South Africa’s Paramount Group announced on 13 August that its AHRLAC [advanced high-performance reconnaissance light aircraft] has entered flight testing; just shy of three years after launching the indigenous project.
“Unique-looking” is probably the nicest way to describe the prototype’s look, although we certainly do like the chosen camouflage scheme (squint a bit and it’s almost a mini OV-10 Bronco with Slovakia’s funky MiG-29 markings; or is that just me?).
Paramount describes the twin-seater as being “the first military fixed-wing aircraft to be fully designed, tested and developed in Africa”, and lists a broad range of potential applications for a production-standard version. A handful of these include reconnaissance, intelligence-gathering, close air support, training, maritime patrol, environmental protection, border control and light attack.
That expected versatility could be the key to whether the AHRLAC becomes a commercial success – potentially with customers within and beyond Africa’s landmass.
As reported yesterday, some 5h of flight time has been recorded to date with the prototype, which it should be noted took quite a bit longer than expected to get into the air.
Speaking as the programme was launched in September 2011, Paramount executive chairman Ivor Ichikowitz set a target of completing the flight debut in the second quarter of 2012. Despite this slip, Dr Paul Potgieter, AHRLAC Holdings chief executive, now says: “We have made all the tools for production for all sheet metal pressings and composite parts so it enables us to hit production much quicker than other aircraft.”
We’ll do our best to bring you a full update on the AHRLAC – and on the current market interest in the design – in the run-up to September’s Africa Aerospace and Defence show
The second of the Navvy’s Heroine class submarines, SAS Charlotte Maxeke, will not undergo a refit in the immediate future because the Request for Offer (RfO) was withdrawn by Armscor.
At the same time the Navy, though its public relations officer, Captain (SAN) Zamo Sithole, said the “refit is scheduled to commence once requisite funding has been identified”.
Charlotte Maxeke was commissioned on March 14, 2007, with the pennant number S102. Her sister underwater craft are SAS Manthatisi (S101) and SAS Queen Modjadji 1 (S103).
According to Armscor’s operational purchases tender system, Tender ARMD/10/14 for the refit of SA Navy submarine S102 at the Armscor Dockyard in Simon’s town has been withdrawn. The state security acquisition agency’s manager: corporate communication, Barileng Dichabe, said the RfO was not cancelled but withdrawn. “It was issued as a single source to the original equipment manufacturer (Howaldtserke, Deutsche Werft in Kiel),” she said.
Asked what effect the delay in refitting the second of the Type 209 submarines acquired by the maritime arm of the SA National Defence Force (SANDF) as part of the Strategic Defence Procurement Packages (SDPP) would have on the Navy’s underwater capability, Sithole said “to all intents and purposes the Navy will continue to have two submarines in the operational cycle at any time”.
He explained: “The SA Navy normally has one submarine in refit and two submarines in the operational cycle, with phases of maintenance, training and operational availability.
“Owing to SAS Charlotte Maxeke preparing to go into refit and SAS Manthatisi completing harbour acceptance trials (HATS) this can be construed as the SA Navy having only one submarine (SAS Queen Modjadji 1) currently in the operational cycle. However as the refit of SAS Charlotte Maxeke has yet to commence, she can still be considered to be in the operational cycle and can still be put to sea following some minor work and training, if required.”
The refit, including a complete battery replacement, of SAS Manthatisi, has been underway since 2007. She was originally targeted to start HATS in May but this was delayed due to problems with supply of certain spare and replacement parts.
“Sea acceptance trials will only commence once the Navy is satisfied all HATS have been completed to rigorous Navy safety standards,” Commander Greyling van den Berg said in June.
“No hard and fast date has been set for her re-commissioning. The date will be determined by progress of the harbour acceptance trials.”
The Navy previously pointed out the re-commissioning of SAS Manthatisi was the first time this has been done to a Type 209 submarine in the Simon’s town dockyard and the experience gained would be put to good use on the other two Heroine class underwater craft.
According to Sithole the Navy “is still intent” on the Charlotte Maxeke refit.
“It will be done as soon as possible and the refit will be completed within the planned timescales. No changes are foreseen to the Navy business plan for its submarines,” he said.
The Democratic Alliance party has called on Police Minister Nathi
Mthethwa to provide parliament with answers to allegations that al Qaeda
training camps have been operating in South for more than a decade.
Yesterday the Daily Maverick reported that South Africa was home to an
alleged al Qaeda operation and that this had been under investigation
for nearly ten years but was halted in 2010 without explanation.
According to the Daily Maverick, shortly after the September 11, 2001,
terrorist attacks in the United States, the South African Crimes Against
the State (CATS) specialised unit of the South African Police Service
and the State Security Agency began Operation Kanu to examine possible
extremist Islamic terrorist activities in South Africa. The operation
reportedly involved extensive surveillance of the South African Dockrat
family and their associates and followed their movements for almost ten
years.
In 2007 the South African government confirmed that Junaid and his
cleric cousin Farhad Dockrat were put on a United Nations list of terror
suspects because of alleged ties to al Qaeda. Papers submitted by the
United States to the UN Security Council alleged Junaid was an al Qaeda
financier, recruiter and facilitator who coordinated the travel of South
Africans to Pakistan to train with the group. Both denied the
allegations. Apart from a dental business, Junaid owned Sniper Africa, a
camouflage clothing company.
The Daily Maverick report states that at least three training camps were
monitored, outside Pretoria and in the Eastern Cape. Witnesses
apparently saw people carrying weapons and conducting military-style
training. However, the Daily Maverick alleges that police halted their
surveillance operation in 2010 due to orders “from the top”.
“The Minister of Police, Nathi Mthethwa, and the Crime Intelligence unit
of the South African Police Service (SAPS) must urgently brief
Parliament on these serious allegations and inform us as to why there
has been no action and who gave the order to stop the investigation,”
said Dianne Kohler Barnard, the Democratic Alliance’s Shadow Minister of
Police.
“I will therefore be writing to the acting Chairperson of the Police
Portfolio Committee, Annelize van Wyk, to request that the acting Head
of Crime Intelligence, Chris Ngcobo and Minister Mthethwa brief the
committee on this situation as a matter of urgency,” she stated
yesterday.
Government officials have long said that South Africa’s non-aligned
status and a lack of substantial local support for militant groups
should insulate it from terror attacks. Nigerian oil delta militants and
Congolese coup plotters have been caught in South Africa but al Qaeda
style terrorism has largely eluded the country.
The SA Navy’s ambitions to boost its offshore maritime patrol capability
took a step forward on Wednesday when the fourth and final
Warrior-class strike craft left Simon’s Town for refit in Durban, where
it will be converted into an offshore patrol vesel.
It was revealed last year that the Navy was keen to retain three
Warrior-class (ex-Minister-class) strike craft as offshore patrol
vessels (OPV) for as long as possible. The Navy subsequently decided to
retain a fourth vessel in service as well, with all undergoing a Life
Extension Programme.
The four surviving strike craft, of nine originally received in the in
the 1970s and 1980s, are being refurbished and converted into offshore
patrol vessels by Durban-based Southern African Shipyards. The work
conducted on the vessels relates to electrical, mechanical and general
hull maintenance and involves refurbishment, replacement and repainting.
The first vessel, SAS Isaac Dyobha (P1565), arrived in Durban in October
last year. Having discharged all her fuel, oils and stores, the vessel
was transferred to a floating dock and mounted on specially constructed
cradles, where refurbishment began.
The next vessel to undergo refurbishment was SAS Makhanda (P1569), which
left Simon’s Town under tow on 3 November. SAS Galeshewe (P1567)
arrived in Durban in mid-December, having just completed a patrol off
the east coast.
With both SAS Isaac Dyobha (now alongside undergoing short-term
maintenance) and SAS Galeshewe (operationally available) having
completed their Life Extension Programme and SAS Makhanda almost
complete, the stripped hull of SAS Adam Kok (P1563) left Simon’s Town
for Durban on Wednesday, under tow by the hydrographic and oceanographic
research vessel SAS Protea.
Since the commissioning of the four Valour-class frigates in 2004/5,
strike-craft have been used in the OPV role. Late last year, Rear
Admiral (JG) Bravo Mhlana, South African Navy Director Force
Preparation, told defenceWeb that “what we are building with those
patrol vessels is for the future acquisition of offshore patrol vessels
under Project Biro. That is why we must keep those vessels as long as we
can when we can transfer crews from those to the new patrol vessels.”
Another motive for refurbishing the vessels is to allow them to be used
in the training role. “To ensure our sailors get maximum exposure, we
are also going to use those vessels for the young recruits that we
receive from (naval training base) SAS Saldanha where we promote a
seagoing culture,” Mhlana said.
A further four ex-Mine Hunter vessels are also being operated in the OPV
role. These include SAS Umkomaas (undergoing maintenance), SAS Umhloti
(operationally available), SAS Umzimkulu (operationally available) and
SAS Umgeni (undergoing refit).
The OPVs have also been used for fishery patrols when the patrol vessels
operated on behalf of the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and
Fisheries (DAFF) could not go to sea.
The patrol vessel fleet will be home-ported once the newly upgraded
Naval Base Durban at Salisbury Island in the Port of Durban has been
re-commissioned.
Rear Admiral Hanno Teuteberg, Chief Director Maritime Strategy,
mentioned to defenceWeb in April this year that early Indications are
that the life of the OPV vessels can be extended until for at least five
years, to coincide with Project Biro, the new build Offshore/Inshore
patrol vessel project.
African politics is a weird mixture of ancient tribal mentalities and
democratic ideals imported from the West. It's proven to be a pretty
volatile combination on the continent and one that spurs much of its
political strife. One country that's had to deal with the consequences
of that unique approach to governance recently is the landlocked Central
African Republic (CAR), home to a violent upheaval that's been going on
since late last year.
In January 2013, South Africa's ruling ANC party sent 400 troops to the CAR. Ostensibly, they were there to help the country's president, Francois
Bozizé, fight Séléka, the coalition of rebel groups revolting against
Bozizé and his government (they allege that Bozizé isn't honoring peace
agreements made after the 2004-2007 Central African Republic Bush War). The thing is, the Central African Republic had been suspended
from the African Union because of the uprising, which—in theory—should
have disqualified them from receiving external military aid.
A rebel in the Central African Republic.
There is much speculation over why South African President Jacob Zuma
deployed his forces to support the CAR's clearly failing and dictatorial
government. The theory picking up the most steam is that both the ANC and a number of its individual members have private mineral and natural resource interests in the CAR
that they wish to protect. There are many South African companies
exploiting the oil the CAR has to offer, with most of them linked to
powerful political figures in South Africa and arguably fueling the
coffers that drive the ANC's political machine.
One such company is DIG Oil, a company prospecting in the southeast of the CAR. Zuma's nephew sits on the board
of DIG Oil—something that suggests Zuma might have more than a passing
business interest in the company. It also suggests—if you're a fan of
linking pretty blatant points—that Zuma may well be using the South
African military as a private security service to protect his and his
cronies' international business interests.
South Africa's dubious involvement was highlighted when, on the 23rd of March, the Séléka rebels marched on the capital, Bangui, and seized control, killing at least 13 South African soldiers
in the process. It was a one-sided massacre. The South African forces
had few supplies, fewer numbers, and little to no intelligence. After
reports emerged that the CAR government had never formally requested
to have South African troops deployed to help them out, people—namely
the ANC's domestic political opposition, the DA—have started to push for
Zuma's reasoning.
The South African presidency claimed
that the troops were sent in order to “assist with the capacity
building of the CAR defence force and would assist the CAR with the
planning and implementation of the disarmament, demobilization and
reintegration processes."
Which, if you untangle it, suggests that the official line is that the
troops were there to help train the CAR army. But that begs the
question: What were they fighting for if they were only there to train?
Public outcry, both from South Africa and abroad, forced Zuma to
withdraw his troops from the region, but that hasn't stopped the
questions from rolling in.
At a memorial service for the soldiers, Zuma swatted any allegations of wrongdoing aside, saying,
"The problem in South Africa is that everybody wants to run the
country. Government must be given the space to do its work of running
the country to implement the policies of the ruling party that was voted
into office by millions of our people. There must also be an
appreciation that military matters and decisions are not matters that
are discussed in public, other than to share broader policy… Those who
are engaging in this game should be careful not to endanger both the
national interest and the security of the republic."
This dismissive attitude hasn't sat well with the press, which has
spent two years fighting the Protection of Information Bill that allows
the government to jail journalists for up to 25 years
for publishing something they don't want published. And the opposition
is trying to discredit the ANC, which isn't a particularly hard job at
the moment.
A child soldier in the Central African Republic
Parliament has called for an ad-hoc committee to gain answers to
questions raised by the DA’s Shadow Minister of Defence and Military
Veterans, David Maynier. Those questions being: Did the president
intentionally mislead parliament to the role of the troops in the CAR?
Why were the troops deployed based on an understanding between South
Africa and the CAR rather than a mandate from the United Nations or the
African Union? And why was there so little support for the troops that
had been deployed?
Questions are also being raised about the South African National
Defense Force’s (SANDF) ability to act as peacekeepers on the African
continent. Many SANDF troops aren't sufficiently trained, and budget
constraints allow for only one brigade of 3,000 soldiers to be deployed
at any given time, over half of whom
are medically unfit to serve, chronically ill, or too old to be
effective in a conflict scenario. So yeah, not ideal for a continent
with a population of approximately 1 billion, and a problem that the
South African troops in the CAR faced before they even left their home
country.
As for the CAR, well, the streets of Bangui are now stained in blood. Riots, looting, child soldiers, and rape are all daily occurrences
and the prolonged fighting has delayed the planting of crops for the
rainy season, so there are expected food shortages on the horizon in a
country that ranks among the poorest in the world. It's not looking
good, basically. And it looks unlikely that Zuma—even with the help of
his private security firm, the SANDF—will have much say over what
happens to his assets in the Central African Republic.
As a result of the success of the current A-Darter
programme, it is possible that the Brazilian Air Force will undertake further
joint development projects with South Africa.
However, although some preliminary discussions have taken place, no formal
negotia- tions have started and no decisions have been made. Importantly,
however, the agreement signed between the South African Department of Defence
and the Brazilian Ministry of Defence in 2003 provided for the development of
mutually beneficial defence projects, and not just for the A-Darter programme.
“The partnership is outstanding. The relation- ship we have
with South Africa
is a benchmark for Brazil,
for the air force, and for Brazilian companies,” affirms Brazilian Air Force
A-Darter project manager in South Africa
Colonel Valter Malta. “We’ve worked with many countries and
companies and we particularly like working with South
Africa. The opportunity to work on the
development of a latest generation missile is a highlight as well.”
The A-Darter is a fifth-generation infrared (IR) homing air
to air missile (AAM), being jointly developed by South Africa and Brazil under
the leadership of Denel Dynamics, which is the missiles and unmanned air
vehicles business of the State-owned Denel defence industrial group. Although
classified as short-range, it has a longer range than most missiles in its
category.
In addition to the air force, the Brazilian partners in the
programme are missile company Mectron (developer of the MAA-1 and MAA-1B
Piranha IR-homing AAMs, the MAR-1 anti- radar missile and the MSS-1.2
anti-armour missile), Avibrás (best known for its surface to surface
bombardment rockets) and optronics and electronics company Opto Eletrônica.
There are 25 Brazilians working on the A-Darter in South
Africa, of which 14 are air force personnel
(from the Aerospace Science and Technology Department) and 11 from the three
companies, but hundreds more are directly and indirectly working on the
programme in Brazil.
“We’ve made a lot of progress in developing the A-Darter,”
reports Malta.
“It’s a successful project for both countries.” The start of production of the
new missile is foreseen for 2014 or 2015, and, since the beginning of the
project, it has been the intent to have two production lines, one in each
country.
In South Africa,
the A-Darter has already been integrated on to the South African Air Force’s
Saab Gripen fighters and is also being integrated on to its BAE Systems Hawk
fighter-trainers. Integration of the missile on Brazilian Air Force fighters
will take place in Brazil,
with the support of Denel Dynamics, which is the design authority.
The programme is reviewed by regular bilateral contractual
meetings which take place twice a year, alternating between South
Africa and Brazil.
The most recent meeting, in September, was in South
Africa. These meetings are attended by both
technical personnel and logistics personnel from both countries.
The Brazilian delegation comes from the air force agency
that manages the programme on behalf of the South American country, the Combat
Aircraft Programme Coordinating Commission (abbreviated to Copac in
Portuguese), and is normally headed by the head of the commission. However, the
dele- gation to the latest meeting was headed by the number two man in the
Brazilian Air Force, the chief of the Air General Staff, Air Lieutenant
Brigadier (equivalent to General in South Africa)
Aprígio Eduardo de Moura Azevedo.
He was head of Copac when the A-Darter joint development
project had been established and he had signed the programme agreement on
behalf of the Brazilian Air Force. His presence was an expression of his
continuing interest in the programme.
Commander Handsome Thamsanqa Matsane stands in the conning
tower of the SAS Queen Modjadji as he becomes the first black naval commander
of a South African submarine.
The crew of the submarine SAS Modjadji required trauma
counselling after the vessel struck the seabed off the Eastern
Cape coast earlier this year.
This was revealed by Defence Minister Nosiviwe
Mapisa-Nqakula in the National Assembly on Wednesday.
Responding to a question, she said a board of inquiry,
convened by the SA Navy after the accident on July 18, had made various
proposals.
These included recommendations on submarine standard
operating procedures, current training "curricula", and
"possible engineering changes that may have to be implemented on board the
three SA Navy submarines".
She said the SAS Modjadji "did make contact with the
sea bottom, mud and sand, on July 18 [this year], during a routine diving
safety drill and hydraulic oil pressure failure exercise".
A technical investigation determined that the SAS Queen
Modjadji had "suffered an indentation, that is approximately 1.5 metres by
1.5 metres, to the outer protective plating" near the bow, over its number
five ballast tank.
There was no damage to the pressure hull or any of the
equipment aboard the submarine. The cost of repairing the submarine was R500,000.
No crew member was injured.
"All crew members were psychologically evaluated after
the incident as part of the normal procedure."
Mapisa-Nqakula later told MPs: "All of them, because of
the trauma they went through, were then subjected to trauma counselling."
A second
Argentine Navy vessel remains retained in Africa, although this time because of
mechanical problems. So far this month the Argentine navy has suffered the
‘loss’ of three of its units: two corvettes and the training frigate ARA
Libertad.
ARA
Espora was participating in the South Atlas annual exercise in the South
Atlantic
The
latest loss is ARA Espora, a corvette participating in a joint naval exercise with
its peers from Brazil, Uruguay and South Africa, which suffered technical and
mechanical problems forcing her to dock in South Africa.
Originally
another corvette ARA Spiro had to be released from attending the exercises
because it also underwent a breakdown.
ARA
Libertad meantime remains at the port of Temo in Ghana under an impound order
from a local court on request from the NML Capital fund which pretends to cash
Argentina defaulted sovereign bonds for the value of over 300 million dollars,
and is rapidly becoming an international litigation.
Argentina,
Uruguay and Brazil together with South Africa every year are involved in South
Atlas exercise with the purpose of defending the South Atlantic and
establishing closer links between the three South American countries and South
Africa.
Apparently
ARA Espora suffered the failure of one of its four generators and had to call
back to port,she will stay at least two
week waiting the spare parts in South Africa.
Pieter Groenewald says minister confirms SAS Queen Modjadji 1 made an unplanned contact with the sea-bottom
SUBMARINE DAMAGE DEMANDS DISCIPLINARY ACTION
The Minister of Defence and Military Veterans, Ms. Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula, has confirmed that the submarine, the SAS Queen Modjaji's accident with the seabed has left a dent of 1,5 m by 1,5 m in the hull. It happened during a safety drill with the submarine. A Board of Inquiry will determine what the responsibilities and accountability of the crew was in the cause of the accident. The Minister was replying in Parliament to a question of Mr. Pieter Groenewald of the Freedom Front Plus.
"The reply of the Minister confirms my allegations that there had been negligence and poor training. The exercise was carried out in precisely to imitate such a situation where the hydraulic pressure in the submarine should be stopped. Such exercises have strict security measures that have to be followed and it is clear that these measures were not implemented. The outcome of the Board of Inquiry is being awaited and disciplinary steps should be taken," Mr. Pieter Groenewald, the chief spokesperson on Defence and Military Veterans for the Freedom Front Plus, said.
NATIONAL ASSEMBLY - WRITTEN REPLY
2100.Mr P J Groenwald (FF Plus) to ask the Minister of Defence and Military Veterans
(1)(a) Why the submarine SAS Queen Modjadji has hit the ocean floor and (b) what is the extent of the damage to the submarine;
(2) whether any disciplinary steps have been taken against (a) the commander or (b) any member of the crew; if not, why not; if so, (i) against whom and (ii) which steps in each case;
(3) whether she will make a statement on the matter?
NW2605E
REPLY
(1) and (2)
The submarine SAS Queen Modjadji 1 made an unplanned contact with the sea-bottom (mud and sand) on the 17th July 2012 during routine "diving safety drill" and "hydraulic oil pressure failure" exercise. The Board of Inquiry (BOI) has been convened by SA Navy to determine factors that may have caused the incident.
The outcome of the report of BOI will provide the recommendation about the responsibility and accountability of the members of the crew involved.
A technical investigation has shown that SAS Queen Modjadji 1 has suffered an indentation (approximately 1,5m by 1,5m) to the outer protective plating (7.8mm) of the bow, protecting the main ballast tank no: 5.
(3). No
Statement issued by Mr. Pieter Groenewald (MP), FF Plus chief spokesperson: Defence and Military Veterans, September 11 2012
One of South Africa's three German built submarines (SAS Queen Modjadji) recently (July 17th) was damaged when it accidentally collided with the ocean floor during a training exercise. The Queen Modjadji was the only one of three new submarines (entering service between 2005-8) that was operational. The other two were laid up for "maintenance." Now the Queen Modjadji is as well, although the recent collision did not damage the pressure hull. But there was a visible dent in the outer hull and some internal damage.
One of these new Type 209 submarines has been out of service for five years, ostensibly for maintenance. But it turned out that the main reason was that there were not enough qualified sailors available to operate the boat. Further investigation revealed that this was not just a problem with the three new submarines.
The South African Navy has 18 warships and they are expensive to operate. In an effort to deal with these high operating expenses, and a shrinking defense budget, ships are being kept in port more often. Thus the navy budget only allows ships to spend 5-10 percent of their time at sea. The U.S. Navy has its ships at sea about 50 percent of the time. This is the main reason the American fleet is the most effective in the world. Being the largest fleet on the planet helps, but having a qualitative and quantitative edge creates an unbeatable combination.
In the last seven years the South African navy received four new MEKO (NATO) type frigates and three Type 209 submarines. These German built boats displace 1,300 tons, are 59 meters (183 feet) long, have eight torpedo tubes, and carry 14 torpedoes and a crew of 36. These are world class subs. But the South African Navy needs $1.2 million a year to operate each Type 209 boat. The new frigates are equally expensive. The government has not been providing enough money to cover all those costs. To make matters worse, the expanding oil industry and other high tech sectors of the economy have been tempting experienced officers and NCOs to leave the navy, especially the submarine service. Civilian jobs offer experienced sailors two or three times what the navy is paying them. The navy needs about 150 submarine sailors to provide full time crews for these boats. The navy has not been able to obtain enough qualified submarine sailors. As a result, subs don't go to sea much and when they do they are being handled by poorly trained and inexperienced crews. This will become an issue as the recent accident involving the Queen Modjadji proceeds. Another embarrassing aspect of the Queen Modjadji incident was that it was the first South African sub to have a black captain (Commander Handsome Thamsanqa Matsane, who took command four months ago).
South African politicians believe that having a lot of ships in commission, even if they don't go to sea much, provides the potential for putting a lot of ships out there if the need arises. Left unsaid is the fact that sending a lot of inexperienced crews to sea increases the risk of accidents. Ships are complex beasts and the seas, especially around South Africa, are rough, often extremely rough. This can be a fatal, for inexperienced crews, combination.
But many nations with large numbers of warships, staffed by inexperienced crews, believe that they will never have to use these ships a lot, in wartime or otherwise. That's a reasonable assumption for South Africa, which is surrounded by nations with even more decrepit armed forces. So the politicians are playing a cynical game, funding relatively large armed forces, which they cannot afford to adequately train, safe in the knowledge that they are unlikely to be found out.
The South African politicians are also living in the past with regards to the armed forces. Back in 1989, 4.5 percent of GDP was spent on defense and the armed forces were large and well trained. Now, defense gets 1.2 percent of GDP and the armed forces have not shrunk 73 percent to adjust for the smaller budget. Unwilling to cut the force in line with the smaller budget, the politicians prefer to run a scam. The sailors complain but at least they still have jobs. To South African politicians that's a reasonable outcome. To make matters worse, there is more corruption. A German investigation four years ago revealed that some $40 million in bribes was demanded by South African politicians, and paid, to ensure that a German firm got the contract to build the three subs. No bribery prosecutions of South African politicians resulted from the German investigation (which the German government tried to keep secret). The three German subs cost South Africa nearly one billion dollars.
