South Africans to get Paveway kits

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FARNSBOROUGH, England, July 22 (UPI) -- Raytheon will supply the South African air force with Paveway laser-guided bomb kits under a contract announced Thursday.

The contract was awarded through the Armaments Corporation of South Africa, the officially appointed acquisition organization for the South African Department of Defense, for LGB computer control groups and air foil groups that transform "dumb" bombs into precision-guided munitions.

Tests and evaluation on the transformed bombs will be conducted using South Africa's Gripen fighter aircraft, the company said.

"The combat-proven Paveway family of weapons is integrated on more than 22 aircraft and serves 41 nations around the globe, making this weapon the ideal choice for the South African warfighter," said Harry Schulte, vice president of Raytheon's Air Warfare Systems product line. "Raytheon is the sole provider of the Paveway family of weapons and is committed to providing the warfighter with a reliable direct-attack weapon at a cost-effective price."

The dollar value of the deal wasn't disclosed.

Delivery of the kits begins next year and as part of the agreement Raytheon will also provide air- and ground-crew training.