Episode 77 – The Recces blow up locomotives and 32 Battalion dresses like UNITA

South African Border Wars

By the second half of 1984 the Joint Monitoring Commission was virtually on its last legs and the SADF Special Forces were involved in a number of missions both by sea and across the cutline.
The first we’re going to hear about was an the audacious plan to blow up Angolan railway rolling stock, including locomotives at the shunting yard at Lobito in Benguela province on the Atlantic Coast north of the Catumbela Estuary.
If you travel there now it’s a beautiful beach, palm trees sway on the breeze, small fishing boats come and go and the sea is a azure turquoise. Forty years ago it was a crucial hub in the MPLAs infrastructure. After 1974 diesel-electric locomotives were used to ferry heavy weapons and material between Lobito and Huambo to the east on the main route towards Zambia and southern Congo. By 1984 this railway line had been out of operation for at least six years because of UNITAs sabotage, but the movement of war material between Lobito and Huambo was important to FAPLA.
Twenty two of the locomotives were GE U20Cs from the United States, and in 1983, another 12 had made there way there from Brazil. Because the South African Railways used the same locomotives, it meant the Recces could practice on the same machines.
Back in South Africa, the ANCs unofficial internal ally the United Democratic Front had been formed, and protests in the country’s black townships had exploded in violence. PW Botha’s government was now convinced that only a military option could save the country from the ANC, and the security forces were expanding their power. They also feared that if Namibia achieved independence, SWAPO would support the ANC from next door. It was at this time that 32 Company received an interesting set of orders.
The JMC initiative I’ve covered was floundering and it was evident that SWAPO was capitalizing on the agreement negotiated by Pretoria and Luanda to infiltrate what was supposed to be a Free Zone in southern Angola – free of armed insurgents.
As there was no obvious way to deal with this openly, Pretoria launched a series of clandestine steps to stop SWAPO from re-establishing themselves in FAPLAs areas.
This meant 32 Battalion would now dress and operate like UNITA, under a new banner called 154 Battalion. Major Jan Hougaard who was 2 IC in 32 was tasked along with Commandant Johan Schutte of Military Intelligence to setup this new initiative.