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| An extensive modification and upgrade of the Dassault
Mirage III undertaken by the Atlas Aircraft Corporation
with some assistance from Israel Aircraft Industries
(LAI), the Cheetah was first unveiled on 16 July 1986.
The Cheetah consisted of a zero-houred Mirage airframe
with canard surfaces and dogtooth wing extensions,
provision for a bolt-on flight-refuelling probe, a
pair of additional weapons pylons beneath the engine
air intakes, a dual-purpose Israeli radar, a new avionics
suite and a licence-built SNECMA Atar 9K-50 engine
rated at 7200kg with afterburning. The
programme involved the upgrading of 14 single-seat
Mirage IIIEZs as Cheetah EZs, and eight two-seat Mirage
IIID2Z conversion trainers and single-seat IIIR2Z
tactical reconnaissance aircraft as Cheetah DZs and
RZs respectively. The Cheetah EZ, which was declared
operational by the South African Air Force in 1987, equipped only one squadron, No 5. The armament included
two 30mm cannon and Armscor V3B Kukri and
V3C Darter AAMs for air-to-air missions, and eight
227kg bombs could be carried in the attack
role. No data related to the Cheetah EZ are available,
but performance was essentially similar to that of the
Mirage IIIE and overall dimensions were similar to
those of the IAI Kfir.
| lxbfYeaa, e-mail, 14.03.2024 04:00 20 reply | | General Ken Livingston, e-mail, 02.05.2016 01:44 SORRY I DID ANGOLA.
I SAY IT AGAIN ATLAS CHEETAH IS BEST OF THE BEST. reply | | General Ken Livingston, e-mail, 30.04.2016 21:23 I fly ATLAS CHEETAH. In apartad s-Afrika and kill idiot in Negeria, fun work. IAI KEFIR is bad. ATLAS CHEETAH is best of the best ,ok. MIRAGE 3 AVON to Australia is god.OK. reply | | Timothy Potter, e-mail, 22.03.2016 10:01 The Cheetah was a less advanced adaptation of the Mirage when compared to the Kfir. This was mainly driven by the fact that there are many more arabs to be eliminated than south africans. reply | |
| | GUD, e-mail, 19.03.2016 21:44 THIS IS BETER AIRCRAFT IAI- Kfir THAN BEING A BAD COPY OF MIRAGE third.
IT IS NOT IN SERVICE longer in the SAF LOWER. BORING.
AUSTRALIA BOUGHT MIRAGE 3 AND PUT AN ENGLISH jet engine PLANET THEN MIRAGE 3 AVON TO AUSTRALIA.
Atlas Cheetah Is a very good UPGRADING THE MIRAGE 3. THEN TIL transfer of the French state. NOT THE SAME AS inadvertently applied IAI KIFIR. reply | | Ferdie, e-mail, 16.01.2015 10:56 Sometime in the late 80's 5 Squadron moved to Louis Trighardt. They were then equiped with the Cheetah E which was in cersvice until the Cheetah C's were introduced somewhere in 1992. reply | | Paul Gerber, e-mail, 11.06.2013 10:50 No Cheetah Aircraft were ever in service at No 5 Sqn SAAF. This Citizen Force Sqn based at Port Elezabeth used to be Equipped with Impala MkI aircraft until closed sometime in the 1980s. The SAAF Cheetah D2Z aircraft initially served in 85 Combat Flying School and the others at No 2 Sqn. The Cheetah D2s were later also transferred to No 2 Sqn until replaced by the new Gripen fighters and sold off to Equador. reply | | Jeremy Swanson, e-mail, 27.10.2011 11:11 The Bosbok was not 100 % SA made an neither was the Impala. They were both Italian planes. Aero 99 says there were many more planes made by Atlas but thats simply not true. It didn't happen reply | | Kevin F, e-mail, 08.03.2011 16:24 Way more involved. They also built the Rooivalk or Redhawk attack helicopter. I worked on the Cheetah's as well. Lots of fun. reply | | Aero99, 12.02.2011 20:04 There are much more aircraft made by the Atlas South African company. reply | | jerry, e-mail, 11.02.2011 21:32 Oops...I was wrong about the Impala being all South African. Turns out it's a license-built Italian plane. My bad. reply | | jerry, e-mail, 11.02.2011 21:32 Oops...I was wrong about the Impala being all South African. Turns out it's a license-built Italian plane. My bad. reply | | jerry, e-mail, 11.02.2011 21:29 We're missing the Atlas Impala here (A truly all South African indigenous design). As the only South African plane I had prior knowlege of, I'm surprised not to find it in this section! reply | | Nuno Sá Couto, e-mail, 26.09.2010 08:26 i start get involved with atlas aircraft corp. in 1965,first i was involved with maintenance and service of aircraft props,of t6,dc3,and c130`s,after be involved with Sabre,f86,engine,Orenda,full o /haul,I,also get involved with,Mirage III C and E,maintenance and service,for a short periode be involved with Allouete helicopter 2 and 3,rotors o /haul,althogether five yeares reply | |
| | Sabino Moreira, e-mail, 24.03.2010 20:26 I was myself involved with Atlas Aircraft Corp. since April 1966 to August 89, but more involved with the Heli's transmission systems. Indirectely was also involved with Mirage's III and F1 reply | | Darryl Johnston, e-mail, 21.03.2010 19:11 Hi There was /is the Bosbok (bushbuck) recce plane (not sure if by Atlas). Also the Impala - essentially a redo of an aermacchi (not too sure of the model) reply | | leo rudnicki, e-mail, 14.04.2009 20:31 No mention of the Atlas Kudu,this company was busier than it looks here. Always fiddlin wi' sumpin. reply |
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