and, for some time, Baghdad
also provided technicians to keep
the SAF fleet airworthy. In the
same period, China returned as a
provider of hardware and delivered
a batch of Nanchang A-5 Fantan
fighter-bombers and several
CJ-6/PT-6 propeller trainers.
The aircraft delivered between the
1960s and 1990s faced a constant
struggle to achieve operational
availability. By the 1990s
serviceability within the SAF was
low and many aircraft were in a
desperate condition. Nonetheless,
the SAF always managed to carry
out missions ordered by Khartoum.A new era
Oil was discovered in Sudan during
the 2000s, leading to investments
in an extensive upgrade and
modernisation programme for the
SAF. In particular, 2003 was a year
of changes for the air force. The
Justice and Equality Movement
(JEM) rebel group launched
an attack on El Fasher Airport
in North Darfur and destroyed
military assets, including a number
of Mi-8 type helicopters. This
event is considered as marking
the start of the Darfur conflict. In
the same year, the SAF received
its first factory-fresh MiG-29SEh
Fulcrum-C and MiG-29UB multi-
role fighters, which were a
considerable improvement over the
previous obsolete equipment. The
Fulcrums were probably upgraded
to SMT/UBT standard. Yak-52
basic trainers arrived from Russia
to replace the elderly CJ-6/PT-6s
so the country could continue to
train its own pilots. For advanced
training, the SAF procured Hongdu
K-8 jet trainers from China.76 // AUGUST 2018 #365 http://www.airforcesmonthly.com
Sudanese Air Force
Force
Report
‘Antonov bombers’
‘Antonov bombers’ is a term that’s
now inextricably linked with Sudan.
The method of throwing makeshift
bombs from the rear of an An-26 or
An-32 transport aircraft has been in
continuous use since the mid-1990s.
Towards the end of that decade, Sudan
acquired BDZ-34 fuselage pylons for
its An-26s and An-32s so that 500kg
(1,102lb) FAB-500 iron bombs could be
attached on either side of the fuselage.
It’s likely that some targeting and
sighting equipment is incorporated in
the cockpit, for more accurate results.Above: Photographed at Nyala, serial 965 is a cannon-armed Mi-24P. Jebel Aulia is the main operating base for the
‘Hind’, but these gunships routinely deploy to El Geneina, El Fasher and Nyala for missions over Darfur, as well as El
Obeid, Kadugli, Ad Damazin and Muglad to support troops in South Kordofan.
A Sudanese Su-25 in action
over El Fasher. The aircraft is
unarmed but carries a pair of
1,150-lit (253-imp gal) PTB-1150
drop tanks beneath the wings.Above: Although of poor quality, this is a rare shot of a camouflaged Sudanese ‘Hip’, at Nyala. The helicopter is a Mi-
171Sh variant – as many as 15 were reportedly acquired from Russia.