Aerospace Africa and Défense 2026 - Public Airshow Day
By Jaco Pitout
19.09.2026
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Aerospace Africa and defence is held bi-annually and returned to AFB Waterkloof this past weekend. PilotsPost attended to capture the action. During the week leading up to the event there had been much criticism levelled at the South African Airforce and the perceived lack of readiness to deliver a world class airshow. These critics and their criticisms would have been pleasantly surprised, had they visited this airshow at the weekend.
The previous week, I had collected my media accreditation from the Officers Mess opposite the base where there had been a ticket collection office set up by the official ticketing partner Tixsa. It was efficient and took less than 10 minutes.
Arriving at the show early, I was impressed with how efficient the parking and entrance management was conducted by members of the Military Police as well as the ticketing provider.
Settling in along the one kilometer long crowd-line and meeting up with long time friends and making new ones, is one of my favourite activities at these events, the shared passion and camaraderie between photographers and journalists alike is something special.
We did not have to wait long, for arrivals to trickle into the base with the Marksmen, being Mark Hensman, Gary Glasson, and Eugene du Preez, arrived in the beautiful soft spring light.
As is customary with this type of event, a cavalcade of emergency vehicles is presented at the start of the show and with Brian Emmenis' words ringing true - “We appreciate their service, but we hope this is the last time we see them today.”
In the build up of the opening of the show, a SAAF C130 and Caravan took to the skies with skydivers onboard from the armed forces as well as selected civilian skydivers that would be opening the show a short while later. Water vapour trails could be seen coming from the tips of the enormous C130 propellers.
After the address by the Chief of the South African Air Force, Lt Gen Carl Moatshe, the parachutists left the C130 as a beautiful display of colour brightened the windy skies. Some of the jumpers had to contend with this wind and unfortunately landed off base, but thankfully safely so. The South African flag was also jumped as part of the display with the National Anthem being played over the loudspeakers.
The Jet Noise was about to wake up the majority of Centurion, with Cipher at the controls of the SAAB JAS 39 Gripen from 2 Squadron at AFB Makhado, who gave a spirited display of the capabilities of South Africa's premier fighter jet.
The Zimbabwean Airforce visited the show with two Karakorum-8 aircraft as well as a CASA 212 in support. The display was flown with elegance and grace showing off the lines of this Chinese built fighter trainer to the crowds. Sadly, this was the only international flying display on the airshow day. Upon landing, the K8 burst a tyre, while it was excellently managed by the crew, this closed the runway for a while for the aircraft to be removed.
High energy civilian aerobatics made an appearance at the show, with the Marksmen, putting their Leatt sponsored unlimited aerobatic machines through their paces. This display drew many a gasp from the crowd, I commented to a fellow photographer that this is one of my favourite times at an airshow, as you can fully appreciate how invested the crowd is in an act.
Andre' van Zyl is a firm airshow favourite, he displays the Magni Gyro to the full extent of its' capabilities. His act also features a race against a classic Porsche as well as a transition between performers going into Juba Joubert's display with the elegant Sud Aviation Gazelle.
It was also at around this time that no less that 4 BAE Hawk120's from 85 Combat Flying School got airborne. They would return later with a special surprise.
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A solo Silver Falcon also did a display to the delight of the crowd. I am sure that I am not the only person who wishes that we can one day return to a full 5 ship Silver Falcon display. The display was flown beautifully against the growing cloudy backdrop of the western skies.
The first of two commercial airliners would be next in the line-up, flanked by the 4 Hawks that departed earlier. The Lift Airlines operated by Global Aviation A320 was crewed by Capt. Des Warden, Capt. Brad Bennets, and Cat Warren Penny. It was a beautiful and graceful display of airmanship and cooperation between a commercial airliner and fighter trainer aircraft. What followed was a short capability display by the A320 crew before departing back to OR Tambo international airport.
85 Combat Flying School then proceeded into their 3-ship display, with tight formation work and a thrilling solo display flown by Captain Jean-Pierre “Nitro” Poisat.
Eugene du Preez was called back into the display lineup with a solo North American AT6 Harvard from the Harvard Club of South Africa. Harvard 7028 and its Pratt & Whitney radial engine was given a good Saturday morning run in the hands of this very experienced aerobatic pilot.
In another surprise visit, a FlyCobra Boeing 737-300 was flown to the show by Rand Airport based Hennie Delport and crew. The 737 is undoubtedly the workhorse of the airline world carrying more than 4 billion passengers annually across all variants.
The Springs based Classic Flying Collection is a treasure trove of all things vintage aviation. Flying the DeHavilland Chipmunk Steve Brown, Chris Joubert, Duncan Ritchie, and Grant Timms in the Alt Academy sponsored aircraft took us back in time, when these machines were the pilot makers that provided the step up for pilots into the venerable Spitfire and other front-line fighters of their time. The strong winds made for difficult handling, however, these four gentlemen handled the challenging conditions with aplomb!
The Mini-War is a crowd favourite at an airshow, the promise of an action packed 30 minutes brings the entire crowd to the crowd-line. I would like to suggest to the organisers at this juncture that media pens be made on the crowd line, every 50 meters or so, this will enable working photographers to work uninterruptedly whilst avoiding uncomfortable moments where photographic equipment and people are placed at risk with the excited crowd. Nonetheless, an exciting 30-minute simulation followed to the excitement of the crowd!
The South African Police Service also demonstrated a tactical intervention in a simulated hijacking event. Displaying readiness to intervene when criminals attempt to disrupt the daily lives of South Africans.
The versatility of helicopters cannot be understated from search and rescue to surveillance, to security operations, they are the Swiss army knife of the sky. Henley Air and Rocket displayed their Checkers 60/60 themed Bell 222 flown by Dr Andre' Coetzee as well as a long-line rescue demonstrated conducted by a previous member of the Silver Falcons, Nico Frylink and ably assisted by his crew in the Rocket Bell222. Jan Bothma brought his beautiful German SAR liveried Bell Huey to the show, and Major Corrie Oberholzer and crew displayed the BK117 to its' full capability. Juba Joubert also featured in the Aerospatiale Lama.
Learning how to fly? There are many ways to start and continue your aviation journey. In one demonstration, the Misasa Aerial Display Team brought 5 Savannah type aircraft to the show to demonstrate this capable bush and touring aircraft. The blustery conditions made for hard work, however Dawie du Toit, Danie van Heerden, Deon van Heerden, Marius Nel and Kevin Wood made short work of it demonstrating their skills.
Sling Aircraft is one of South Africa's aeronautical success stories, from humble beginnings to a booming worldwide business, they build continent crunching, ocean crossing, fun flying machines. Their newly formed display team shows three different sling models, the Sling TSi, the Sling HW (High Wing) as well as the Sling TD (Taildragger), flown on the day by Grant Timms, Riaan Denner and Jason Adriaan, against cloudy skies that made for a stunning backdrop.
The Flying Lions remains a South African airshow staple, they flew in from Rand Airport for a polished afternoon display. At the controls were Ellis Levin, Arnie Menneghelli and Nigel Hopkins. The crack of the tips of the propellers provided all the noise and the drama to keep the crowd spellbound after a long and sunny day.
To close off the day, the 85 Combat Flying School Hawks, the 2 Squadron Gripen, 28 Squadron C130 and the Rooivalk from 17 Squadron in BLoenfontein put the cherry on what was a fantastic airshow, flares, afterburners and a red-hot sunset in the west was the perfect complement to the show.
The Saturday Airshow at Aerospace Africa and Defence brought it all, wonderful variety, plenty of spring sunshine and a very good day spent in the company of other aviation enthusiasts. Was it perfect? No. Did we see the international participation that we used to see? No. Was it a disappointment? Certainly not. I believe that for what it was, it was well run, thoughtfully executed, and well attended. Now let us collaborate to ensure that the next edition is an even greater success!
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