Air Force Base Waterkloof is an airbase of the
South African Air Force
"Through hardships to the stars"
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, equipment ...
. It is situated on the outskirts of
Pretoria
Pretoria () is South Africa's administrative capital, serving as the seat of the executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassies to South Africa.
Pretoria straddles the Apies River and extends eastward into the foot ...
, and is the SAAF's busiest airbase. The base's name, ''Waterkloof'', is
Afrikaans
Afrikaans (, ) is a West Germanic language that evolved in the Dutch Cape Colony from the Dutch vernacular of Holland proper (i.e., the Hollandic dialect) used by Dutch, French, and German settlers and their enslaved people. Afrikaans gra ...
. It means ''Water Ravine'' in
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
. Despite the name, this base is not located in
Waterkloof
Waterkloof (Afrikaans for "Water Ravine") is a upmarket suburb of the city of Pretoria in the Gauteng province of South Africa, located to the east of the city centre. It is named after the original farm that stood there when Pretoria was founded ...
,
Pretoria
Pretoria () is South Africa's administrative capital, serving as the seat of the executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassies to South Africa.
Pretoria straddles the Apies River and extends eastward into the foot ...
, but lies to the south of
Pretoria
Pretoria () is South Africa's administrative capital, serving as the seat of the executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassies to South Africa.
Pretoria straddles the Apies River and extends eastward into the foot ...
, to the northeast of
Centurion, Gauteng and from
AFB Swartkop
Air Force Base Swartkop is South Africa's oldest air force base and houses the South African Air Force Museum. It is managed as part of AFB Waterkloof and houses one of the three branches of the South African Air Force Museum. The name of the a ...
, at an elevation of 1506 metres (4940 ft).
The base motto is ''Acquirit Qui Tuetur'' (He Obtains Who Defends).
Units currently hosted
*
2 Squadron – Fighter, attack, reconnaissance
*
21 Squadron – VIP transport
*
28 Squadron – Medium transport
*
41 Squadron – Light transport
*
44 Squadron – Light transport
*
60 Squadron – In-flight refuelling, transport, EW/ELINT/AEW
* 111 Squadron – Light transport (reserve)
* 140 Squadron – Light transport (reserve)
* 504 Squadron – Security
* 5 Air Servicing Unit – Maintenance support
* Central Photographic Institute – Photographic services
* JARIC, (Joint Air Reconnaissance Intelligence Centre) The SANDF National Imagery Exploitation Centre – Strategic Imagery Intelligence (
IMINT
Imagery intelligence (IMINT), pronounced as either as ''Im-Int'' or ''I-Mint'', is an intelligence gathering discipline wherein imagery is analyzed (or "exploited") to identify information of intelligence value. Imagery used for defense intel ...
) support
* Mobile Deployment Wing – Emergency response
* SAAF Telecommunications Centre – Communications
* Ditholo Training Area is managed as an external component of AFB Waterkloof
History
The base was officially opened on 1 August 1938 as Waterkloof Air Station.
Since that time it has always been in the service of the SAAF. It was upgraded to Air Force Base during World War II.
Aviation
*
Non-directional beacon
A non-directional beacon (NDB) or non-directional radio beacon is a radio beacon which does not include directional information. Radio beacons are radio transmitters at a known location, used as an aviation or marine navigational aid. NDB are i ...
– WL315.0
*
VHF omnidirectional range
Very high frequency omnirange station (VOR) is a type of short-range radio navigation system for aircraft, enabling aircraft with a receiving unit to determine its position and stay on course by receiving radio signals transmitted by a network ...
– WKV116.9
* Tower – 124.1
Controversy
A flight full of Indian citizens who had come to attend a wedding of the Gupta family landed at Waterkloof airbase. This was in contravention of South African law since the airbase is classified as a National Key Point. It was later alleged that former president
Jacob Zuma is the one who ordered the flight to land.
References
*
Notes
External links
Waterkloof page on the unofficial website of the South African Airforce Checked 29 March 2012
South African Air Force bases
Airports in South Africa
Transport in Gauteng
City of Tshwane Metropolitan Municipality
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