Page 611 - Le Operazioni Interforze e Multinazionali nella Storia Militare - ACTA Tomo I

611
ActA
The South African Navy and the war in Namibia and in An-
gola, 1966-1989: an example of limited but nevertheless

important joint operations

André WESSELS

1. Introduction
n 26 August 1966 the first clash between South African security forces and cad-
O res of the South West African People’s Organisation (SWAPO) took place in the
north of South West Africa (SWA; today Namibia). This set in motion a train of events
which in due course led to a full-scale guerrilla war; a war that spilled over into Angola
and which became intertwined with the liberation struggle and, later, the civil war in
the latter country. The war in SWA, and later also in Angola, was mainly fought by the
ground forces (South African (SA) Army) of the South African Defence Force (SADF),
assisted by aircraft and helicopters of the SA Air Force (SAAF), while the SA Medical
Services (SAMS) played an important role with regard to the evacuation and treatment
of the casualties. But what about the South African Navy (SAN)?
In this paper, the role played by the SAN during the Namibian War of Independence
and the war in Angola (usually referred to as the Border War or Bush War) will be ana-
lysed, with special reference to the role of the Navy in joint operations. This will include
the SAN’s role in Operation Savannah (1975-1976), when the SADF for the first time
invaded Angola, with special reference to the support the SAN’s warships and subma-
rines provided to the ground forces; the role played by the Navy’s newly-established
Marines on the Zambezi River and surrounding areas (where necessary in co-operation
with the SA Army and SAAF); the electronic and other patrol work along the west coast
of Africa by SAN warships and submarines in support of the land and air forces; and
the crucial support provided by the SAN to missions undertaken by the SADF’s Special
Forces. Mention will also be made of the SAN’s Exercise Magersfontein (1988).
In order to place the SAN’s role in joint operations in perspective, the developments,
achievements, problems and frustrations experienced by the Navy in the years 1966 to
1989 will also be (briefly) discussed, as well as how the Namibian War of Independence
affected the SAN.
Proceeding from the assumption that the SAN played a limited but nevertheless im-
portant role during the Namibian War of Independence, and that their (limited) joint
operations with the SA Army and SAAF contributed to the relative success achieved by
the SADF during this conflict, it is the purpose of this paper to provide a review of the
SAN’s joint operations during the conflict that lasted from 1966 to 1989.
Since around 2006, there has been an outpouring of new books on the war. But in most
of these publications there are very few if any references to the role played by the SAN.
The information used in writing this paper was gleaned from the books in which there