SAAF Technology Show - AFB Overberg

By Rob Russell

Saturday, the 21st March, heralded the first SAAF technological show at AFB Overberg. Air shows are in rather short supply and are normally very well attended by both the flying communities and the general public. So it was with much excitement that people turned up expecting a good old traditional SAAF air show. It had a late start, in short, due to the finale, that being a 500-strong drone storm. Something not seen in this part of the world and many people made the effort, especially to see that. However, factors beyond the control of the organisers meant that the storm had to be cancelled and that left many people, both young and old, very upset.

To be frank, when it comes to classical SAAF air shows, this one will not be on that list. In fact, far from it.

The show at Overberg is always going to be a hard one to get to. Being over 200 km from Cape Town, it requires a devoted attendee to get there. The SAAF were aiming a large part of the show at the youth and it being human rights day as well, they decided to hold it on Saturday. Unfortunately it had to compete with several big sports events in the Cape - the massive Cape Epic mountain bike race, the stages around Stellenbosch, some big (school) hockey and rugby sporting festivals, as well as the fly in at Stellenbosch, it was inevitable that the air show was moved down the priority list by many people, that would have loved to have gone.

Many civilian pilots applied to fly into the Base, but for some unknown reason, this was denied. Here was a really great opportunity for the SAAF to score points with the flying community, but it seems they weren’t interested in that.

Throw in the late finish - 8 pm - it was inevitable that many Capetonians were not going to make the drive down to Overberg. Who wants to drive back along the N2 past the Grabouw area, and the N2 hell run area after dark? With so many recent attacks, especially in the latter area, it must have been a big factor in people not wanting to drive down for the day. That aside, ticket sales were good and in the region of 4000, although it did not appear that so many people were there.

The Show was opened, just after 12 pm, with the Chief of the SAAF, Lt Gen Wiseman S Mbambo, addressing the parade and those present. It was his final speech before he is set to retire. He has been well known for his views on Overberg and the immense potential it has, both for the SAAF, the base and indeed the country, with many overseas countries wanting to use the facilities there, as well as one or two aircraft manufacturers. But his thoughts, views and pleas have fallen on deaf ears.

To be honest, he delivered a really good speech. It was both relevant to the technology day and contained several warnings that should not be ignored. This being a technological show, he addressed the need to realise how important AI has become and the need to embrace it and work with it in the aviation industry, but also to be alert to the dangers it can bring. He stated that it is here to stay and we need to embrace it and work with it, and to be aware of how it can change our lives.

He then went on to address the ticking time bomb in this country - rising unemployment in the country and that through technology and AI, the youth unemployment could be addressed. He believes that there is a need for the state and private industry to work together to address it. He is to be complimented on raising this politically sensitive subject. He then declared the show open.

He has had his critics over the years, but this speech made an impression on many people there. It was also good to see the CAF make a low-key return, later in the afternoon, dressed in casual clothes, moving around the crowd and taking time to chat to them and pose for pictures. Something that is not done enough by senior officers.

It being a technology show, there was not a big flying programme, much to the disappointment of those who turned up. After all, many kids come to see aircraft! As for the technology side, that was also disappointing, with a small side hall off the Movements building hosting a few displays. The Stellenbosch satellite engineering faculty was prominent there and a somewhat disappointing SAAF Space Command presentation was also there, albeit with a small stand. The SA National Space Agency had an even smaller stand and the poor dummy sitting there looked very forlorn and in need of some loving care!

With this event being aimed at the youth, one would have thought the organisers would have spent more effort in organising displays which were relevant to the youth and how they can embrace AI in technology. Apparently, these were done on the Friday, but the kids on the Saturday were seemingly not as well catered for.

There were a few aircraft outside on static display, once again, not much imagination when it comes to displaying them. Only the Lynx had some sort of info boards but they were far away from the spectators, they were hard to read and they were on the side of the spectator area. One would have thought the organisers would have put them in the middle of the spectator area, fenced off, so the public could walk all around them, rather than just seeing them from one side. The personnel staffing the static displays were friendly and willing to take questions at least.

The “jet jocks” around the Hawk were kept very busy by aspiring pilots! The Milkor drone was also very low-key - just a drone and a few of their staff. Surely a bit of imagination could have gone into their display, with at least a few notice boards giving some information on the drone they had? And maybe some handouts or small momentos for the kids? But maybe they were reluctant to display too much, given the state of the world at the moment, which is understandable.

The flying program was quite understated, featuring only a few Hawks, a Rooivalk and one PC7. Some small drones were flown early afternoon, but with the rising wind speeds, that put pay to them showing their full potential. Likewise, a few radio-controlled planes flew and their owners did their best to entertain the crowd. Whilst the pilots did their best to excite the crowds, it kind of summed up the state of affairs that our Air Force has fallen to. Thank heavens Brian Emmenis and his Capital Sounds team were there. He, as usual, did his best to keep the crowds entertained with commentary and some anecdotal stories.

His attempts to get live commentary from the various pilots were met with a “NO” from the higher authorities. One would love to know their reasons for that. It's a first for this writer that the crowds were not able to hear the pilots explaining what they were doing. This was, after all, a technology show and here was a good example of how technology is used at air shows.

By the time the Rooivalk gave his flare display and closed the show, the vast majority of the spectators had left, many of them being very disappointed in the afternoon’s entertainment.

Of course, not all the spectators were disappointed - many of them chose to spend time in the beer tent, and others chose to renew friendships made over the years. Air shows are always great for that! Seeing friends from long ago and making new contacts.

One hopes that the organisers take note of the show, learn from the negatives and put together a great show next time round. Overberg has the potential to host great shows and there have been some over the years. But this one was not one of those.