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 Satellites  Manned Aircraft  Unmanned Systems  Security Sensors  Information Management Systems
Satellites – Remote Sensing SystemsAirships – Tethered AerostatAircraft – Manned Airborne SurveillanceUnmanned Aerial VehicleInformation Management Systems

African Astronautics (PTY) Ltd
Registration Nr: 2007/023968/07

Physical Address:
Unit U18
Enterprise Building
The Innovation Hub
Pretoria
South Africa 0087

Postal Address:
70 Okapi Rd
Monument Park
Pretoria
South Africa 0181

Web: www.afrinautics.com

Email: info@afrinautics.com

Tel: +27 76 568 4775
Fax: +27 86 552 5297

Products and Services Description

African Astronautics has developed a portfolio consisting of airborne surveillance and security related products and services for the defence, civil and private sectors in Africa, Middle East, Latin America and Asia. The following section provides a summary of the products and services..

Regional and national security demands the utilization of a range of technologies from manned to unmanned systems, which will provide near- and real-time information on a common operational picture. The platforms include commercial satellites, tethered aerostats, aircraft, and unmanned aerial vehicles. The platforms are capable of hosting a range of sensors such as electro-optical, near infrared, and synthetic aperture radar, which support day/night, all weather surveillance. In addition, these systems are configured with line of sight and/or satellite communications equipment to support the dissemination of the information. The mission systems have been designed to support land, air, and sea surveillance and security operations.

African Astronautics also has a range of security sensors and information management systems to provide technologies in support border control, diplomatic visits, sports events, critical infrastructure such as inner city streets, airports, ports/harbours, etc.

Satellites – Remote Sensing Systems

Commercial satellites provide countries strategic surveillance capabilities to include broad area coverage, point target collection and mapping of denied areas around the world to address the needs of the customer’s. The satellites provide 0.40-meter to 30.0-meter resolution data collected from satellites operated by industry from Canada, France, Germany, India, Israel, Japan, Russia and United States.

African Astronautics is working with a number of suppliers to provide this technology to South Africa and other international customers to compliment their existing resources. These satellites are capable of collecting imagery data day/night, all-weather multiple times a day. The satellites can collect areas as small as 50 square kilometers to 250,000 square kilometers. The imagery data can be used to support border control, monitoring of international agreements/treaties, environmental monitoring, support humanitarian and peacekeeping operations and law enforcement.

Commercial satellite technologies can be integrated as a part of a systems-of-systems approach or on a services basis for data, analytical reports and maps. African Astronautics is currently working on providing the latter in the short-term.

Aircraft – Manned Airborne Surveillance

African Astronautics is working with industry to field airborne surveillance platforms. These aircraft can provide around-the-clock surveillance of boarders, coastal waters and vital shipping lanes to support maritime safety, search and rescue, environmental monitoring, law enforcement and exclusive economic zone supervision.

In these roles, the operators are able to use the mission processor to operate the sensors to include electro-optical, infrared, multi-mode radar and automated identification system to enable the surveillance of borders and maritime environments (i.e., littoral and ocean) in order to monitor and report any potential violations of state or international laws. These systems provide the operators the capabilities to utilize the mission system and sensors, to effectively manage and distribute the information to the appropriate authorities.

African Astronautics is working with various partners to support aircraft and mission system upgrades / modifications. These aircraft are a proven capability to address the needs of South Africa and other international customers.

The mission system software architecture is designed around four major principles:

  • Integrate data from all sensors and communications channels into a concise information display for each operator
  • Integration of sensor control and display
  • Use of off-the-shelf technology, and
  • Flexibility to integrate additional sensors, subsystems, and operator stations

The software that allows the integration of sensor control and displays is based upon commercial-off-the-shelf technology and has the flexibility to integrate additional sensors . The mission system provides the capability to operate in a variety environments to include Microsoft Window.

The mission system provides a comprehensive integrated picture that enables workload sharing between operators and reduces operator workload. Data provided from sensors as well as multiple sensors video outputs are displayed to the operator in a manner consistent across sensors. This allows the operator to observe the data from multiple sensors simultaneously at either station.

A wide selection of display management tools and controls are provided the operator to ensure critical information is not obscured by information overload, or excessive clutter, on the display.

Airships – Tethered Aerostat

Lighter-than-air surveillance systems have been used for decades to provide persistent, ubiquitous land, air and sea surveillance. The Aerostat is configured with electro-optical, near infrared, radar sensors and communications equipment. The platform is tethered to a ground station via a fiber optic cable, which supports real-time downlink and dissemination of information on the movement of vehicles, aircraft, vessels and people. The Aerostat provides the capabilities to detect and monitor ground targets up to 275km and air targets up to 350km. The Aerostat is the most cost effective way of delivering long range surveillance capability to assist in resolving a range of issues.

The systems consists of Tethered Aerostats with a proven mooring platform, an imaging sensor package, radar, and communication relay package, and transportable environmentally controlled ground station that contains flight and payload control systems, sensor processing and data dissemination systems. The system interfaces with air and ground based sensors and command and control centres.

These platforms are the most suitable aerostat systems for defence, law enforcement and private sector related programs because:

  • It provides the capabilities to detect, recognize, and identify aircraft, vehicles/vessels and people overland, air, and sea.
  • They are the most rugged and operationally-proven systems available (ground system, flying system, environmental capabilities) and are designed for long life under demanding conditions.
  • The aerostat is the easiest to repair and is the only system that can be maintained under adverse weather conditions, achieved via its design and unique mooring system.
  • The aerostat is the preferred solution for a number of customers, assuring countries a steady succession of technology insertions.

Unmanned Aerial Vehicle

African Astronautics is working with a number of partners to bring a range of unmanned aerial vehicles to the marketplace. These platforms provide a unique set of capabilities to include long endurance, day/night, and all-weather surveillance. The growing demand for long-endurance surveillance utilizing real-time airborne surveillance and reconnaissance assets requires an unmanned vehicle. These systems are configured with electro-optical, infrared, radar and electronic information payloads to interface with other aircraft, ground-based units and operational command centers supporting defence and law enforcement. Unmanned aerial vehicles systems can support 1 - 24 hour missions.

These platforms include small, man portable and medium sized platforms offering defence and law enforcement a number of solutions to support local officers and strategic reconnaissance.

Security Sensors and Systems

African Astronautics is working with a number of international and local companies to provide various security sensors and systems to customers. These systems would not only do observation and information gathering, but will also employ techniques to discourage and prevent access to sensitive areas. These systems would include the basic sensors that collect data from installed positions – static, dynamic and redirected – in video format, from finger prints, photographs, ground seismic sensors, etc. as well as the artificial intelligent means to process this information into information, communicate it to the relevant instrument or authority for action and to sustain command and control on a local or national level.

One of the key technologies we’re bringing to the market is hosted on closed circuit television camera networks and is known as “intelligence video”. Intelligent video is an integrated analytics solution for proactive threat prevention by automating video monitoring systems. The technology is based on an array of commercial software algorithms hosted on a server that support unattended / abandoned object detection, facial recognition, motion and behavior analysis, intrusion detection, entry-exit directional monitoring, pattern recognition and crowd control. This technology enhances efficiency of surveillance systems, provides around-the-clock coverage, provides real-time alerts, and reduces human errors and monitoring costs.

African Astronautics is also evaluating a number of new technologies developed in South Africa and around the world to include thermal imagers, chemical, biological and radiological detection sensors, and cell phone encryption.

Information Management Systems

African Astronautics, in conjunction with business partners, has designed and developed a series of information management systems to support a wide range of customer’s needs. These systems include command and control, transportation management and all-source analysis. The systems are capable of managing different forms of information and data layers such as maps, charts, GPS locational data, natural and cultural features, topographic data, digital terrain models, and vector data to name a few.

African Astronautics believes that a number of customers are looking to establish “national-level” systems to support departments, agencies and ministries decision making. These systems support the distribution of information “to the relevant authority” for execution. However, for this function to be successful, a system needs to be deployed and commissioned to fulfill the needs of all the participants in the whole chain of events. In all these system deployments, the customer’s needs are defined and satisfied in an orderly and disciplined fashion with the use of sophisticated technology.

Only if the system assists the customer in the efficient, correct and timely understanding of his situation, can he deploy his resources effectively to solve his problems? Such systems could include border control, control of diplomatic visits, sports events, critical infrastructure such as inner city streets, airports, ports/harbors, etc. On a national level, the customer is likely to be a combination of defence, law enforcement and public sector. African Astronautics is working with local information technology companies, to assist these organisations in defining their requirements and working to a common goal. In addition, it will be imperative to work with the State Information Technology Agency to establish a forum representing these local and national government departments in such a way as to pool their resources as well as to satisfy them on a cooperative basis.