At AAD 2014 the South African Special Forces showcased their Zodiac Milpro ZH-753 RHIB

: Posted On Wednesday, 24 September 2014 11:01

Naval Forces News - South Africa

At AAD 2014 the South African Special Forces showcased their Zodiac Milpro ZH-753 RHIB

The South African Special Forces showcased their ZH-753 RHIB at Africa Aerospace & Defence exhibition (AAD 2014) which took place at Air Force Base Waterkloof in Centurion, South Africa, from September 17-21. While attending the event, Navy Recognition learned that these RHIB made by Zodiac Milpro of France are typically deployed by the "4 Special Forces Regiment" of the South African armed forces based in Langebaan near Cape Town.

The Zodiac Milpro Hurricane (ZH-753) on display at the South African Special Forces booth during AAD 2014 in Pretoria.

The "4 Special Forces Regiment" currently operates 4 ZH-753 and will take delivery of 4 more by next year. South African Special Forces deploy these RHIBs primarily for hostage rescue and long range sear and rescue missions.

We were told that secondary tasks include patrolling, anti-piracy, beach landings and cooperation with the navy (with the ability to deploy the RHIB from South African Navy frigates and combat support ships).

A Sergeant from the South African Special Forces explained that the armed forces purchased the ZH753 "off the shelf" without a tender because special forces members were already familiar with the quality of the Hurricane series by Zodiac Milpro. The sailing conditions off South African coasts (where the Atlantic Ocean and Indian Ocean meet) are among the most demanding.

Detailed view of the South African ZH-753 RHIB console

Considered among the finest RHIBs of their type in the world, the Zodiac Hurricane range are mission specific and are used by the most knowledgeable and discriminating operators who demand the utmost in ruggedness and reliability.

The ZH-753 as used by the South African Special Forces are fitted with Durarib: A ballistic foam filled inside the collars. Their weight is over 2300 Kg with a length of 8.05 meters and width of 2.74 meters. They are powered by 2x 200 Horsepower Yamaha outboard engines which allows the RHIB to reach a maximum speed of 47 knots. In addition to a crew of 2 to operate the boat, the ZH-753 can carry 8x fully equipped Special Force soldiers or up to 800 Kg of cargo. The range is around 80 nautical miles.

The seats are modular: we were explained 4 seats at the stern may be removed in order to fit weapons on the RHIB. South African Special Forces use the following weapons on their ZH-753:
- 1x 20mm gun
- 2x 12.8mm guns
- 40mm RPG-7
- 60mm mortar
- 7.62mm Mag, PKM and RPD

The South African ZH-753 are fitted with HF, VHF and UHF communication systems as well as a fully integrated surface to surface and surface to air datalink system. Magnetic compass, radar and GPS are also fitted for navigation.

File image: a ZH-753 from an undisclosed Navy during maritime air drop operation

The ZH-753 is based on the ZH-733 "ETRACO" which was designed for the French Navy commandos in the nineties with a specific requirement: Air deliverable capability.

The South Africa "4 Special Forces Regiment" are among the few special forces units in the world with this capability: Their ZH-753 may be deployed from the South African Air Force C-130 Hercules. We were told the unit regularly to retain their skills in "air delivery" operations.