Basics

Altech Netstar provides a nationwide stolen vehicle recovery service, using a proprietary land-based radio network. The key elements of this service are:

Altech Netstar tracking units
The Altech Netstar unit is a small device installed into the customer's vehicle. It is able to receive various signals and transmit responses to these through the networks to the control centre.

Fitment centres
Over 100 fitment centres situated throughout SA are responsible for the installation of about 10,000 Altech Netstar units each month. These are managed by qualified auto electricians, and the technicians have been carefully selected and trained by the Altech Netstar Quality Control team.

Control centre
The emergency control centre operates 24 hours per day, 365 days a year, and is responsible for all recovery activities throughout southern Africa. This includes activating Altech Netstar units in stolen or hijacked vehicles, co-ordinating the ground and air recovery operations, liaising with the SAPS and communicating with subscribers.

Networks
The communication networks enable the process of activating Altech Netstar units, receiving signals back from these vehicles, and sending other commands to the Altech Netstar units.

Ground recovery teams
These teams are dedicated exclusively to Altech Netstar. They consist of highly trained recovery personnel that are able to respond at immediate notice. Each team consist of a driver and a tracker, who uses mobile tracking equipment to locate the signals from a stolen vehicle. These teams will retrieve stolen vehicles from any location in the country. Whilst they may at times work in conjunction with the SAPS, Altech Netstar does not rely on the overburdened SAPS to recover its customers' vehicles.

Air recovery teams
Altech Netstar is the largest user of helicopter services in SA. We recognize that stolen vehicles have to be recovered as quickly as possible, and in an average time of under an hour. This is achieved through the use of helicopters and fixed wing aircraft around the country. The air recovery teams consist of the aircraft pilot and the airtracker. The tracker is responsible for locating the signal, guiding the pilot and the ground crew to the stolen vehicle, and communicating with the control centre. With the use of the sophisticated tracking equipment that replicates a network, the aircraft is able to track and locate vehicles that may have left the network.

The Altech Netstar service includes the free recovery of your vehicle in the southern African countries of Botswana, Namibia, Swaziland, and Zambia.