02 February 2024

Angola unveils Kodiak 100 maritime patrol aircraft

by Jeremy Binnie

A screengrab from the video shows the Kodiak 100 that has been modified into a surveillance aircraft for the FAN. (Forças Armadas Angolanas)

The Armed Forces of Angola (FAA) revealed on 1 February that it has acquired a Kodiak 100 utility aircraft that has been modified into a surveillance aircraft when it released a video to highlight the role of its female crew members.

Angola's National Air Force (FAN) already had one Kodiak 100 that was unveiled in May 2021, when the FAA's official magazine reported that the aircraft had been equipped to carry out cartographic surveys to produce digital maps for the Ministry of Interior's Integrated Public Security Center (CISP). The aircraft was described as the first in a planned fleet of six that would be operated by the FAN's new Special Air Patrol and Surveillance Unit.

This aircraft was previously photographed in Germany with the FAN serial R-756 and the temporary registration D-FSST. The German company SST Flugtechnik has photographs of D-FSST on its website to illustrate a project that involved installing a stabilised cartography scanner above a sliding hatch in the floor of the aircraft's cabin.

The second Kodiak 100 seen in the video released on 1 February had the FAN serial R-757 and CISP markings but, unlike R-756, was equipped with a large pod fitted under its fuselage. The mission system operator was shown cleaning a multicamera electro-optic system embedded into the rear of the pod before strapping into the seat in front of her control console inside the aircraft.

The Armed Forces of Angola (FAA) revealed on 1 February that it has acquired a Kodiak 100 utility ai...

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