High-profile presence for Denel at AAD 2024

A revitalised and dynamic Denel will have a high-profile presence at next week’s African Aerospace and Defence Exhibition held at the Waterkloof Air Force Base.

“Most of our globally competing products – especially in the landward and aerospace domains – will be on prominent display,” says Tsepo Monaheng, the Group CEO of Denel. “But we also showcase some of our new, innovative developments in missile technology, aerospace, cyber and security that will become signature products of a future Denel.”

Monaheng says this will be the first time that Denel will exhibit in public since the recent announcement of the move of Denel to the Department of Defence. “The new structure places Denel at the core of the broader defence and security community, and we are confident that it will lead to a fresh understanding of the value that Denel brings to the country as a strategic national asset.”

The Denel pavilion in Hall 5 will attract delegations from more than 20 participating countries as well as defence decision-makers, industry analysts and the media.

“Knowledge of, and interest in, Denel has not waned in recent years. Our reputation remains intact despite the difficulties that the company has experienced. The quality of our products, services and people remains known in the defence and technology sectors,” says Monaheng.

Included in the display are examples of the state-owned company’s artillery systems, guided weapons, armoured and protected vehicles, unmanned aerial systems, aircraft such as the Rooivalk attack helicopter, as well as cyber and security solutions.

Earlier this year, Monaheng cemented a restructuring of Denel’s operational model and the rationalisation into four distinct business units: Denel Aerospace, Denel Guided Weapons, Denel Landward and Denel Integrated System Solutions.

“These are strategic changes that we made to consolidate our operations and geographic footprint and ensure we provide optimal service to clients and stakeholders,” says Monaheng.

“AAD 2024 is an opportunity to demonstrate to a broader audience that Denel has stabilised, recovered some critical skills, brought operations back on line and started ramping up delivery on key programmes.”

The global defence community is aware that Denel is upgrading its G5 and G6 artillery systems. It also restarted the A-Darter air-to-air missile programme for the SA Air Force and successfully demonstrated upgrades to the Umkhonto missile system in its foreign market.

Denel has gone back into the market and is rebuilding its order pipeline to its former levels. New orders were secured in recent months, and imminent new business is on the horizon, which will contribute to the company’s sustainability.

Monaheng says a technology roadmap has been developed in which Denel aligns with the CSIR and Armscor. This will ensure that technologies required by the company will be available to both the SANDF – which remains its primary client – as well as other national stakeholders in the security and high-technology sectors.

“The turnaround of Denel has gained critical momentum,” he says. A dynamic leadership team is in place, and we can respond to the expectations of our stakeholders and clients through an efficient delivery model.”

Denel’s presence in Hall 5 at AAD2024 is part of an initiative to raise the company’s profile. Earlier this year, it had a presence at the World Defence Show in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and its business development initiatives are intended to demonstrate its capabilities in the continent and global markets from Latin America and Europe to the Middle East and South East Asia.