Operation Wallpaper

Last updated
Operation Wallpaper
Part of the Angolan Civil War and South African Border War
Location
Angola

Angola location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Mavinga
Red pog.svg
Jamba
Red pog.svg
Cazombo
Red pog.svg
Cuito Cuanavale
Operation Wallpaper (Angola)
ObjectiveProtection of Mavinga
Date7 September - 6 October 1985

Operation Wallpaper (aka Operation Weldmesh) [1] was a military operation by the South African Defence Force (SADF) during the Angolan Civil War and South African Border War. [2]

Contents

SADF and National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA) forces defeated a coalition of Cuban and People's Armed Forces for the Liberation of Angola (FAPLA) troops, fighting on behalf of the People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA), in September 1985 around Mavinga. The SADF victory later helped UNITA militants defeat the MPLA troops in the Battle of Lomba River I. [2]

Background

In mid 1985, the Angolan government formulated an offensive called Operation Congresso II. Led by Soviet and Cuban military advisors the plan called for a simultaneous attack on Cazombo in the east and Mavinga in the south-east and to take one or both objectives by 3 September. [3] : 213  The objective of the operation was to split UNITA forces, forcing them to fight on two fronts and therefore weakening their defensive capability. The potential loss of Mavinga by UNITA could give FAPLA the opportunity to stage a further attack on UNITA's capital at Jamba. [3] : 213  The South Africans believed that if Mavinga was taken, FAPLA would move its air defence network southwards, threatening the South African Air Force (SAAF) ability to protect Jamba from Angolan air attack, making it susceptible to ground attack and opening southern Angola to increased SWAPO activity into Namibia. [3] : 214 

The offensive started at the end of July, with UNITA initiating spoiling attacks against the FAPLA columns as they moved towards their objectives. By the beginning of September, FAPLA had reached the outskirts of UNITA's defensive positions around the towns of Cazombo and Mavinga. The SADF involvement would take two parts: Operation Wallpaper involved the airborne movement of UNITA troops from Cazombo to Mavinga while Operation Weldmesh concerned the defense of UNITA around Mavinga. [4] : 244 

Order of battle

South African forces [3] : 217 

32 Battalion

Two SA-9 teams

MRL troop

61 Mechanised Infantry Battalion held in reserve in Namibia

UNITA forces [3] : 217 

2,400 men including 250 men defending Mavinga

Angolan forces [3] : 214 

Battle

The Angolan brigades left Cuito Cuanavale on 15 August, with the 8th and 13th following the main road to Mavinga via the town of Cunjamba and the 7th and 25th moving southwards following the Cunzumbia and Cuzizi rivers and having reached the Lomba river, flanking left and followed that river to an area north of Mavinga. [3] : 217  Operation Wallpaper came into being on 7 September when the South African Defence Force (SADF) 32 Battalion was given the go ahead to move to Mavinga. [3] : 217  The troops of 32 Battalion and additional attachments were dressed in UNITA uniforms and flown to Mavinga by the SAAF. [3] : 217  All additional equipment was driven across the border to Mavinga. 61 Mechanised Infantry Battalion was placed in reserve. [3] : 217  UNITA had deployed 2,400 men to defend the positions around Mavinga, with 250 men to defend the town and airfield itself. The Angolan forces were now 50 km north west of Mavinga.

By 8 September the South African equipment had arrived and by 11 September the SADF units were in position to support UNITA and attack the FAPLA brigades. On the early morning of 12 September the SADF Valkiri multiple rocket launchers began to strike the FAPLA 8 and 13 Brigades which had stopped to resupply. The MRL attack ended at daybreak with the Angolan Air Force searching for their positions during daylight hours, [3] : 217  but the MRL attack failed to slow the Angolan brigades and they resumed their advance. By 15 September, all four brigades met south of the Lomba River, 30 km north west of Mavinga. UNITA and the SADF units had failed to slow or stop the advance. [3] : 217  Meanwhile, far to the north, UNITA had to retreat south from Cazombo on the 19 September as FAPLA took the town. [3] : 215  Over a number of nights, the SAAF evacuated at least a 1000 UNITA soldiers from that region, flying them and their equipment into Mavinga. [1] [3] : 215  Having learnt from SADF reconnaissance units around the Cuito Cuanavale airfield that the Angolan brigades were being supplied by helicopter, SAAF Atlas Impalas were sent to intercept these Mil Mi-17 and Mil Mi-25 helicopters when alerted to their movements by those reconnaissance units. [3] : 218  Eventually the Angolans lost 10 helicopters and started using smaller Aérospatiale Alouette IIIs to resupply their forces. Ten Soviet advisors were also killed as they landed at Cuito Cuanavale after being intercepted by a SAAF Dassault Mirage F1. [5] : 194 

By 2 October, the Angolan brigades were 10 km from Mavinga but had suffered heavy losses from UNITA attacks and the SADF MRLs. [3] : 218  At this point FAPLA morale was low and with the evacuation of the Russian advisors [4] : 245  the Angolan forces were beginning to desert. Over two days of air attacks by SAAF Impala and Mirage aircraft, ground bombardments from the MRLs and with reduced supply and unit fighting ability, [6] : 136  the Angolan brigades were ordered to retreat westwards and then to head for Cuito Cuanavale. By 4 October, 32 Battalion units began to withdraw. [3] : 218 

Vital air support

The SAAF played a very important role in logistical support to the SADF Forces and UNITA against a coalition of Cuban and FAPLA troops moving in on Mavinga. The SAAF flew 310 night flying hours transporting mainly the Valkiri Multiple Launch Rocket System (MLRS) and their 127 mm rockets, ammunition and food; and performing Casualty Evacuation (Casevac) of wounded personnel. SAAF Lockheed C-130 Hercules, Transall C-160 and Douglas C-47 Skytrain aircraft were used.

Aftermath

It was realised by the South Africans at the end of the operation that it would be impossible for UNITA forces to stop a combined Angolan and Cuban force and that Mavinga would have fallen had it not been for the assistance of the SADF. [3] : 218  The Angolan forces back in their base, began to rebuild while waiting for the rainy season to end and resume Operation Congresso II. [6] : 136  The South African's suffered one soldier accidentally killed, [3] : 218  while 500 UNITA soldiers died and 1500 wounded [5] : 195  with other sources claiming dead and wounded to be as high as 2500. [1] Angolan casualty figures range from 1589 [3] : 219  to 2500 [5] : 194  to as high as 4719 [1] soldiers killed. Soviet casualties are listed as 10 dead and 9 wounded, while the Cubans lost 56 men and 60 wounded. [5] : 195 

Related Research Articles

The Battle of Cuito Cuanavale was fought intermittently between 14 August 1987 and 23 March 1988, south and east of the town of Cuito Cuanavale, Angola, by the People's Armed Forces for the Liberation of Angola (FAPLA) and advisors and soldiers from Cuba, USSR, Vietnam, ANC and SWAPO against South Africa, and soldiers of the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA) during the Angolan Civil War and South African Border War. The battle was the largest engagement of the Angolan conflict and the biggest conventional battle on the African continent since World War II. UNITA and its South African allies defeated a major FAPLA offensive towards Mavinga, preserving the former's control of southern Angola. They proceeded to launch a bloody but inconclusive counteroffensive on FAPLA defensive positions around the Tumpo River east of Cuito Cuanavale.

South African Border War 1966–1990 border war between Zambia, Namibia, and Angola

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.

Operation Askari was a military operation during 1983 in Angola by the South African Defence Force (SADF) during the South African Border War.

Operation Displace was a military operation by the South African Defence Force during the South African Border War and Angolan Civil War. It involved maintaining the illusion that the SADF had remained in brigade strength east of Cuito Cuanavale at the end of April 1988 and the eventual withdrawal of all South African military units from south-eastern Angola during August 1988.

Operation Alpha Centauri was a South African military operation during the Angolan Civil War and South African Border War to halt an offensive launched by the People's Armed Forces of Liberation of Angola (FAPLA) towards Angola's Cuando Cubango Province. Its objective was to prevent FAPLA forces from reaching Jamba, a strategic town which functioned as the de facto headquarters of the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA) and its armed wing.

Operation Moduler was a military operation by the South African Defence Force (SADF) during the South African Border War. It formed part of what has come to be called the Battle of Cuito Cuanavale. The Angolan objective was to advance south-east to attack the UNITA at Mavinga. The SADF objective was to protect UNITA by stopping that advance. The advance was halted with heavy Angolan casualties. The South African forces and its UNITA allies then began offensive operations against the Angolan forces, who had retreated back to a defensive line east of the Cuito River with the objective of destroying them once and for all.

Operation Hooper was a military operation in 1987-88 by the South African Defence Force (SADF) during the South African Border War. This operation forms part of what has come to be called the Battle of Cuito Cuanavale. The Cubans' objective was securing the town of Cuito Cuanavale on the west of the river from capture. The SADF objective was to drive the People's Armed Forces for the Liberation of Angola (FAPLA) west across the river or to destroy them, so as to ensure that FAPLA was no longer a threat to the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA) in the south-east. The FAPLA advance was permanently halted, UNITA lived to fight on for another 15 years. The SADF never attempted to capture the town. Both sides claimed victory.

Operation Packer was a military operation by the South African Defence Force (SADF) during the South African Border War and Angolan Civil War from March to April 1988. This operation forms part of what became known as the Battle of Cuito Cuanavale. Operation Packer was a continuation of Operation Hooper, using fresh troops and equipment. The Cubans' objective was still to secure the town of Cuito Cuanavale to the west of the river from capture. The SADF objective was once again to eliminate the remaining Angolan forces on the east side of the river, so as to ensure that the Angolans were no longer a threat to UNITA in the south-east. Although at the conclusion some Angolan units remained in positions east of the river, the Angolan advance against UNITA was permanently halted, and UNITA lived to fight on. The SADF never attempted to cross the river or to capture the town. Both sides again claimed victory.

Operation Prone was a proposed military operation by the South African Defence Force (SADF) and South West African Territorial Force (SWATF) during the South African Border War and Angolan Civil War between May and September 1988. With the advance of the 50th Cuban Division towards Calueque and the South-West Africa border, the SADF formed the 10 SA Division to counter this threat. The plan for Operation Prone had two phases. Operation Linger was to be a counterinsurgency phase and Operation Pact a conventional phase.

Cuito Cuanavale is a town and municipality in Cuando Cubango (Kuando-Kubango) province in Angola. The names Kuito Kuanavale or Kwito Kwanavale are sometimes used, although this is a mutation of the original Portuguese name.

Cuban intervention in Angola Cuban operation in southwestern Africa

The Cuban intervention in Angola began on 5 November 1975, when Cuba sent combat troops in support of the communist-aligned People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA) against the pro-western National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA) and National Liberation Front of Angola (FNLA). The intervention came after the outbreak of the Angolan Civil War, which occurred after the former Portuguese colony was granted independence after the Angolan War of Independence. The civil war quickly became a proxy war between the Eastern Bloc led by the Soviet Union and the Western Bloc led by the United States. South Africa and the United States backed UNITA and the FNLA, while communist nations backed the MPLA.

Peoples Armed Forces of Liberation of Angola

The People's Armed Forces of Liberation of Angola or FAPLA was originally the armed wing of the People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA) but later (1975–1991) became Angola's official armed forces when the MPLA took control of the government.

General de la Rey Regiment Military unit

The General de la Rey Regiment is an reserve infantry regiment of the South African Army.

Operation Southern Cross (1986) was a military operation by the South African Defence Force during the South African Border War and Angolan Civil War.

Operation Konyn was a military operation by the South African Defence Force during the South African Border War and Angolan Civil War. Operation Konyn was launched on 21 August 1981. The operation preceded Operation Protea with the objective of destroying targets at Cahama and Chibemba in Angola. The Angolans had built a series of radar and early warning stations at Cahama, Chibemba, Lubango and Menongue. Attacking the first two target towns would ensure that the People's Armed Forces for the Liberation of Angola (FAPLA) would not interfere with the South African Air Force operations in support of South African Defence Force (SADF) ground troops taking part Operation Protea against People's Liberation Army of Namibia bases.

Operation Excite/Hilti was a set of military operations by the South African Defence Force (SADF) during the Angolan Civil War and South African Border War.

Operation Karton was a secret military operation during August 1983 by the South African Defence Force (SADF) during the South African Border War and Angolan Civil War.

Operation Cerebus was a South African Defence Force (SADF) special forces operation conducted in Angola during October 1985 during the South African Border War and Angolan Civil War.

Operation Magneto was a military operation in August 1985 to transport UNITA soldiers by the South African Defence Force (SADF) during the Angolan Civil War and South African Border War.

Operation Abrasion was a South African special forces military operation in December 1985 by the South African Defence Force (SADF) during the Angolan Civil War and South African Border War.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Hamann, Hilton (2007). Days Of The Generals: The Untold Story of South Africas Apartheid-era Military Generals. Struik Publishers. ISBN   1868723402.
  2. 1 2 James, W. Martin (2004). Historical Dictionary of Angola. p. 123.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Nortje, Piet (2004). 32 Battalion: The Inside Story of South Africa's Elite Fighting Unit . Zebra. ISBN   1868729141.
  4. 1 2 Scholtz, Leopold (2013). The SADF in the Border War 1966-1989. Cape Town: Tafelberg. ISBN   978-0-624-05410-8.
  5. 1 2 3 4 George, Edward (2012). The Cuban Intervention in Angola, 1965-1991. Routledge. ISBN   0415350158.
  6. 1 2 Steenkamp, Willem (1989). South Africa's Border War 1966 - 1989.

Further reading

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.