The Cheetah flies again.

Ecuador purchases ex-SAAF Cheetah fighters
Date: 13 December 2010

By Dean Wingrin

Denel Aviation has anonunced that it has sold sold 12 Cheetah supersonic fighter aircraft to Ecuador.The deal includes a mix of single-seat Cheetah C and dual-seat Cheetah D’s.

An agreement to conclude the deal was recently signed by the CEO of Denel Aviation, Mike Kgobe in the capital city of Ecuador, Quito.

Denel Aviation is the design authority of the Cheetah single-seat fighter that was locally developed with Isreali assistance in the 1980’s. The aircraft is a variant of the Mirage lll, with improved aerodynamics and superior avionics, radar and weapon systems. In terms of the agreement with the Ecuadorian Air Force, Denel Aviation will continue to provide a comprehensive maintenance and support service for at least five years following the sale, with an option for renewal.

Nine dual-seat and seventeen single-seat Saab Gripen fighter aircraft were acquired in 1998 under the Strategic Defence package acquisition programmes to replace the Cheetah C and Ds in service. The Cheetah system was only to be phased out once all the Gripens had been delivered in 2012. However, the Cheetah was phased out in April 2008 to save costs and the Gripens are still in the process of being delivered.

“This is an exciting business deal for South Africa,” says Kgobe. “The Denel Cheetahs have been in storage since they were retired from active duty in 2008. Denel Aviation and the South African Cheetah Support industry in conjunction with the South African Air Force were directly involved in the decommissioning and packaging for storage of the aircraft and support infrastructure.

Kgobe stated that Denel’s offer met the needs of the Ecuadorian Air Force (FAE) that was looking to modernise its fighter fleet. Negotiations between…

http://www.saairforce.co.za/news-and-events/941/ecuador-purchases-ex-saaf-cheetah-fighters

Ecuador already operates Dassault aircraft or derivitives thereof. If my memory serves me correctly, I think they operate the Mirage 50, Kfir CE, Mirage F1 and now the Cheetah C and D?