city of Ho in the Volta Region of the country, along with water cannon-equipped riot control vehicles and other police hardware including mobile hospitals.

Ghana’s armed forces displayed a variety of weapons and equipment during the parade, including Otokar Cobra armoured vehicles (some in surveillance configuration with mast-mounted sensors), Type-81 122 mm multiple rocket launchers, D-30 122 mm howitzers, 105 mm howitzers, 107 mm rocket launchers, Husky TSV armoured vehicles, and rigid hull inflatable boats (RHIBs).

Ghana has been expanding its military and police in recent years, with a major tranche of equipment being taken into service last month. Akufo-Addo on 1 February presented 175 military vehicles for internal security as well as peacekeeping use to the Ghana Armed Forces. The vehicles included 70 Kamaz trucks, 20 BTR-70 armoured personnel carriers, 20 Navistar Defence Husky tactical support vehicles (TSVs), and 65 Toyota utility vehicles.

https://www.defenceweb.co.za/featured/ghanas-police-get-marauder-apcs-helicopters/

GreenandGold:
Just when I was thinking if we have such a design in the country, boom there it is

Seeing as the reconnaissance section operates 5-15km ahead of the patrol, deploying a pair of "our GE Tech" as scout vehicles and fire support for the recon section makes more sense than having them in the main convoy.

GreenandGold:
It seems like there's some insurgency developing in the south of Moza as well, close to the KwaZulu-Natal border.



(website in Portugese) https://integritymagazine.co.mz/arquivos/9646

Nope, this is simple criminality. Started, I might add, on our side of the border with fuckers torching cargo trucks with Moz plates. Now the Mozas are retaliating.

GreenandGold:
Do you see what's missing on the long-range patrol?

A light 4-wheeler that can cross those small Moza bridges and fire can 30mm HE shells

A proper Eland replacement, you mean? Something like this, from Golden Era Technologies?

Speaking of small bridges, there's a section in the video when they're crossing a bridge where only 1 Casspir at a time can cross. I thought great ambush location, and was pleased to see security posted all around for the crossing.

GreenandGold:
SANDF's Long-range patrol in Cabo Delgado

From someone at 2SAI, currently in Cabo Delgado.

A total of 19 Vehicles left the base, the aim of the patrol was to cement the presence of the SAMIM & also engage with communities.
This long-range Patrol unfolded over a period of 3 days:
1) On the first day a long halt was made at Quissanga;
2) On day two the Convoy picked up sticks and headed to Pemba;
3) As part of the patrol, village to village stops were conducted in Mahate, Metuge & Mieze.

Faithful007:
Go and read about the relationship between Eritiea and Russia. Eritiea is the only African country that officially supports the invasion of Ukraine.

The Malian regime is protected by Wagner fighters.

Also Russia has troops and bases in Libya in support of haftar today. I was not talking about Gaddafi

You forgot the Central African Republic, and to a lesser extent, Sudan.

Paramount supplies Marauders to the Ghana Police Service counter terrorism unit (GPS-CTU).

iblawi:
Abeg let's forget election and continue our normal activities here

LTGEN:
Please can we get back to our normal schedule on this blog?

Nothing prevents you from posting photos and videos.

jl115:
What I am wondering is why are you discussing politics on a military thread.

I don't think it is possible to completely avoid politics on a military thread. And to be fair, we Saffers did have a brief politics discussion a few pages back, without interruption.

Meanwhile, in the DRC.

"You have no hostage. Now surrender!"