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World Defense & Security Industry News - Paramoun Group & Boeing
 
 
Paramount Group to partner with Boeing for light multirole aircraft production
 
According to The National, the US plane maker Boeing and the South African defence company Paramount said they would collaborate on light multirole aircraft. Boeing will provide advanced intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities and weapons systems for Paramount’s Mwari military aircraft, the companies said on Monday, March 7, 2016.
     
Paramount Group to partner with Boeing for light multirole aircraft production 640 001Paramount Group's ARHLAC Mwari light multirole aircraft
(Credit: Paramount Group)
     
The multi-role aircraft will become a significant player in the global aerospace industry,” said Ivor Ichikowitz, the executive chairman of Paramount Group. “We believe in the commercial success of the aircraft and its impact on the future of the African aerospace industry by boosting advanced technologies, job creation and skills development.


The Paramount Group, a privately owned defence and aerospace business, first flew the two-seater aircraft, dubbed AHRLAC Mwari, publicly last year. It was billed as Africa’s first military aircraft.

The design of the AHRLAC Mwari was targeted to produce a low cost surveillance aircraft. AHRLAC has a combination of mission specific pods which include FLIR (forward looking Infra-red) camera, SAR (synthetic aperture radar), active and passive EW, ELINT (electronic signals intelligence) and COMINT (communication intelligence). The Mwari is powered by Pratt and Whitney Canada's PT6A-66B turboprop engine rated at 634kW.

Boeing and Paramount had signed in 2014 a memorandum of collaboration to jointly develop defence and security opportunities in international markets.

At the time, the platforms that were under discussion for collaboration included various Boeing rotorcraft, unmanned aerial systems, related support services, and Paramount’s fleet of land vehicles and aerospace systems capabilities.

(Source: The National)