Jakkals

Jakkels
Jakkels
	Jakkals ready for airdrop
Type	Air portable logistical support vehicle
Place of origin	South Africa
Service history
Used by	South African National Defence Force
Production history
Designer	Colonel Phillip Jäckel (Technical Service Corps) SADF
Manufacturer	Associated Automotive Distributors, Cape Town, South Africa
Specifications
Weight	1,120 kg (2,470 lb) with trailer.
Length	2.408 m (7.90 ft)
Width	1.22 m (4.0 ft)
Crew	1
Passengers	1
Main; armament	Mounted recoilless rifle, heavy and light machine guns, acting tractor for the Valkiri-5 rocket launcher or an anti-aircraft mount such as the ZU23-2 anti-aircraft cannon. Also tractor for 120mm mortar
Engine	1600cc
Transmission	Manual, 4x4
Speed	72 km/h (45 mph)

Last updated April 10, 2019

The Jakkals is a small, agile weapon carrier and utility vehicle for airborne units of the former South African Defence Force and current South African National Defence Force. The Jakkals can be deployed by land, lifted by helicopter, air dropped and delivered via aircraft.

Utility vehicle multi-role vehicle more specialized than a true general-purpose vehicle

A utility vehicle is a vehicle, generally motorized, that is designed to carry out a specific task with more efficacy than a passenger vehicle. It sometimes refers to a truck with low sides.

The South African Defence Force (SADF) comprised the South African armed forces from 1957 until 1994. Shortly before the state reconstituted itself as a republic in 1961, the former Union Defence Force was officially succeeded by the SADF, which was established by the Defence Act of 1957. The SADF, in turn, was superseded by the South African National Defence Force in 1994.

The South African National Defence Force (SANDF) comprises the armed forces of South Africa. The commander of the SANDF is appointed by the President of South Africa from one of the armed services. They are in turn accountable to the Minister of Defence and Military Veterans of the Defence Department.

Weapons mounted on the Jakkals include the 106mm M40 recoilless rifle, M2 Browning heavy machine gun, various general purpose machine guns as well as acting as a tractor for the Valkiri-5 multiple rocket launcher or anti-aircraft guns such as the ZU-23-2.

M40 recoilless rifle 105 mm recoilless rifle

The M40 recoilless rifle is a lightweight, portable, crew-served 105 mm weapon intended primarily as an anti-tank weapon made in the United States. The weapon is commonly described as being 106 mm, but it is in fact 105 mm; the 106 mm designation was intended to prevent confusion with the incompatible 105 mm ammunition from the failed M27. It could also be employed in an antipersonnel role with the use of the antipersonnel-tracer flechette round. It can be fired primarily from a wheeled ground mount. The air-cooled, breech-loaded, single-shot rifle fired fixed ammunition. It was designed for direct firing only, and sighting equipment for this purpose was furnished with each weapon.

The M2 Machine Gun or Browning .50 Caliber Machine Gun is a heavy machine gun designed toward the end of World War I by John Browning. Its design is similar to Browning's earlier M1919 Browning machine gun, which was chambered for the .30-06 cartridge. The M2 uses the much larger and much more powerful .50 BMG cartridge, which was developed alongside and takes its name from the gun itself. It has been referred to as "Ma Deuce", in reference to its M2 nomenclature. The design has had many specific designations; the official designation for the current infantry type is Browning Machine Gun, Cal. .50, M2, HB, Flexible. It is effective against infantry, unarmored or lightly armored vehicles and boats, light fortifications and low-flying aircraft.

A heavy machine gun or HMG is a class of machine gun implying greater characteristics than general purpose or medium machine guns.

It can also be deployed with a small trailer and used as a logistical support vehicle, especially for the 120mm mortars as with airborne artillery. The Jakkals has only been used in defense operations by the South African Airborne Units during the South African Border Wars.^[1]

The South African Border War, also known as the Namibian War of Independence, and sometimes denoted in South Africa as the Angolan Bush War, was a largely asymmetric conflict that occurred in Namibia, Zambia, and Angola from 26 August 1966 to 21 March 1990. It was fought between the South African Defence Force (SADF) and the People's Liberation Army of Namibia (PLAN), an armed wing of the South West African People's Organisation (SWAPO). The South African Border War resulted in some of the largest battles on the African continent since World War II and was closely intertwined with the Angolan Civil War.

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References

↑ SA Transport.co.za Army Vehicles

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[1] SA Transport.co.za Army Vehicles