Denel Dynamics Seeker

Denel Dynamics Seeker History

For nearly a decade, the South African Air Force (SAAF) has relied on the Seeker family of tactical unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to perform a critical intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) role on the battlefield. Introduced in 1986, the system was used until 1996, when it was replaced by a more powerful, modern design. Since then, the series has seen four main variants, including the Seeker I, Seeker II, Seeker 200 and Seeker 400.

The aircraft is still in service with the armed forces of Algeria, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, and is used by the South African Park Service to combat poaching.

The design of Seeker (model Seeker I) is a veteran of the South African Frontier War (1966-1990) who was involved in operations that ended this conflict.

Like the unmanned ISR system, the Seeker UAV adopts a traditional form and structural arrangement. Above the plate-side fuselage are the main straight fixed-wing aircraft mounted near the midship. The front of the fuselage houses avionics, fuel storage and mission equipment, as well as cameras and sensors, while the rear is mostly reserved for the engines, which drive the multi-blade propeller assemblies in a "thrust" configuration. A narrow tail boom emerges from the trailing edge of the main-wing planes, each with vertical stabilizers installed, and the planes are then joined together by a horizontal surface that acts as the stabilizer component of the plane.

The landing gear is fixed in flight on wheels for ground operation.

The Seeker I marks the basic entry-level model of the range, while the Seeker 2 was developed for the export market with a new modern twist on service equipment. The performance of the UAV components themselves has been improved - especially in the operational domain and tactical support functions.

The Seeker 200 is one of the newest additions to the range (currently sold by Denel) and is based on the Seeker II platform with a new, low-maintenance engine. It provides real-time reconnaissance capability day and night, finding, tracking and laser marking targets from the air when needed. The design is more modular to better suit different roles in the field, and the complete Denel system includes up to six Seeker 200 UAVs, a Tactical Ground Station (TGS) and all necessary auxiliary equipment. The Seeker 200 has a range of up to 250km (via line-of-sight control, otherwise range control) and comes with a backup data connection for increased reliability in the air.

It can fly up to 18,000 feet within a 10-hour mission endurance window and carry a payload of up to 40 kilograms (including E-Intel-E-Package).

The Seeker 400 follows the Seeker 200 as an offshoot of the Seeker II product and is now also sold by Denel. The mission payload has been increased to 100kg and the endurance at altitudes up to 18,000ft is now 16 hours.

In addition to the manual pilot capability, there is also the ability to fly autonomously, allowing this variant to be transported in the belly of two Lockheed C-130 Hercules transport aircraft (or similar).

In the late 1990s, at least ten Seeker II models were delivered to the Algerian Air Force. From 1996 to 2010, 11 aircraft were flown to the UAE for use by the Air Force.

Specification

Basic

Production

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Performance

Changes