Budget cuts to the SANDF are undermining aircraft maintenance and limiting its operations, jeopardizing readiness and national security.
Summary
The South African National Defense Force (SANDF) has been subject to severe budget cuts for several years, which has directly affected its air force. The 2024-2025 defense budget, limited to approximately 51 billion rand (€2.5 billion), allocates less than 15% to equipment and maintenance. The South African Air Force (SAAF) has an aging fleet of 26 Gripen C/D aircraft, a few Hawk Mk120 aircraft, old C-130BZ aircraft, and Oryx helicopters that require parts that are difficult to find. Due to a lack of funding, only a fraction of the aircraft are airworthy. This situation limits the SAAF’s ability to ensure air sovereignty, participate in peacekeeping operations in Africa, or intervene in domestic crises, such as natural disasters. The country faces a dilemma: reinvest to preserve its military capabilities or accept a loss of strategic autonomy.
The weight of budgetary constraints
The South African defense budget has fallen by nearly 20% in real terms over the last decade. For 2024-2025, it amounts to approximately 51 billion rand (€2.5 billion), or just 0.7% of GDP, well below the 2% standard recommended by the African Union. The share allocated to the acquisition and maintenance of air equipment has fallen to less than 15%, compared to more than 30% fifteen years ago.
This contraction is due to the priority given to social spending and fiscal consolidation, but it has severe effects on operational capacity. Late payments to subcontractors and a lack of spare parts reduce the availability of aircraft and helicopters. Maintenance contracts with Denel and Saab are on hold due to lack of funding.
This situation compromises the normal preventive maintenance cycle, which increases wear and tear on the fleet and raises the risk of accidents. For the SANDF, the challenge is to maintain national security and fulfill its external commitments with reduced and often immobilized resources.
The current state of the South African air fleet
The South African Air Force (SAAF) relies mainly on:
- 26 Gripen C/D aircraft acquired between 2008 and 2012;
- approximately 24 Hawk Mk120 aircraft for advanced training and limited support;
- 9 C-130BZ Hercules, several of which are grounded due to a lack of parts;
- nearly 40 Oryx helicopters (derived from the Puma), only some of which are operational;
- a few light transport aircraft (King Air) and aging C-47TP maritime warning aircraft.
According to estimates released in 2025, fewer than 12 Gripen aircraft are currently airworthy, and often without full weaponry. The C-130 fleet has only two fully available aircraft. Oryx helicopters, which are the backbone of humanitarian and peacekeeping operations, have availability rates of less than 50%.
This reality undermines the country’s ability to defend its vast airspace and coastline, which cover nearly 1.2 million km² and a strategic maritime domain.
The impact on domestic and regional operations
The lack of air assets has concrete consequences. In 2022 and 2023, during floods in KwaZulu-Natal and bush fires in the Western Cape, the SAAF was only able to mobilize a limited number of helicopters, forcing it to resort to private contractors.
In the area of maritime security, the lack of modern patrol aircraft prevents effective surveillance against illegal fishing and piracy. Regionally, the SANDF is a long-standing contributor to peacekeeping missions, notably in Mozambique and the Democratic Republic of Congo. However, the lack of transport and air escort aircraft limits the movement of troops and equipment.
These shortcomings also undermine South Africa’s credibility as a security actor in southern Africa, a region where it is nevertheless the traditional military power.
Aging infrastructure and the role of local manufacturers
The Waterkloof and Hoedspruit air bases are also suffering from budget constraints: aging hangars, obsolete navigation systems, and a lack of ground support equipment.
The state-owned company Denel Aviation, a key partner for maintenance and parts production, is in financial crisis and does not have the capacity to fully meet the SAAF’s needs. This industrial fragility increases dependence on foreign suppliers for critical Gripen and C-130 parts.
This situation creates a vicious circle: the longer the aircraft remain grounded due to lack of maintenance, the more the technical skills of local teams deteriorate, increasing dependence and costs.
The dilemmas of modernization
The SAAF does not have the funds to launch new programs. The replacement of the C-130BZs with a modern transport aircraft, such as the A400M or the C-390 Millennium, has been postponed for more than ten years. Discussions about MALE (Medium Altitude Long Endurance) drones for border surveillance have not led to any concrete results.
Despite their operational value, the Gripen aircraft require software updates and support contracts to maintain their effectiveness. Without funding, these aircraft are at risk of becoming obsolete within the next decade.
Thus, the central question for Pretoria is whether to extend the life of the existing fleet at high cost, or to agree to invest in more modern solutions, while facing competing budget priorities.
Regional and international perception
South Africa’s neighbors, notably Botswana, Namibia, and Mozambique, are closely watching the decline in the SANDF’s capabilities. Some, such as Botswana with its second-hand Gripen aircraft and Angola with its modernized Sukhoi aircraft, are gradually investing to maintain a certain regional balance.
For Western partners, including the United States and France, the deterioration of South Africa’s capabilities is a concern for the stability of southern Africa, particularly in the face of terrorist threats in northern Mozambique. Pretoria’s reduced role could also open the door to outside players such as Russia or China to provide equipment and training.
Scenarios for the future
If the current trend continues, the SAAF risks seeing its availability rate fall below the critical threshold of 40% in the coming years. This would further limit its ability to respond to natural disasters, support regional peace missions, or protect strategic sea lanes.
A recovery plan would require at least doubling the budget allocated to aircraft maintenance, ensuring Denel’s financial sustainability, and strengthening partnerships with Saab and other manufacturers.
Failing that, the SANDF may have to reduce its range of missions and rely more on private companies for air transport and logistics, which would raise questions of sovereignty and responsiveness.
A strategic issue of sovereignty and credibility
The current situation reflects the dilemma faced by many emerging countries: balancing urgent social spending with investment in defense. For South Africa, a regional power and member of the BRICS, the loss of air capability undermines its diplomatic influence and strategic autonomy.
As climate and security threats increase in southern Africa, maintaining a credible air force is becoming not only a military issue but also a political one. The government’s response over the next few years will determine whether Pretoria retains its role as a regional security guarantor or fades into the background behind other players.
War Wings Daily is an independant magazine.