Armytalk issue 02 april 2008 by John Dovey

Magazine

Issue #2, April, 2008

The Smell of Diesel Smoke in the morning

Editorial Team

Editor:

John Dovey john@justdone.co.za

Published by: Just Done Productions P.O. Box 23 Gillitts 3603 South Africa http://www.justdone.co.za/

Electronic Version Distributed online via email and the website http://www.justdone.co.za/ The free electronic version is a low-resolution version which is available only for reading on the screen and cannot be printed out.

Print Version The Print version is available for purchase online. Check the issue page at http://www. justdone.co.za/ for the specific links.

Contributions & correspondence armytalk@justdone.co.za

Editorial Board Adm Chris Bennett Col Dudley Wall Col Pat Acutt Lt-Col Kevin Mulligan Lt-Col Steve Camp Maj Willem Steenkamp Dave Kenny

Contents

Editorial 3 Konrad’s Border Photos 4 Strategy Part 1 6 Yuri-Nation 10 Nuwe perspektief op die Bosoorlog 12 Military Burials in SA 13 OVSAC #2: The Boer Whitworth Guns 16 The Corrupt Affair 23 On Military Leadership 24 Nighttime Blues 25 Photo Gallery 26 Then and Now 28 Thinking Tactically: Using Tactical Decision Exercises to Study Tactics 30 Military Map Symbols 36 Letters to the Editor 37 Life as we Knew it

Wanted. All Soldoedies.

Navy’s Border War

Cuito Photos

Resources

• Army Talk Email List: http://groups.google.co.za/group/ArmyTalk • Officer’s List: isajohan@esnet.co.za • Warrant Officer’s List: medlin@mweb.co.za • Saffer Wiki: http://saffer.pbwiki.com (password Callup) • Airborne Soldier” http://www.airbornesoldier.com Front Cover: • SA Military: http://www.sa-military.co.za Ratel 20 during a “Check and Withdraw” • Roll of Honour: http://www.justdone.co.za/ROH/ exercise at De Brug during a Platoon • SA Transport: http://www.sa-transport.co.za/military/ Commanders course in 2003 • SA Military Units: http://www.justdone.co.za/SAMU/

Back Cover:

Just Nuisance book cover Section Attack (dry). Same exercise as front cover photo. De Brug Photos © John Dovey 2003

Army Talk Magazine

ell! Who would have thought it? It turns out that the idea of the AT MAG is hugely popular, both with the rank and file as well as with the brass-hats... :-) I had an overwhelmingly positive response to the first issue, so I dived right in to create this second one.

Editorial Your Editor’s Soap-Box

I have also been contacted by people telling me that they didn’t know about some of the online resources/ communities that were out there and they were glad to have gotten the information. If you know of something that you feel should be listed; a Facebook group, an Email lsit, a website or whatever, then please send that along and I will add it to the list. The more we can share information the better I think.

I sorted out a lot of teething problems after sending out the first version of the first issue, so if you have an issue that is called “Issue #1, April 2008” then you need to download the new version of the first issue as it changed after that. This issue has a number of contributions from various people, some of it written specifically for the magazine, so it seems that already we have started doing one of the things that I thought was a pipe-dream: having people write for the magazine. Of course, I have continued to do what I promised; gathering stories and resources from across the ‘Net and putting them together with some decent formatting to make them easily available and readable, but I am very happy to have the contributions that I have received of quality articles. Please feel free to write to me. I would like to have a “Letters to the Editor” page or two, which I will create for future issues if I get feedback that justifies it, and in a similar vein, please write something for the magazine. I am particularly interested in thoughts and feelings about your service, memories or stories of what you went through when you were in the Army, Jokes, poems, sketches or

chains of 4 or 5 each). Please feel free to forward on to your friends, colleagues or even your enemies...

photos... all are welcome. I would also like to remind you that responses to the various articles are what will make this magazine breathe, unlike some other moribund magazines I could name if I could afford the lawyer’s fees... :-)

You will have figured out by now that one of my passions is collection of the information that is getting lost about the Border War period. This is why I started the Army Talk list back in late 1995 and have expended a pretty serious amount of effort ensuring it’s continuing viability for the last 13 or so years, and it is one of the main motivations I have for creating this magazine. I believe that people’s stories ARE the history for future generations, and if those stories are not told and recorded, then the historians will have no option but to base their histories on the information that is available.. And unfortunately, it seems that this process is in danger of being hijacked at the moment ...

The article on Military Leadership I thought was particularly interesting because I know that when I read it for the first time, I immediately thought of some examples of my own that have become part of my life in business, as a parent and as a soldier. We all learn by example, and Enjoy the magazine and remember if you have a particularly interesting example, to contribute ! why not share it with others? Something else that has been gratifying has been the way that I have gotten contacted by all kinds of people who got forwarded the magazine by someone else (sometimes in

JD, AT MAG

FAIR USE NOTICE: This magazine may contain copyrighted material the use of which has not been pre-authorized by the copyright owner. Such material is made available to advance understanding of political, economic, scientific, social, art, media, and cultural issues. The ‘fair use’ of any such copyrighted material that may exist on this site is provided for under U.S. Copyright Law. In accordance with U.S. Code Title 17, Section 107, material on this site is distributed without profit to persons interested in such information for research and educational purposes. If you want to use any copyrighted material that may exist on this site for purposes that go beyond ‘fair use’, you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.

Issue 02 - April 2008

Konrad’s Border Photos A selection of Photos About Konrad Konrad ended up as a Mortar section leader and spent just over a year at Ondangwa in 1989 responsible for base protection/fireplan These photos are a few of his photos from the border.

Playing golf with a bent tent pole

Manning the Anti-Aircraft gun

“kak-praat” in the text

Sharing a Bivvie during training

Army Talk Magazine

Hair-cut

VTB

“ballas-bak”

81mm Mortar pit

“The Crew” in the home made swimming pool

Issue 02 - April 2008

Strategy Part 1by Col Dudley Wall. Types of Conflict and Causes of War

ll conflict can be grouped into two types

Conventional war. This kind of warfare implies the full use of all services and their conventional weaponry. The two world wars are a very good example of this (high intensity war) Operations other than war. This kind of warfare has a different emphasis placed on it (low intensity war) • Insurgency and counter insurgency war. • Guerrilla war. • Peace support ops. • Peace keeping ops. • Humanitarian ops.

Causes of War

This is a difficult thing to readily identify. Most conflicts take place due to a variety of complicated reasons. Nitinkin (2000) stated that there are four reasons to go to war 1. War is natural Human nature. Humans are aggressive and destructive by nature Social nature. Race, religion, class or nationality tend to divide people and cause friction Technical nature. This implies that war is a natural companion to scientific and technological developments 2. Resources

Resources play an important role. Natural, industrial and data sources can be a motivation to go to war 3. Power Internal politics. Internal divisions amongst people drive them to war when an agreement on differences cannot be reached International politics. International alliances, border disputes 4. Identity Culture. When inter tribal customs are not acceptable to one group. (Nationalism) Religion. Conflict between religious groups is a major cause of friction Ideologies. Various ideologies may well clash and cause conflict. (Political, economical, religious) Ethnic relations. Ethnic groups being denied access to resources and mechanisms of government become intolerant of normal conflict resolution methods and take up arms

Introduction to Strategy and Tactics

o be able to understand the workings of the military and the way in which commanders compile their allocated forces it is necessary to understand that there are three levels of activities. They are:The strategic level - where military resources are applied to achieve

military aims and objectives. The operational level - the orchestration of military forces to achieve a military end state of success. The tactical level - the actions taken to achieve an immediate military goal such as the capture or domination of a physical specific objective Each of these levels is directly interlinked as shown by the diagram below. The circles interlink, indicating the fact that each level is linked to the next one and therefore must be taken into consideration for planning all military actions at whatever level they take place. The strategic level is where strategic policies are converted into military objectives, coupled to the provision of financial, material and manpower resources and are then allocated to operational commanders for them to use to achieve the military objectives set at the strategic level. The operational commander will plan military operations and compile a tailor made force, using the resources given to him to achieve his tactical goals. He will analyse the abilities of the enemy, terrain and weather as well as his own capabilities and from this appreciation he and his staff officers will determine a military plan for physical execution in the field by the forces under his command. At this time it is worth mentioning that there is a hierarchy of activities that is generally adhered to in the military. A campaign takes place over a very large area in the air, at sea and on the ground. Within the campaign area several operations take place. Within the operational area several

Army Talk Magazine

battles may take place. Within each battle skirmishes or contacts take place. The force will need to be a balanced one which provides armoured, artillery and engineer support as well as air support and perhaps naval support in the form of naval gun fire and naval air support. Support services are also vitally important. No force can conduct operations unless there is a well established logistics organisation that provides transport, equipment and ammunition as well as food and water

Command and Control

C decisions.

x2 is both a skill and an art. It depends on leadership qualities of individuals and the ability to make

Definition of command - “Order, have authority over, instruction that something must be done” Definition of control - “Power to direct something, have power over, curb or check, limit, restrain, regulate”

commander then does his planning with his staff officers and then puts out a Campaign Directive to his subordinate Corps commanders for the conduct of the campaign. In turn this procedure goes down to Division and from there to Brigade level. Each Brigade draws

Each of these units or sub units has a specific strength that allows it to do the tasks expected of it. Different countries allocate different strengths for their units and sub units. At company level there could

When the forces are allocated for use and the appreciation of the situation dictates that the force should be comprised of specific elements it is particularly important to know who is in command of which forces. An overall commander is appointed to take command of a campaign. A campaign commander is given his Command Directive in which his responsibilities and the forces allocated to him are clearly laid out. The campaign

up their plans for their battalions to execute tactical tasks. The battalion commander issues orders to his company commanders giving very specific and detailed direction and this in turn is narrowed down and issued to the platoon commanders. The last entity is the section which is generally ten men strong. Once again a hierarchy of command and control can be seen.

Issue 02 - April 2008

be approximately 135 men but this also varies and may be as few as approximately 100 men. Most western countries have four companies in a battalion. These comprise of three rifle companies and a support company which may be equipped with anti tank weapons, assault pioneers, medium machine guns and possibly an anti aircraft capability. Units engaged in guerrilla operations may look a bit different and their equipment will be somewhat lighter

due to the necessity of the requirement to move fast and over difficult terrain.

Chain of Command

rganisational structure is closely related to the chain of command. Chain of command implies that there are people who are subordinate to others in the organisation. The armed forces all have a specific rank structure that allows for a system of seniority over subordinates. It is visibly seen when members of the armed forces wear uniforms and display their rank badges. With this comes responsibility and accountability. The chain of command manifests itself at all three levels – strategic, operational and tactical. At the strategic level, chain of command rests with the nations’ leader or sovereign who will be the commander in chief. The Ministry of Defence is the civil control mechanism from a political point of view. The officers appointed as Chief of the Defence Force (in the case of the RSA), Chief of Joint Operations, Chief of the Army, SA Navy, SAAF and SA Military health Services are next in the hierarchy forming the chain of command.

Attachments and Detachments

s a campaign is planned the commander will determine what strategic objectives need to be achieved. From these he determines which operations to conduct and because of the unique circumstances he will allocate certain forces to his subordinate commanders. An army commander will have corps and smaller components under command. From these forces he will choose appropriate units to fill the role of Army Troops. These will be selected carefully and the decision will be based on the characteristics of the units. The Army Commander will be likely to want his Army Troops to be mobile and flexible, with an ability to provide concentrated fire power at crucial moments during the campaign. Depending on the type of operations, whether they be of a conventional nature or in the form of counter insurgency operations or of a peace keeping / enforcement nature the Army Commander will ensure that his Army Troops can act to strike the enemy at exactly the right moment to assist in the achievement of a focus of main effort or as rapidly deployable re-

enforcements. For this reason he will attach elements of his Army Troops or even elements of one of his Divisions to another Division for a specific operation. This is because not all Divisions are equipped exactly the same way. Some Divisions have a mechanised infantry role. Others are armoured and yet others are motorised light infantry. He will compile the right force for the job.

Leadership Styles

• Authoritarian leadership • Bureaucratic leadership • Democratic (participative) leadership • Laissez-faire leadership

Responsibilities of Holding Rank

• Accountability • Position of leadership • Decision making and authority to make decisions • Using initiative • Giving direction • Motivation of juniors • Maintenance of discipline • Ensure that the job gets done correctly and on time

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Individual Responsibilities to Superiors

• Obeying orders and instructions • Maintaining discipline of self and subordinates • Providing information for planning and other activities • Ensuring that subordinates are • Correctly trained • Briefed to do their tasks • Prepared for emergencies

• • • • • •

Individual Responsibilities to Subordinates

Career management and planning In-service training Safety and well being Discipline and good behaviour High morale To assist with solving work related problems

Personal Qualities of a Leader

• Courage. To know the difference between right and wrong and do what is right • Confidence. Inspiration to carry

out tasks well • Integrity. Be relied on to be honest and reliable • Determination. Complete the job no matter what • Decisiveness. Make quick decisions under any circumstances • Mental agility. “Think on your feet” • Role model. Set a very good example for subordinates to follow

• • • • • •

Qualities That Must Be Instilled into Subordinates by Commanders

Technical and Specialist Skills

• Leadership skills. (leadership is covered in detail in the unit on this subject) • Planning skills. Finding the right answer for the right problem • Motivational skills. Keeping subordinates positive and willing to perform under any circumstances

Trust Loyalty Discipline Morale Motivation Respect

“You cannot manage Troops to their Death, You have to Lead Them”

Issue 02 - April 2008

Anonymous

Yuri-Nation

Yuri sent me a photo of him urinating on a T55 Tank. I posted that photo to the Army Talk list and Robbie instantly dubbed the story “Yuri-Nation”.... I asked Yuri for the story and this is what he said: “Hi John, The story behind the T55 is, Patrick and I went into southern Sudan to take 2 drums of diesel to the site where his company called AFRIMAX was to drill a borehole. It was 30 k's north of a place called MAGWE. Coming back you crest a slight rise at a point maybe 20 k's south of Magwe, and then you see the sight in the first photo. as you get closer you can make out what it is, but as we realised immediately, before Dec 2006 or so it would have been the last thing you saw! “The tank was obviously placed there as a mobile gun emplacement. Till very recently there were AP mines all around it, with signs. Patrick reckons the mines are gone now because there were signs of PB activity behind the tank, but I wasn't getting too close to it - luckily I have a big gun of my own with good range he he. “The thing is still booby-trapped though to prevent anybody from going inside it. Needless to say we didn't even think of trying that! “It was about 180 k's one way, it took us 10 hours each way in a Unimog. The roads are kak, to put it mildly. In Sudan that is. The roads are safe, but the surrounding bush is full of AP mines still. A bit further north and west towards Juba, Patrick has seen many more tanks. He told me of one batch of 6 knocked-out T 55's at one spot, also massive amounts of ordnance laying around. “Cheers, Yuri <ymaree@cox.net>”

Army Talk Magazine

Issue 02 - April 2008

Nuwe perspektief op die Bosoorlog

Deur Lappe Laubscher <piethen@lando.co.za>

it is jammer dat dié wat nie aktief aan die Bosoorlog deelgeneem het nie, so min daarvan weet.

Die redes daarvoor is voor die hand liggend. Terwyl die stryd gestry is, is ons net dít gevoer wat ander geglo het goed was vir ons om te weet. En nou, twee dekades later, werk die propaganda-masjiene oortyd. Ons word vertel dat die oorlog ’n ongewilde oorlog was. Dat dit ’n onregverdige oorlog was. Dat almal wat aan die ou regering se kant aan die oorlog deelgeneem het, Suid-Afrika ’n verskoning skuld. Nou het daar ’n boek verskyn wat ’n vars perspektief op sake plaas. Dit is die verhaal van André Diedericks. Hy is twee jaar gelede aan kanker dood. Voor hy gesterf het, het hy besluit om die storie van sy lewe in die weermag neer te skryf. Hy vertel hy het dit gedoen sodat sy dogters eendag kan weet wat hul pa gedoen het. Wat hy eindelik gedoen het, is om ’n lang brief aan sy dogters te skryf. ’n Brief waarin hy vertel van sy twee dekades as ’n operateur in die SuidAfrikaanse spesiale magte. Die manier waarop hy dit vertel, maak die boek iets anders as enigiets anders wat nog oor die Bosoorlog geskryf is. Hy begin vertel dat hy graag ’n goeie soldaat wou wees. Hy vra nie om verskoning daarvoor nie. Hy vertel hoe trots hy was toe die Honoris Crux aan hom toegeken is. Hoe geweldig trots hy was toe dié dekorasie ’n tweede keer aan hom toegeken is. Aan die einde van sy storie besef jy dat Diedies Diedericks, soos hy onder sy vriende bekend was, in enige weermag, in enige oorlog, ’n legende sou wees. Hy het nie ’n politieke stryd gestry nie, hy wou net die beste in die beroep van sy keuse word. En hy het daarin geslaag. En dít kan tog nie ’n sonde

wees nie. Die storie hoe hy probeer het om die hele Angolese lugmag buite aksie te stel, verdien veel wyer erkenning as om net oorvertel te word waar oudspesmagmanne rum en Coke om ’n braaivleisvuur geniet. Selfs waar Diedericks vertel van die arseen in sy rugsak, of hoe hy amfetamien moes gebruik, of toe ’n verraaier uit eie geledere probeer het om hom uit te verkoop, is daar geen bitterheid in sy verhaal nie. Hy wou net sy storie aan sy dogters vertel.

his is the extraordinary tale of an extraordinary man. Sy storie verdien ’n veel groter An honestly told story of his bekendheid. Saam met Danie Theron military career, of a man who verdien Diedericks ’n ereplek in die Suid-Afrikaanse heldegalery van was twice decorated for valour, who pioneered and developed the concept bobaas- militêre verkenners. of “small team reconnaissance” within Daar was maar een soos hy. the South African Special Forces. http://www.news24.com/Beeld/ He was a consummate warrior and Pretoria-Beeld/0,,3-69_2144539,00. gentleman and has told his story html with humility and a disarming sense that what he did was simply the job he was given, when even the most cursory reading will show that it was anything but simple or easy. From start to finish, his life was truly a ‘Journey without Boundaries’. These memoirs were written by Col Diedericks, better known as "Diedies", before his untimely death from cancer in 2005. The book is available for purchase from Just Done Productions via their website at http://www. justdone.co.za/

Army Talk Magazine

MIBISA

Military Burials in South Africa - Archive Project by Colyn Brookes Plato once wrote--THAT MAN SHALL LIVE FOR SO LONG AS HE IS REMEMBERED

hrough the years South Africa has seen the results of many conflicts, the Zulu Wars, the Slagters Nek Rebellion, the Boer War, World War 1 and World War 2. the Rand Revolt and the Bush War just to name a few. It has had it’s quota of casualties, both it’s own sons and daughters and those of other nations. During WWII South Africa was the location for Casualty Evacuation, and intense training before troops were shipped off to the front.

down into Bellville!

Various Air Training wings were formed near several major cities. At these bases FAA, RAF and SAAF crews were trained on aircraft, and were killed in accidents. Around Cape Town the Landsdowne Air Crash is still remembered. Many others are long forgotten.

Many Hospital Ships called in to our ports with casualties. A great number of ships were sunk off our shores by German, Italian and Japanese Warhips, Submarines and Surface Raiders. Although most seamen were ‘civilians’ they were still victims of war. As such many were afforded official War Grave status. As were the many thousands of Blitz casualties in the UK.

Commander Gerry De Vries wrote a brilliant book called WINGFIELD the story of the Naval Air Station during WWII, well worth reading for anyone interested in Cape Town’s recent Military History history. Especially as one aircraft crashed into Tygerberg and a dislodged depth charge rolled

The MIBISA Archive Project, was created as a result of the lack of photographic records especially in South Africa, of Headstones, Memorials etc, related to Military Burials within the South African borders. There are similar projects underway in England, Canada, Australia and New Zealand,

to which MIBISA donates related photographs in digital form. There are literally hundreds of archives listing Rolls of Honour of the fallen over the years. Many of these archives are in poor state, many are not properly indexed. A Military Burial was defined as a burial or cremation of a person, irrespective of race, colour creed or gender who died whilst undergoing Military Service or Training and is either interred or commemorated within the borders of South Africa. To date I have managed to gain moral support from the South African Military History Society, the South African Heritage Resource Agency, the Veterans Administration Division of the South African Defence Force, the Boer War Museum in Bloemfontein, the McGregor Museum in Kimberley and various other organisations, researchers and authors. More recently the project has received a compliment from the CEO of the Voortrekker Monument As many of the graves are located in farm cemeteries, I purchased a Toyota 4x4 double cab which I have kitted out for camping, and I have constructed a 25mm square tube frame which is

Issue 02 - April 2008

directions to the cemetery and starting a search for PA VISAGIE, who died in 1987 during the Bush War. After a long and fruitless search we returned to the car only to find that I had parked next to the headstone!

covered with 1.5mm deck plate. I was very fortunate in that Gardens Towing sponsored the materials,.and Sign Laboratories in Milnerton donated the signage. The project is totally self funded. Requests for sponsorship have been submitted to several organisations, and a grant has been requested from the South African Heritage Resource Agency, at their suggestion, with little response as yet. Over the last 3 years my wife an I have covered most of the Western Cape, and have started on the Northern and Eastern Capes and the Free State. So far this has netted in excess of 9,500 War Grave headstones and memorials in over 500 cemeteries and Farms totaling in excess of 12,000 names.. These include Anglo Boer War, World War 1, World War 2, the Bush War and the Freedom Struggle and various other conflicts in between. I remember One Sunday when we drove up to Redelinghuys between Piketberg and Elands Bay in the Western Cape. Taking a photograph of the CWGC grave of JJ MESSENHEIMER, bounding off to Clanwilliam, photographing 2 Commonwealth War Graves and back to Cape Town only to find that the JJ was the wrong one. There were 2 JJs in the small cemetery. In actual fact there were only 20 headstones there anyway. I should mention that I had also missed 17 Boer War graves in Clanwilliam which I obtained at a later date Driving into Citrusdal obtaining

Remember, although the majority of graves have numbers, many of these metal plates have gone missing over the years. Many stories come out when researching individual information There is a strange story of Lt Colonel G P DOUGLAS who is buried in Matjiesfontein. It appears he survived the Boer War and was later found dead on a train travelling to Middelburg with his throat cut. Some months later an Officer from another British regiment was tried in the Old Bailey in London for trying to cash cheques in Colonel Douglas’s name A notable burial story is that of JJ Van PAPENDORP, who’s remains are located on the farm Zoupansvlakte near Bredasdorop. JJs mother erected a small cross with the date of death as 1942. Although the official records agree with this date, the official headstone set up by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission reflects 1945. I have spoken to his Grand daughter who is the wife of the Farmer. She confirmed the error. She also mentioned that her Nephew Burgert Van PAPENDORP was buried in the main Bredasdorp Cemetery, in the Hero’s Acre. He was killed during the Bush War in 1978, but not in combat. ‘Papie’ Van PAPENDORP was an Ops Medic at the Ogongo Base

with 52 Battalion. Together with five fellow Medics, they were rushed to assist civilian workers who were trapped underground in a local mine by Methane Gas. Two Medics died in the rescue attempt. I remember the day we drove into one small village, I can’t remember which, and the wife remarked that it looked like the typical ‘one-horse-town’. We turned left at a junction, and there, tied to a lamp post was a lone Pony. I laughed so much I almost ran over the poor thing. I consider the most moving story is that of David TITUIS who was a member of the Cape Corps and was buried at De Doorns in the Hex River valley. For 3 years I stopped off at every opportunity to look for the single headstone. I made special trips from Cape Town on numerous occasions. I had a hand drawn map from the Commonwealth War Graves Commission but parts of it were faded, and there had been work carried out in the same area. I purchased scaled maps and plotted. I climbed nearby hills and stared through field glasses. I harassed Melanie Viljoen of the Hex valley tourism board…..Nothing…… At the beginning of October 2006 I received a call from a local community newspaper requesting an interview regarding the MIBISA project and it’s aims. I decided that this was a last resort, located and contacted the local paper for De Doorns. Finding their e-mail address I sent off a request on October the 4th asking that a plea for assistance from the locals could be published

Army Talk Magazine

I received a call from a local farmer on Friday the 13th of October and sent ‘the map’ by FAX on the Saturday. On Monday morning the 16th of October I received an amazing call from a lady announcing that she was actually David TITUS’s sister. I immediately contacted Melanie and gave her the telephone number to arrange a get-together. I then contacted Leon Potgieter of the Valleier at the request of Melanie. It was at this point I realized an amazing co-incidence and checked my paperwork. David TITUS passed away on the 16th of October 1946. 60 years to the day! It was also the day my own Mother had passed away in 1976. On Sunday the 22nd my Wife and I went through to De Doorns and attended a re-dedication service. There we met Private TITUS’s Brother & his Sister Dina Charles. and other members of the family. Dina Charles gave me a Mess Tin on which is stamped TITUS D 273769. More recently, on a trip to the Northern Cape we stayed in the Springbok Caravan Park. Early one evening one of the local Cats paid us a visit looking for scraps. My wife dropped a few odds on the ground, which were promptly devoured. Feeling sorry for the animal, she placed some more a little further away from the Tent. The cat very soon discovered the location and begun to feed. After a few minutes, the animal picked up a large piece and ran off. Within minutes a Mongoose appeared and promptly settled down to supper! The Cat appeared on a mound close by, sat down and visibly glared at the interloper. Shortly after, the Mongoose sauntered up to the mound, passed the glaring Cat and arched it’s back looking for a fight. The Cat just stared at the Mongoose as it wandered off.

meat in dismay. As the rain abated, I emerged from out tent in time to see a large domestic Cat jump onto the wall separating the Braai areas and swing a front paw, hooking a large piece of partly cooked Sausage. It jumped down and ran off dragging it behind. Within seconds, several other cats descended on the Braai and cleared the thing completely. On emerging from their tent, the occupants were dumbstruck to find a cleaned off Braai. There are many more stories, and tales on woe from the 40,000 odd kilometers I have driven over the past few years just to photograph War Graves. I hope to relate many more in time to come. Most of the people who went off to war were just barely out of childhood when they died – 17, 18, 19, 20 years old…college age. They were probably excited about life and war and the prospect of beating back the enemy

when they packed their kit for the last time. They’d left their families and friends, their girls, wives, sisters and Brothers, and some left children. Some wanted to go, but many would probably have rather stayed home with their loved ones. They went away and they served and they died. They are now memories in the minds of their families, friends, and a few historians. We’d like them to be memories in your minds too. Remember these people and all those who died defending our way of life. We owe them a debt. We can’t give them back their youth, their families, or their lives. But we can give them a minute of thanks and a piece of our hearts…

A few days later we were in Upington at Die Eiland Caravan Park. On the 4th day there it rained in the early evening for around two hours. We had already eaten, so there was no disruption. Not so for the folks a short distance away. They had begun to cook their supper on a Braai fire at the onset of the rain, but soon abandoned the

Issue 02 - April 2008

Oranje Vrijstaat Artillerie Corps kruppgun@yahoo.co.uk

Historical Study and Re-enactment Group Bloemfontein, South Africa http://www.heilbroncommando.com

O.V.S.A.C. Study No. 2

The Boer Whitworth Guns

Jul/Aug 2003

Introduction

had a border dispute with its eastern neighbour, Basutoland under Chief Mosjesh. After both the British (1853) and first Free State (1858) campaigns failed to resolve the issue or convincingly beat the troublemakers, President JH Background History Model of a Whitworth breech and sight. The history of early rifled field guns Boshof came to and the Whitworth vs. Armstrong and the conclusion that the breech loader (RBL) and rifled muzzle breech loader vs. muzzle loader debacle Basuto, who were numerically superior loader (RML) 6-pr Whitworth. Both of the late 1850s and 1860s have been and also armed with rifles, can only of these were of an early built-up documented thoroughly elsewhere and be beaten by the use of artillery. His construction, manufactured from successor, JH “homogenous iron”, an early type of Bloemfontein in the 1860s from the old fort. Brand, took steel (the RML was said to be of a “new this advice metal”). Whitworth rifling consisted to heart and of a hexagonal bore with rounded when conflict angles and a uniform twist into which again seemed a precisely shaped shell, with negligible imminent in windage, fitted. To ensure complete 1864, he set sealing a greased wad was used in the to work by rear, between the projectile and its ordering two black powder charge. (See Table 1) 6-pr guns from Britain. To On the RBL piece the breech was this his consul externally threaded and closed by in the UK a threaded cap, which swung on a replied: “in the carrier pivoted on the right side of the 1 are not included here . The history of English Service the 12-pr rifled gun gun. Firing was by means of friction their use by the two Boer republics is has replaced the old 6-pr smooth bore, tube inserted into an axial vent in the a different story though. Surprisingly, the rifled guns being much the lighter cap. The gun was designed to be used the first to do so was not the Transvaal, than the smooth bore ones...” Brand either as a breech loader or as a muzzle being one of the more progressive Boer loader, possibly to satisfy diehard but the Orange Free State. leaders, did not waste much time and gunners, many of who objected to Even before its independence in ordered two of the most modern 6-pr breech loading on principle. If used 1854 the Orange River Sovereignty rifled Whitworth guns that money as a muzzle loader, the breech-end was sealed by a copper disc, clamped could buy. 1 For a good overview of the in place by the breech cap and with a subject see Mr. WL Ruffell’s articles The 6-pr Whitworth central hole opposite the vent. on the NZPFOCA page at www.riv. The Boers employed both the rifled co.nz/rnza/hist/gun/index Some time after the first release of Study Piece No. 2 (Aug/Sep 2002) we obtained additional information, letters, articles and photos on the subject. Of these one, obtained from the United States, is a very interesting article on Whitworth guns that were displayed at the 1867 Paris Universal Exhibition. With this information on hand we decided to give our study a revamp.

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Calibre:

2,17-in

(55 mm)

Weight of gun:

approx. 1700 lb. (771 kg)

Ammunition:

Solid, shell, shrapnel and case

Weight of projectile: approx. 6 lb. Range of gun:

(2,72 kg)

approx. 1500 yds. (1370 m)

Table 1

mass production. Furthermore, reports from the American Civil War indicated bores had to be kept scrupulously clean at all times, otherwise projectiles were inclined to jam.

Further problems were experienced with the breech cap of the breech loaders as it expanded when the gun became hot and sometimes slipped the thread. The cap also had the tendency to give way if not completely screwed close up. This proofed particularly dangerous to crews when firing case shot. After a number of accidents with breech loading guns due to these problems Whitworth discontinued their manufacture and by 1865 had Both variants were mounted on completely reverted to the production carriages resembling the typical of muzzle loaders. double-plate wooden field mountings of the period, complete with wooden The 6-pr Whitworth in wheels. To lay the guns tangent sights Boer Hands as used on most equipment of the time The first two guns ordered by the were fitted. Free State were 6-pr RBL guns, which The precision with which Whitworth’s arrived in Bloemfontein in September guns and ammunition had to be 1864. One gun accompanied the manufactured was probably the chief Artillery Corps to the Free State border reason why they did not become in May 1865, shortly before war was popular. Projectiles were very accurately declared against the Basuto for a planed to shape, a more difficult process second time. The second gun stayed than turning, and fitted the bores in the Bloemfontein fort to defend the extremely closely. Obviously neither capital and Capt Goodman, British bores nor projectiles were suited to commander of the OVSAC, left the A 6-pr Whitworth RBL - note the shell and casing and the case extractor tool on the trail. The RBL gun pioneered the system later called quick firing for when used as a breech loader the propellant charge was enclosed in a sheet iron cartridge case shaped to fit the hexagonal bore, thus effectively providing obturation. After it was fired the case was extracted with a specially designed tool. If used as a muzzle loader the charge was enclosed in a cloth bag as with other muzzle loading ordnance.

following instructions to the garrison: “Make about 100 cartridges for Rifled Cannon. Fill the tin cases to within one inch and put in the greased wad flush with the top.” Early in August 1865, shortly after the second gun also arrived at the Free State laager in Basutoland, one of the two blew its breech out after only ten shots were fired. A commission was appointed to investigate the issue and their findings were forwarded to the Whitworth Company. At first Whitworth differed, but after the second gun also “exploded” under similar conditions, the company had no choice but to notify Pres Brand on 29 Des 1865 that: “we have decided to send out to you two six pounder muzzle loading guns to replace the breech loaders. These guns will fit upon the carriages you now have, requiring only a slight alteration in the position of the elevating screws and will take the same projectiles as the breech loaders”. In the same letter the company requested the return of the two damaged guns. A second letter to Brand, dated 6 Jun 1866, informed him that the two new muzzle loading guns were completed and forwarded to South Africa. Again the return of the damaged guns was requested: “We shall be glad to receive back the two breech loading guns as requested in our former letter”. The two new muzzle loading guns arrived in Port Elizabeth aboard the Alert during August 1866 after which they were dispatched to the stores of Heideman & Kingswill of Grahamstown on 27 September. From Grahamstown a certain Roberts transported the new arrivals to Bloemfontein, which only arrived near the end of that year - almost a year after they were promised to the Free State. In the mean time the Free State, who was still at war, was forced to assemble one serviceable gun from the remains of the two damaged breech loaders. The remaining parts were shipped back to the UK aboard the Havanna. Contemporary commando reports indicate that both breech and muzzle loaders saw action thereafter during the remaining battles of the Second

Issue 02 - April 2008

and Third Basuto Wars. In April 1867 one 6-pr was involved in the fighting at Beestneus and in his report the Commandant afterwards wrote: “The Whitworth gun then shot an opening through the schanses with solid shot.” On 2 May 1867 one again find mention of Whitworths at Thaba Culo, this time of both a muzzle and breech loader: “The Whitworth gun did good shooting and killed a large section of horses; the Armstrong gun missed the entire mountain; the breech loader Whitworth gun also shot badly.” At the end of the 1868 war the Free State thus had three 6-pr guns, two RMLs and the composite RBL. In 1872 the Transvaal government approached the Free State with a request to buy arms from them. On 3 Jan 1873 the Free State Executive Committee decided to send the ZAR a muzzle loading 6-pr Whitworth and a small mountain gun, both complete with ammunition. The ammunition was paid for, but the guns had to be replaced as soon as possible. A wellknown Free State newspaper of the time, The Friend of the Free State, on 6 Feb 1873 declared: “We learn that the cannon and gunpowder which left this (place) some time ago for Pretoria have reached their destination, and have

Captured Boer guns photographed at Green Point Common. Nov 1882): “During the old Regime Various sources state that the OVS this State sold to the Sister Republic still had one 6-pr Whitworth at the two cannons, which the Govt. of the outbreak of the Boer War, but none Transvaal were quite unable to pay for, of these specify whether it was indeed and for which we might have whistled the RML. PRO 32/8111 does list the in vain had the British Government capture of one 6-pr Whitworth in the not annexed that country and paid OVS, on 13 March 1900 during the its debts.” The fact that the 6-pr was occupation of Bloemfontein, but does not replaced is confirmed by a Free not identify its loading arrangement. State artillery report of 1879, which A wartime photograph of captured lists only one muzzle loader and guns taken at Green Point Common the composite breech loader. When in Cape Town shortly after the fall of Major Albrecht took command of Bloemfontein however identified this the Free State Artillery at the end of piece as the written-off 6-pr RBL. In 1880 he also reported the presence the photograph it is shown lying on of only one 6-pr Whitworth muzzle wooden blocks among a number of loader and the 6-pr breech loader. In obsolete smooth bore pieces. As these a letter dated 30 Dec 1880 he wrote: are known to have originated from the “the breech loader had seen too much Free State capital, it suggests that the service and is currently not useable for 6-pr RBL was found among the Free war”. Subsequently all artillery reports State’s collection of antique pieces. listed only one “6-pr Whitworth”, PRO 32/7028 confirms the existence presumably the remaining RML. Close-up of the 6-pr RBL barrel at Green Point Common.

6-pr solid and two common shells. been safely delivered over to the proper authorities by Mr. G. Engelbrecht, in whose charge they were. What a mercy.” It seems that the Transvaal government neglected to replace or pay for the guns, because some years later The Friend again referred to the subject (23

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An Ordnance Office voucher in the Pretoria National Archives, dated 7 Nov 1881 and captioned “Delivered out of Her Majesty’s Stores” to Comdt. Gen. Joubert at Pretoria, contains 6-pr Whitworth shells, case and solid shot. A second undated voucher of items “Received from Ferreira’s Police” lists the gun itself in true British fashion: “Ordnance Whitworth 6Pd Wh. Carriage Limber Complete”.

“A large number of armstrong and whitworth projectiles, filled with explosive charges, flew around inside.” This probably indicates that the majority of ammunition for the Transvaal’s older guns was destroyed shortly before the Boer War. The history of the other 6-pr RML that remained with the Free State is less clear, but an ammunition list dated August 1899 revealed that it still had 1485 projectiles in stock. As to its actual use during the Boer War, no reference could be found, but a wartime photograph taken at Kroonstad station in April 1900 confirms its existence and shows the gun still mounted on a wooden carriage complete with a limber. Its history after the photo was taken is merely speculative, but it is suspected that it followed the general Boer retreat to the Eastern Transvaal. This is supported by British sources, which list the capture of two Whitworth 6-pr guns in Transvaal. The most likely of these were found at Hector Spruit on 24 September 1900 and WO32/7028 describes it as: “Found blown to pieces”. Wartime photos also show wooden carriages, similar to that shown on the Kroonstad photograph, abandoned at Nelspruit where most of the obsolete guns were taken off their mountings and transported by train to Hector Spruit.

In April 1882 the same 6-pr, carriage and limber, complete with a supply of ammunition were “Issued out to Commdt. Pelser Commanding Staat Artillerie from orders for action Served near Zeerust”. Further reference to the 6-pr Whitworth was also made by Oberst Adolf Schiel in his book 23 Jahre Sturm Transvaal 6-pr RML at Fort Hendrina. und Sonnenshein in Sudafrika, who mentioned that the Transvaal in 1887 of a breech loader and lists it as a “2-in had two “Whitworth muzzle loading Whitworth BL”. After the War it was field guns of 6 pound”. This statement dispatched to Southern Australia, is contradicted by official reports of the complete with a carriage - probably a period, which listed only one gun. composite item added after its capture. To date no proof of the survival of No proof could be found of this this gun could be found, but there are calibre gun taking part in any of the rumours of a gun of this calibre in a 1882 tot 1895 wars against Mapoch, private collection in Victoria. Any clue Malaboch, Modjadji or Magoeba, on the possible location of this piece but a list of ammunition in the main laager during the Njabel campaign in will be greatly appreciated. November 1882 mentions 6-pr case What became of the two 6-pr RML and Whitworth “bombs”. A defence guns? The gun sent to the Transvaal in report in 1892 and a request to order In 1901 a second 6-pr Whitworth was 1873 formed part of the armament of 6-pr Whitworth ammunition in 1893 captured at Louis Trichardt by British the Transvaal’s first organised artillery indicates that it was still in use. Also, forces under Col. Grenfell. This gun unit, the Batterij Dingaan. After the SPE Trichard, last commander of was possibly found at the remaining 1877 British annexation of Transvaal the Staatsartillerie, mentioned in his steel fort and would not have been in the battery’s guns became part of reminiscence Geschiedenis, Free State artillery at Kroonstad, April 1900. the British garrison in Pretoria and Werken en Streven van SPE were manned by a volunteer unit, Trichard that the armament the Transvaal Artillery, commanded of the two hexagonal steel by Ignatius Ferreira. No definitive forts at Louis Trichardt in the mention of this gun seeing any service Northern Transvaal consisted during the 1880-1881 War and of “a variety of whitworth Siege of Pretoria could be found, but and armstrong guns”. One the British military commander of 1892 report confirms this Pretoria, Col. W Bellairs, wrote in his and identify them as one despatch of 31 March 1881 that: “the 6-pr Whitworth and one Krupp and Whitworth guns under the 3-pr Whitworth at Fort Transvaal Artillery” rendered effective Hendrina. service. On 6 July 1899 one of the After the British withdrawal in 1881 forts, at that stage serving as the Transvaal guns were handed over ammunition store, exploded to the newly formed Staatsartillerie. and Trichard declared:

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Mafikeng Museum’s 6-pr Whitworth RML No. 439 shown mounted on the irregular composite steel carriage. use with the Boer forces. After the War this piece, numbered 439 and dated 1866, was awarded to the Mayor of Mafeking where it today still rests in the Mafikeng Museum. A brass plaque on the barrel describes it as a “7-pr Whitworth ML” and confirms that it was captured during the occupation of Louis Trichardt. Unfortunately no mention of the gun’s rich history is made. This gun, currently mounted on a composite steel carriage put together from the carriage parts of a British 15-pr Armstrong and some agricultural equipment spares, is almost definitely one of the two guns presented to the Free State in 1866 and most likely the gun send to the Transvaal in 1873. Under “7-pr M.L.” guns WO32/8111 list a further “R.M.L. Whitworth”, which was destroyed (carriage?) near Pietersburg in January 1902. Since Pietersburg and Louis Trichard are situated close together this might have been the same Mafikeng “7-pr” accounted for twice.

The 2-pr Whitworth RML

The second Whitworth in use with the Boer republics was the 2-pr RML mountain howitzer. As will be seen later, this gun was also referred to as a 2½-pr or a 3-pr. It was of exactly the same built-up construction as the 6-pr RML and featured the same standard hexagonal rifling. Projectiles were fired with bagged black powder charges, which were ignited by means of copper friction tubes. To limit windage, a copper wad was used between the projectile and serge cartridge bag. (See Table 2)

In 1867 the 2-pr Whitworth RML was on display at the Paris Universal Exhibition. At the show it was shown mounted on either a small field carriage, which could be limbered in the usual way, or on a special mountain carriage arranged to be taken apart and packed on mules. The mountain carriage could also be fitted with a trail shaft to be pulled by mules or horses. The Free State’s ongoing struggle against the Basutos prompted them to import more specialized artillery. Because of tall grass mountain guns were never very effective in South Africa, but this gun was ideal for the fighting in Basutoland where Mosjesh made use of mountain fortresses.

further to hand you a communication received today from the Company which will show you that the order is having attention and that part of it is in a forward state.” The specification, also dated 9 Jan 1866, described the gun as manufactured from “steel tempered”, while the carriage was listed as the mountain type complete with

2-pr RML on the ordinary field carriage.

It is not certain when the Free State ordered their first 2-pr, but on 9 Jan 1866 agent James Searight forwarded a Whitworth specification for one such gun to Pres. Brand and added: “I have

harnesses for three horses. Its date of arrival in Bloemfontein is unknown.

In December 1866 Pres. Brand ordered a further 2-pr mountain howitzer through James Searight, who on 9 April 1867 declared: “I have been in communication Calibre: 1,7-in (43,2 mm) with the manager Weight of gun: approx. 1700 lb. (771 kg) of the Whitworth “Rifled spheres”, common shell C o m p a n y respecting the 2 Ammunition: and case shot pounder Mountain Weight of projectile: 2 - 3 lb. (0,9 - 1,36 kg) H o w i t z e r 2000 yds. (1829 m) required for your Range of gun: 6o elevation Government Weight of gun 140 lb. (63,5 kg) which he hopes to have ready Weight of carriage 180 lb. (81,6 kg) for shipment in about a fortnight. Table 2

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This gun will lists it as a “3-pdr Whitworth” combine all the latest and describes the carriage as: improvements together “Mountain carriage made to with a new carriage take apart readily & arranged especially adopted for transport on the backs of for field service.” For mules.” The gun was shipped some unknown reason to Natal in Augustus 1872 the order was only aboard the Bludworth. shipped on 15 June It is not certain whether the 1867, aboard the Sir 1872 gun actually differed George Grey, and 2-pr solid shot and shell from the previous examples, on 28 September EJ because by 1879 the OVS Biddulph transported the gun and had three mountain howitzers and ammunition to Bloemfontein. The shipping specification, dated 7 June 1867, identified the carriage as the mountain type fitted with shafts and a wooden axletree. Ammunition was carried in four boxes, while harnesses and saddle trees for four mules or horses were supplied. In 1872 a “3 pounder” was ordered through Blyth & Co. To this the Whitworth company replied: “We think it a question whether in ordering a 3 pounder Whitworth, a 2 pounder was not intended, as it throws a 2½ pounder shell, which if it were a solid shot, would be a 3 pounder. Whitworth has never made any actual 3 pounder howitzers.” It seems that the Free State insisted on a 3-pr because on 10 June 1872 Blyth & Co. wrote: “we have at length persuaded Mr. Whitworth to send us a 3 pounder.” The shipping specification, dated 24 July 1872 also

1872 the Transvaal ordered weapons from the Free State. One of their requests was for a “three pounder mountain howitzer”. In 1873 the Free State did send a small mountain gun with ammunition, but it is uncertain whether it was a Whitworth. A photo of the Battery Dingaan taken in Pretoria about 1875 shows one such gun and during the 1877-1881 British occupation there was definitive mention of a 3-pr Whitworth in use with the garrison in Pretoria.

The Oranje Vrijstaat Artillerie Corps with their three Whitworth RML mountain guns, circa 1879 Adjutant JAJ van Rensburg of the Free State Artillery Corps listed them as follows: “3 Whitworth Mountain Guns, of one and the same calibre.” A list of guns in the Bloemfontein magazine for Augustus 1899 states that the OVS still had three “3-pr Whitworth” guns shortly before the outbreak of the Boer War. Its doubtful whether these obsolete pieces were used during the 1899-1902 War as all three were either found in Bloemfontein on 13 March 1900, or discovered at Hector Spruit on 24 September 1900 after the Boer forces dynamited a large number of their own artillery and dumped the remains into the Crocodile River.

2-pr RML on the mountain carriage with shafts. As mentioned before, in

Issue 02 - April 2008

After the First War of Independence, two guns were listed in the 26/28 November 1881 account of stores forwarded from Standerton and they are described as one “Whitworth 2 Pounder” and one “Whitworth 3 Pounder”. It is uncertain how and when the second gun was acquired. In April 1882 two “3-pd with carriage & shafts complete” were sent to Zeerust with the 6-pr RML mentioned before. A second document, dated August 1882, noted their return and confirmed that both were Whitworth guns. SPE Trichard indicated that the ZAR made use of a 3-pr Armstrong during the 1882 war against Mapoch, but this would have been a Whitworth since Armstrong did not manufacture any commercial 3-pr guns. The defence reports of 1891 and 1892 referred to before stated that although old and obsolete, both were still in use in the 1890s - one at Fort Hendrina and the second at Pietersburg.

It is not clear exactly where and when the Transvaal’s two guns were captured, but as mentioned before the remains of three “3-pr Whitworth” guns were discovered in the Crocodile River at Hector Spruit on 24 September 1900. Under “7-pr M.L.” guns WO32/8111 list a further “R.M.L. Whitworth”, which was supposedly destroyed near Pietersburg in January 1902. As both 6-pr Whitworth RML guns were already accounted for at that stage it might have been a 2-pr gun. One can assume with relative certainty that the majority of ammunition for the 2/3-pr guns was also destroyed in the July 1899 explosion.

Whitworth mountain gun and crew outside Fort Hendrina

of State by authority of the Senate of the United States, 1867 • Featherstone, D: Weapons and Equipment of the Victorian Soldier, Blandfort Press, Dorset, 1978 • Ferreira, OJO: Geschiedenis, Werken en Streven van S.P.E. Trichard, RGN, Pretoria, 1975 • Gooding, SJ: An Introduction to British Artillery in NorthAmerica, Museum Restoration Service, Ottawa, 1965 • Hall, DD: Field Artillery of the British Army 1860-1960, SA Military History Journal, Vol.2 No.4 • Hall, DD: The Artillery of the First Anglo-Boer War 1880-1881, MC Heunis SA Military History Journal, Vol.5 Secretaris, Corps der Artillerie No.2 Sources: • Haupt, DJ: Die Staatsartillerie van • Blake, WP: Reports of the United die Suid-Afrikaanse Republiek, States Commissioners to the MA-UP, Pretoria, 1946 Paris Universal Exposition, 1867, • Hogg, IV: The Illustrated Under direction of the Secretary Encyclopaedia of Artillery, Stanley Paul, London, 1987 The beautifully restored Fort Glanville gun • GovernmentSecretary and Commandant General: Incoming Letters, Free State and Transvaal Archives, 1864 to 1899 • Preller, GS: Historiese Opstelle, Van Schaik, Pretoria, 1925 • Ruffell, WL: The Gun - Rifled Ordnance: Today only two known guns of this type survive. One of these resides in a private collection in Britain, while a second (no. 486, 1867) can be viewed at Fort Glanville in Southern Australia. The Fort Glanville gun was discovered on a farm south of Adelaide where it was doing service as the doorstop of a chicken coup! The owner contacted the Fort Glanville Historical Association and swapped the barrel for a shotgun. Members of the association restored the barrel to its original condition and constructed a replica carriage for it. Today the gun is regularly fired as part of Fort Glanville open day activities. It is not known whether any of the two survivors originally were Boer guns.

Whitworth, NZPFOCA Web Page, 1997 • Schiel, Adolf: 23 Jahre Sturm und Sonnenshein in Sudafrika, FA Brockhaus, Leipzig, 1902 • Swemmer, TPE: Die Geskiedenis van die Vrystaatse Artillerie, MAUOVS, Bloemfontein, 1953 • WO 32/7028 and 8111: Return of all guns captured or recovered from the Enemy, Public Records Office, Kew London, 1899-1902

Acknowledgement:

We would like to thank Mr. Robert (Bob) McDonough of Alexandria, Virginia for his assistance in obtaining a copy of the article on the 1867 Paris Universal Exhibition. After the September 11th attacks suppliers of “military information” in the United States are not allowed to export their products abroad!

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Great deal to recognise in Parker’s explosive fiction

THE CORRUPT AFFAIR by Jim Parker Reviewer: Terry Crawford-Browne

RESIDENT Thabo Mbeki has “lost his cool” in two of his recent and successive issues of ANC Today, blasting Andrew Feinstein and other arms deal critics for telling “blatant lies”. His presidential touchiness being well known, Mbeki will undoubtedly “go ballistic” when he reads Jim Parker’s fictionalised The Corrupt Affair. Written in the genre of John le Carre’s The Constant Gardener, it is a fastpaced thriller and exposé of the African National Congress’s (ANC’s) betrayal of the struggle against apartheid. Parker, a retired British government official now resident in KwaZuluNatal, has brilliantly drawn on the shenanigans of the diplomatic corps interwoven with the unbridled greed of the ANC’s senior politicians. Sexual honey-traps, Mercedes-Benzes and even murder are the tried and proven methods by which French, German and British diplomats, in conjunction with their national arms dealers, inveigle South African politicians to spend taxpayers’ money on warships and warplanes.

to succeed the sexually compromised Themba Radebe in 2009 as president of SA. He is to govern for two terms, with a one-year extension to cover SA’s hosting of the 2020 Olympic Games. The cast includes Joshua Sithole — deposed as deputy president for receiving bribes from the French and jailed for eight years — and the three Moodley brothers. Parker has Prof Anant Govender disdainfully telling Yogi Moodley: “You’ll have noticed my impoverished appearance, my humble wife, my modest car amidst your Porsches and Mercedes outside. Whilst you were amassing a disgusting fortune from crooked Boers and clueless blacks, I was living two lives. I was educating Britain’s unruly young by day and keeping the ANC fires burning by night. The Institute of Strategic Studies reckons that British cash accounted for 70% of foreign funds that kept the ANC afloat — don’t forget that please, my friend.” In a nutshell, the arms deal was a payback deal from ANC exiles to their foreign masters, albeit dressed up for

The cast of characters is barely disguised. Sam Moloto is Joe Modise, the corrupt ex-MK chief and target of foreign arms dealers who initiated the arms deal acquisitions. Reggie Isaacs, a character readers will recognise as Ronnie Kasrils, leads a lone fight against Israeli-French-American mobsters intent on using state arms company Defcor and South African mini-nukes to wipe out the Palestinians. Wiseman Moleketi is the first postapartheid premier of Gauteng who, by the time he stood down in 1999, had become a billionaire tycoon with “effective control of drugs distribution and prostitution in greater Johannesburg”. Moleketi is also the South African point man for the IsraeliFrench-American troika and is set up

regrouped its cronies at Defcor after 1988 and the collapse of the apartheid war machine in Angola, has an international membership and influence that covers every aspect of crime and money laundering. This sinister group’s plan includes SA as host for both the rugby and cricket world cups, Fifa’s 2010 Soccer World Cup and the 2020 Olympics. Of course, the big-spending corruption possibilities associated with these endeavours are enormous, hence the attraction to politicians such as Radebe and Moleketi in colluding with international mafiosi. With the ineffectual Radebe having proved unable to control national affairs and, with his popularity plummeting, Moleketi schemes to propel himself into the presidency. In an artful manoeuvre to avert the splintering of the ANC, Isaacs saves the country from the troika’s disastrous entanglements and also Radebe’s reputation. He confronts his crooked colleagues and threatens them with “the wrath of the law and masses through your deviancy and dishonour, your murder, bribes and corruption and your betrayal and treason. Instead, we can devote ourselves to producing the greatest show on earth in SA and look forward to taking our guilty secrets to our graves”. In holding the feet of crooked politicians up to the fire, Parker’s novel will hopefully do to the arms trade what Le Carre did to the pharmaceutical business. I wish The Corrupt Affair huge success in SA and internationally.

the ANC masses that offsets would produce new jobs, houses, factories, shops and services in Soweto. Meanwhile, the troika, which carefully

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Crawford-Browne is the author of Eye On The Money. h t t p : / / w w w. b u s i n e s s d a y. c o . z a / A r t i c l e s / Ta r k A r t i c l e . aspx?ID=3089817 http://www.justdone.co.za/catalog/ product_info.php/products_id/172

On military leadership

kippy has a good post about military leadership. I thought I'd take up his challenge and consider three examples of leadership that inspired me during my service. First example. (I told my buddy Lawdog about this and he posted the story on his blog some time ago, so some of you may have read it before.) I'd just entered the South African armed forces and was doing basic training (which involved much blood, sweat and tears, all mine - the SADF was fighting a border war at the time and they didn't believe in soft training!). On the firing-range one day I was being my typical teenage dumbass self (I hadn't grown up yet, of course - some would say I still haven't!), and muttered a comment to the guy next to me, something about having practiced this stuff enough and when were we going to do something more interesting? There came a tap on my shoulder. Looking around, I snapped to a brace. The Sergeant-Major of our training unit stood there in his polished, creased, mirror-bright glory, glaring at me. I was sure he was going to rip my head off my shoulders or have me running up and down serving as a moving target for the rest of the morning, but he just looked at me. In a slow, resigned voice (the kind they use to dumbass recruits), he said, "Troop, an amateur practices until he's got it right. A professional practices until he can't get it wrong!" That Sergeant-Major was doubtless tired and pissed-off by the thousands of new recruits fumbling their way through basic drills that he could do in his sleep. He could have torn me into shreds without bothering to use the occasion as a training opportunity, but he chose to overcome his irritation and make a point so well that I - and those around me - could instantly appreciate and remember it. I've never forgotten his words. They've kept me alive on at least three occasions. Words to live by, indeed.

Bayou Renaissance Man

Thanks, Smaj.

The idle musings of a former soldier, former computer geek, former pastor and now full-time writer. Contents guaranteed to offend the politically correct and anal-retentive from time to time. Life should be taken with a large helping of laughter and sufficient firepower to keep it tamed.

Second example. The Lieutenant in command of our platoon had emphasized before our patrol the basic rules of engagement, including a great deal of sage advice on how to fight and survive. (He was what Americans would call a "mustang", commissioned from the ranks, so he had a lot more experience than the bayourenaissanceman.blogspot.com average Lieutenant.) He emphasized A great man, that Lieutenant. He went things like: keep your weapon on on to senior rank in the SADF and semi-auto and don't waste ammo richly deserved it. He showed us that a in full-auto fire; shoot only at an good officer makes sure his troops aren't identified target unless you're ordered treated like mushrooms (i.e. kept in the to put down suppressive fire; keep low dark and fed on bulls***) but handles and keep moving - to stay still is to die; them with the same respect he expects and other words of wisdom. (They all from them, leads them from the front proved true, in my experience.) and by example, and strives to weld We hit a well-set ambush in thick them together into a proud, effective African bush, the classic L-formation team. In all my subsequent years of along a trail. Those of you who are service I compared my commanders combat veterans will know how it to him, usually unfavorably; and when went: the sudden explosion of noise as the time came for me to command weapons opened up on us, the frozen others I consciously modelled myself split-second of shocked disbelief and after him. I hope I was as good. the instant orders from the Lieutenant Third example. I was part of the duty to charge down the ambush and take watch at a sophisticated joint-services the fight to the insurgents ... if you've electronic warfare centre monitoring been there, you know. Soviet, Cuban and East German When it was all over and the insurgents (the survivors, at any rate) had fled and backup had arrived, we gathered to be taken back to base. Some of us were wounded and all of us were on edge and jittery. The Lieutenant gathered us around and debriefed us in the field. He went over the sequence of events, praised those who'd done well, gently corrected those of us (including yours truly) who'd screwed up at some point or other, and generally ensured that we all left the field having learned all there was to learn from the engagement. He didn't want us getting back to base and forgetting about it - he wanted us to come out of it better soldiers than when we went into the fight. Even those of us who'd made mistakes weren't harshly criticized. He acknowledged that we were relatively inexperienced, pointed out where we'd forgotten our training, and ensured that we each understood our errors and wouldn't repeat them.

activity in Angola. We stood a regular watch schedule, and this time we'd pulled an all-nighter. One of the junior watch-standers received news just before we left for the centre that his mother had been seriously injured in a car accident and was undergoing emergency surgery. His father called and asked that he be allowed to fly home on compassionate grounds. The Officer of the Day, a real (insert appropriate curse here), refused to do anything about it, saying that the operator would have to see the Chaplain in the morning and make arrangements. We left for the center with the operator in tears in our midst, the rest of us trying awkwardly to provide what comfort and support we could. On arrival at the centre a couple of us hastened to the office of the SNCO of the Watch, a Navy Chief Petty Officer,

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and told him the story. He let out a couple of choice expletives, hurried to the operator's station and pulled him off duty. Against all regulations, he overrode the telephone exchange block and let him make three longdistance calls to his family while he went to another room and telephoned the CO of the centre, telling him what had happened. The CO, a Navy Captain, was furious at the neglect shown by the OOD at the accommodation base (and later made sure he answered for it). He had the chaplain come out to the centre to collect the operator, and by ten that evening he was on a flight home. His departure left us shorthanded: but the Chief voluntarily took over that operator's console and stood watch with us for the rest of the night. He wasn't up-to-date on the latest EW bells and whistles, but wasn't afraid to admit it and asked us to help him when necessary. We had a busy night and couldn't have coped without him. Again, inspirational leadership from that Chief. He went out of his way (including breaking regulations and risking his good relationship with other officers by going out-ofchannels directly to the CO) for one of his guys who needed it, and pulled an all-night watch with us rather than call out someone who'd earned his time off before taking up his next shift in the morning. The rest of us made sure he had a case of cold beer waiting at his quarters when we got off watch next morning. He'd surely earned it. There are three examples of positive leadership from my military experience. I'd like to invite all readers who are military veterans to follow Skippy's lead and post their own examples of good leadership. Hopefully it'll help others who read it. Peter (Bayou Renaissance Man.) http://skippyslist.com/2008/03/20/ attention-cadets-be-this-guy-inthree-easy-steps/

Nightime Blues John Dovey

It’s getting late. The stars are out the tent is crowded water is heated on the gas stove and the aroma of Rat Pack coffee is in the air.

by hard times shared. Also a faint tension from an expectation of attack. One of the poems from “Soldier’s Verse

There are clothes hanging and insects buzzing around the light. The Beach Boys are making Good Vibrations. Pictures of girls in magazines; Talk of home, good times past Easy affection forged

Various military Caps and Badges are available for sale from Just Done http://www.justdone.co.za

If there is something you want embroidered, then let us know and we will do it for you!

Issue 02 - April 2008

Photo Gallery Random Military Photos from all over

Mark Davies “at rest” during OPs Packer. Who says it can’t be comfortable in the bush?

Preparing for a HALO jump (spot the famous Sgt Maj in Morning inspection during Selection. the background) (Note Rifle Butts on Boots) (Photos: Alan Mann collection)

Army Talk Magazine

Issue 02 - April 2008

Then and Now Some members of the Army Talk list posted “Then and Now” photos. Amazing how the years go by...

Danie van den Berg

L-R: 1978, 1988, 2007

Dave Kenny

L-R: Roof (3 SAI)

On Camp a few years later Grumpy old Fart (GOF) 26 years after the first photo

Dion Rossouw

L-R: 1981, 2007

Manuel Ferreira

L-R: 1985, 1991, 2007

Army Talk Magazine

We will do this as a regular feature, so feel free to send in your photos. Just make sure you put â&#x20AC;&#x153;Then and Nowâ&#x20AC;? in the subject line.

L-R:

Marcus Duvenhage

911 2IC A-Coy Ombalantu, 1988 2007

Peter Chapman

L-R: 1979, 2007

Robbie Crouch

L-R: 1977, 2007

Simon Lewis

L-R: 1985 (on left), 2007

John Dovey

L-R: 1986, 2003, 2007

Issue 02 - April 2008

Thinking Tactically:

Using Tactical Decision Exercises to Study Tactics “What is necessary to be performed in the heat of action should constantly be practiced in the leisure of peace.” Vegetius, The Military Institution of the Romans

sing games to train leaders is not anything new or revolutionary. Such methods date back as far as Sun Tzu.1 Although initially played principally for amusement, individuals and organizations soon found such exercises worthwhile to train and educate students of their respective professions. Today, numerous organizations use similar practices to develop leaders and prepare them for decision-making under actual conditions. Notables include the Armed Services, as well as some law enforcement and fire prevention services. The variation they have found effective for training subordinates in decision-making skills is the Tactical Decision Exercise or TDE. What many have discovered, to include those within the Infantry community, is that such exercises provide an effective mechanism for developing an individual’s ability to make decisions under physical and mental stress. While it is not the perfect substitute for actual training and experience, it does serve to sharpen the individual’s intuitive decision-making ability. In today’s military, constrained as it is by shrinking budgets, personnel shortages, and myriads of missions, TDEs provide leaders at all levels an opportunity to hone decision-making skills in scenarios that place the leader in stressful situations. Recently, we have seen a resurgence of the TDE variety of wargames. Our experiences in peace operations have rekindled interest in the merits of using these role-playing scenarios to develop decision-making skills. As a late entrant into the arena, I simply want to enlighten those within our branch who have little or no knowledge of such practices. Before I can address the benefits of taking part in such exercises, I should cover a little

of the history of wargames to provide some background. The short summary of their history is by no means allinclusive. It does, however, provide a foundation as to how and when they were developed. It also conveys some of the rationale as to their benefits.

History

It is unclear who actually invented the first wargames, but historians generally credit Prussian Baron von Reisswitz and his son for being the first to move wargames out of the entertainment realm and into the military. They designed the 1811 version of the game with scaled pieces to represent units. They then moved them on a sand table that corresponded to actual terrain. A significant modification was that the pieces were no longer restricted to moving within the confines of the squares of a chessboard, as was previously the case. Players could now move them freely within the capabilities of the respective units. The accompanying rules were also noteworthy because their foundation in the military experiences of the day (Napoleonic Wars) added realism to the game. Baron von Reisswitz’s game became extremely popular in courts and higher echelons of society, yet they never really took root in the2 professional circles within the military. Many in the military were skeptical of their merits. Reisswitz’s son George, a lieutenant in the Prussian Guard Artillery, later developed a more refined version in 1824. He titled it Anleitung zur Darstelling militarische manuver mit dem apparat des Kriegsspiels (Instructions for the Representation of Tactical Maneuvers under the Guise of a Wargame), and it included a number of improvements to their initial game.3 The younger Reisswitz became the first to include both set piece rules and the incorporation of actual topographical maps to represent the battlefield. While some within the Army were still contentious of the accuracy of the game, it gained widespread attention and eventually became a staple within

each regiment. One lieutenant, Helmuth von Moltke, was so impressed by the intrinsic worth of the game that he founded a wargame club called the Kriegspieler Verein in 1828. In 1857, the Chief of Staff in the Prussian Army, then General von Moltke, pushed wargaming throughout the army.4 During the Franco-Prussian War in 1870-71, the heavily militia and reserve-based Prussian Army soundly defeated the highly regarded French Army in a mere five months. The reversal of the balance of power in Europe was so rapid and unexpected that it shocked the world. Michael Howard, the noted military historian, wrote that the nature of the Prussians’ overwhelming victory was largely attributed to superior organization and education.5 Their remarkable military successes prompted many other countries to analyze and incorporate some of the Prussian reforms into their own military establishments, one of which was officer education through wargames and staff rides. The United States also took note. Major William R. Livermore devised the United States Army’s first wargame in 1882. His system was a close derivative of the Prussian models, and he titled it The American Kriegsspiel, A Game for Practicing the Art of War on a Topographical Map. William McCarty Little, a friend of Livermore’s, developed a similar version for the Navy shortly thereafter. Both men’s variations became integral parts of their respective senior service school curriculums.6 Since the Reisswitz’s initial game, various adaptations have emerged. Some innovators developed a less rigid set of rules for the games, which became known as “free” kriegsspiels. These rules use an umpire to mediate results through subjective judgment calls rather than an extensive set of mathematical formulas and calculations. Naturally, recent technological developments enable the execution of both varieties of kriegsspiels via computers and simulations with relative ease. It is

Army Talk Magazine

perhaps safe to say that virtually all of our services incorporate such exercises into training strategies at nearly all echelons. Another type of derivation of the wargame is the tactical decision exercise (TDE) wherein the participant is posed a military problem in the form of a situation and simple graphic. He is then given a short period in which to develop a solution and present it in the form of orders to subordinates. Although I am yet unable to accurately trace the development of the TDE to any one individual, one thing remains constant: as with the Reisswitz’ invention, many still find a lack of merit in TDEs’ application within the military. Critics evoke the age-old argument that experience is the best form of training. While this may be true, conditions of peace and shrinking budgets challenge our ability to conduct exercises of such frequency and realism to thoroughly train our infantry leaders without some sort of additional augmentation. More often than not, some sort of supplementary training is needed to bridge the existing gaps. The Joint Readiness Training Center is one of a few effective sites that facilitate training units and their leaders under conditions as comparable to combat as possible. Although these types of combat training centers offer remarkable experiences to rotational units, a typical brigade only cycles through about every eighteen 7 months. There is also considerable debate in the mere title itself. Rather than get caught up in whether it is a game or an exercise, it seems prudent to look toward what benefits reside in its execution. Using TDEs is not the cure-all for budget woes or lack of combat experience, nor is it a suitable replacement for unit training. It is, however, a very powerful tool that leaders and organizations can use in conjunction with other methods and techniques to educate leaders and subordinates. Many organizations outside the military are discovering this as well.

The Benefits

More important than the history of

such exercises is what they can do for those who use them. History illustrates how nations like Germany, Britain, and the United States have successfully used such adaptations to train and educate members in the practice of war. Decision exercises enable users to explore alternatives to problems and issues, generate discussions, and practice decision-making under a variety of situations and conditions. Recent studies delve even deeper into the development of an individual’s decision-making ability. This brings up the age-old question of whether a leader can be made. While, unfortunately, I do not have the answer to that issue, I would submit that participating in TDEs does develop an individual’s ability to make better decisions in a more rapid fashion. Though instructors have used TDEs in the past, the Infantry School is attempting to create a means to exchange materials between the field and the schoolhouse for use in both noncommissioned officer and officer professional development. In the Infantry Captains Career Course (IC3), we use TDEs in the classroom for a variety of reasons. They help to stimulate peer interaction and allow students to share their experiences, insights, and Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures (TTP). Although our scenarios place the students in the role of an Infantry commander, any situations or roles may suffice. Development of these types of exercises is only limited by creativity, target audience, and training objective. Any organization may tailor them to their specific needs. Our exercises simultaneously place the students as commanders in a tactical situation with a specific dilemma that they must solve or address. The materials are a simple graphic or sketch (photo, map or PowerPoint drawing), and a short written narrative that provides the necessary detail for the issue at hand. The narrative also includes the specific instructions on what the commander must do and the time limit that he has available. Typically, the participants have anywhere from five to fifteen minutes depending on the given exercise. The general requirement is for

Issue 02 - April 2008

the commander to develop the orders that he would issue to his subordinates based on the situation. Once the time limit “expires”, all participants cease work and the facilitator selects one of the students to issue his orders to the group. The student may elaborate on his selected course of action, answer any questions, and defend his rationale only after he issues his orders to his peers. This type of small group interaction is excellent for the sharing of ideas. There is no set solution, which typically fosters a spirited debate on the various ways at attacking the particular problem. As such, the TDEs also allow Small Group Instructors (SGIs) to reinforce doctrinal principles (breaching fundamentals, engagement area development, direct fire control, etc.) as well as introduce a variety of TTP. This works well whether we are at the beginning of the course and are attempting to reinforce the knowledge and comprehension level cognitive skills or towards the end when they are at the evaluation level. The instructors serve as facilitators for the discussions. Any number of students may brief their plans for an exercise; however, two student briefs usually suffice to bring up the salient points. We select the different TDEs to coincide with our lessons. They usually reside at the end of instruction for a respective lesson so as to highlight the importance of the training objectives. For example, we use a TDE that is based on actions of a company commander in Korea to underscore the significance of a sound mission analysis using the factors of METT-TC. The TDE places them in a realistic combat situation once faced by an infantry commander. We discuss the historical vignette only after the students attempt their own solutions to the situation that he faced. This adds a new dynamic when they see how that commander fared under such circumstances. We also augment the use of the “paper TDEs” with simulations. The key was finding a simulation with a pedagogic focus that enables the participants to work on cognitive skills. An even trickier proposition is maintaining the

suspension of disbelief. If the virtual world doesn’t look, feel or interact like the real thing than the students don’t get “sucked in”. We don’t want them to feel that they’re simply on day three of learning the importance of conducting a mission analysis. We want them to be able to use the process and tools that we teach and gain experience through various forms of application. The simulations simply serve as one of many instruments to reinforce the training objectives and gain valuable practice. Furthermore, the fact that we can do this in simulation allows us to progress to the point that students get to observe the ramifications of their decisions. We started with the various simulations that the Army uses. JANUS and BBS have been a common part of our curriculum for some time now. They’re effective at reinforcing some of our training objectives, but we needed something that we could use in the small group setting over shorter periods of time with an easier user interface. We also used some commercial off the shelf games, like TACOPS, for simulating the TDEs and other exercises; however, they failed to measure up as effective cognitive simulations. We’ve recently had the opportunity to work with the Institute of Creative Technologies (ICT) and STRICOM to actually build a simulation specifically designed for our needs from the ground up. The fortunate timing of the project has capitalized on the transformation of technology towards a cost effective and user beneficial simulation. The simulation is called Full Spectrum Command (FSC), and it has surpassed all expectations since the initial testing. Research actually started as a simple proof of concept for something to fill the current void of small unit tactical simulations that could truly facilitate training junior leaders on cognitive skills and adaptive behavior. Although we will not have the final “Gold” 1.0 version until December of 2002, the current model is extremely impressive. We are using it with students this July for the final fidelity testing. The simulation enables us to execute TDEs and other missions in the

classroom on a personal computer (PC) in a real time, three-dimensional environment. Perhaps what is most noteworthy is that this is the first PC based simulation that has an explainable Artificial Intelligence (AI). This means that the AI has the ability to tell the student exactly what it did and why upon completion of the exercise. This is a powerful tool and wonderful augmentation to the instructor facilitated After Action Review (AAR) because the student will get the AI rationale on why it took certain actions.

must brief their “solution” in the form of orders to their peers rather than subordinates provides practice in exercising some of the facets of Battle Command. The recurring application of the mental skills needed to solve tactical problems helps students develop the ability to make sound and timely decisions and issue clear concise orders. Regardless of whether a group is peer based or mixed, everyone benefits vicariously from the group’s experiences and unique insights into the tactical problem and various solutions.

It is also built around our current doctrine and lexicon so there are no “work arounds” for existing shortcomings. The student simply inputs his plan by dragging tactical mission graphics onto a synchronization matrix. Once satisfied, he hits execute and enters the three-dimensional world as an active participant. The student may change his orders at any time through the issuance of fragmentary orders to subordinate units. Since the simulation is in real time, the “commander” must adapt to any changing conditions without the benefits of artificial stoppages or turn-based play. Included are realistic audio and visual cues, as well as sounds of battle to add to the realism. While no simulation is a perfect substitute, FSC offers a new and unique ability to repetitively practice mission planning and adaptive reactions to changing conditions against an explainable AI. We are already working on specifications for the subsequent 2.0 version that would expand the capabilities of collaborative execution, increase the battlespace, and integrate additional assets. Full Spectrum Command simply provides another effective medium for reinforcing cognitive skills training given the benefits of the latest technology.

In units, TDEs allow leaders to build teamwork and cohesion both up and down the chain of command as well as among peers. The TDEs provide the opportunity for subordinates to gain insights into how their commander thinks about tactical problems. They allow the commander to practice describing his vision and expressing his intent to the leaders who turn his vision and intent into actions. They also afford subordinates, like platoon leaders, the unique opportunity of hearing the insights and understanding the thought process of the commander when they all participate in a particular TDE. A Common Operational Picture (COP), based on a shared Situational Understanding (SU), will not appear magically once a unit crosses the Line of Departure (LD). It starts with shared training and experiences among the unit’s leadership. The TDEs provide a great place to start building this understanding with a minimal cost in resources and time.

The key to the TDEs, whether done on paper or in simulation, is that they provide students repetitive practice in visualizing a tactical situation, describing that visualization, deciding on a course of action, and directing subordinates towards accomplishment of the mission. The fact that they

“Practice does not make perfect— perfect practice makes perfect.” One of the great benefits of using TDEs in a group setting is that participants get feedback from other participants. There is no right or wrong answer when using TDEs. In fact, the answer is less important than the rationale and thought process behind the participant’s answer. When the briefer explains the rationale to the group, the other members gain a better appreciation of the problem. The feedback and comments from the other participants provide the briefer with the insights to solve the tactical

Army Talk Magazine

problem better next time. An individual capitalizes on the exercise because he improves his ability to quickly formulate and brief a plan. Leaders strengthen their ability to make sound decisions quickly by repeatedly practicing visualizing a situation, describing that visualization to others, and directing subordinates through issuing orders and instructions. Regularly conducting such training develops an individual’s ability to assess the situation and issue orders. The critical part is rigidly adhering to the only rule: brief your plan like you are talking to your subordinates. It is all too easy to shift gears into the passive mode by talking philosophically about how you would maneuver hither and yon. The more complicated route is actually describing it as if you wanted it to happen right now and the group you are briefing is the collective body that is going to execute your orders. The discourse following such a briefing is usually phenomenal. This is perhaps where the majority of the learning takes place. The healthy interaction within a group of peers forces the briefer to be able to defend his logic and readily bares any shortcomings. It also sparks energetic discussions on warfighting and exposes all to new ideas and other ways at solving a problem. Forcing the participants to address the others as if they were directing their subordinates improves their communication skills and reinforces the importance of our lexicon. The time stress the games impose exacerbates the need for one to internalize the orders process and issue succinct instructions that provide enough clarity and detail for subordinate units to execute the plan. A great idea that a leader can’t articulate can easily lead to failure or disaster. Likewise, a sound idea clearly expressed in a timely manner could prove decisive. As mentioned, another important benefit is that there are no “school solutions” to the exercises. The real litmus test as to whether a plan would succeed or fail is principally measured in actual execution. Since the exercises do not progress to this stage, failure is more contingent on the participant’s

ability to clearly express his intentions using sound tactical concepts. A player should be able to defend his rationale for his plan. Nonetheless, the lack of any exclusive “right” answer encourages participants to take the initiative and think outside any existing parameters. Although not a mandate, I recommend using some TDEs that are historically based. This adds to the discussion in that the mediator can conclude the exercise by relating to the group how someone else in that situation reacted and fared. Again, this should not serve to preclude courses of action, but rather to stimulate debate. A more adept participant, with a foundation in military history, can skillfully use such historical vignettes to bolster, let alone guide, his rationale for his selected course of action.

Tactical Decision Exercises are also extremely effective for leaders as they allow them to practice on paper. The exercise is a very low cost event in terms of time, resources, and effort. The only real constraint is one’s creativity and imagination. Despite the simplicity of the exercises, decision-making scenarios offer ample benefits. They can be as effective for corporals as they are for generals, as long as they are tailored to the respective audience. Nonetheless, they are extremely effective for training subordinates one or even two levels up. They allow a subordinate to function in the same situation as his superior and experience the considerations that he must take into account. This can help in mentoring junior leaders and broadening their focus within the organization.

A natural reaction to taking part in the exercises is that it stimulates discussion about warfighting and our profession of arms. It also subtly encourages the study of military history. This is not to argue that simply knowing how Captain X fought while assaulting a hill in 1944 will provide the blueprint for success in current and/or future endeavors. It is more important for leaders today to study past great military leaders and understand what were the bases for their decisions and reasons for success given the environment of the day. We can capitalize on what others have learned as long as we are aware of the danger of taking things out of context. We can also gain an appreciation into how humans react in certain situations, as well as how others applied principles under certain conditions. The TDEs can help foster this professional enlightenment, as long as it is done with proper caution. Discussing historical vignettes will undoubtedly stir intellectual debate. Another way to foster this study is to assign subordinates to research and develop their own historically based TDE for the group. Books like Infantry In Battle and Combat Actions in Korea are but a few that provide great ideas for tactical scenarios. In both instances, the books include after-action-review style discussion following the tactical vignettes.

Lastly, TDEs provide a means for mentally preparing leaders for the rigors of combat. They may not be exact replicas, yet they offer a unique ability to practice conveying and executing decisions while under some sort of mental and physical duress. Just like we use physical training to develop the body for the shock and rigors of combat, so too must we prepare the 8 mind.

Issue 02 - April 2008

Decision-making

The whole nature of “playing” TDEs is that an individual is faced with a particular problem. The participant must process given information, arrive at a course of action, and develop the orders for subordinates needed to execute the plan. Adjusting the amount of time allotted to the participant imposes added stress. In fact, the whole intent is to keep the allowable time short to exacerbate the need for the participant to rapidly get to the heart of the problem and take action. The same is true for limiting the amount of information provided in the situation. This too places added strain on the participant and replicates having to deal with real world dynamics, like the fog and friction of war. Simply modifying the conditions, like time or place, adds further stress as well. Scientists generally agree that analytical and intuitive decision-making are

the two primary methods. Analytical decision-making involves collecting and analyzing information to generate, compare, and select an optimal course of action. This method is largely based on a logical analysis of the situation. An excellent example of this method is the Army’s Military Decision Making Process (MDMP). Such analytical processes are extremely effective if given accurate information and input, a clearly defined 9 goal, and a capable decision-maker. Interestingly enough, the preponderance of our military schooling centers on the analytical approach. Intuitive decision making, on the other hand, centers around basing decisions on pattern recognition and experience. It is also known by several other terms throughout the military. Words like “Fingerspitzengefuhl” and “Coup d’oeil” are often used to express this same basic process. Some members within the scientific community refer to it as Naturalistic Decision Making and define it as “the way people use their experience to make decisions in field settings.”10 It is more than simply analytical decisionmaking internalized. The TDEs afford participants the opportunity to build upon their experience base and become better intuitive decision makers. Many studies within both the military and scientific communities conclude that we actually rely more heavily on intuitive rather than analytical decision-making procedures when in a “field” environment.11 Studies examining decision-making generally found certain common characteristics present when individuals relied more heavily on an intuitive versus analytical approach to making a decision. Individuals facing ill-structured problems, uncertain or dynamic environments, time stress, or high stakes generally opted for intuition to reach a decision versus the analytical approach. Additionally, decision makers with more experience under similar conditions tended to employ intuitive methods more often than analytical processes.12 Time stress and high stakes are but a few of the commonalities associated with

intuitive decision-making. Profoundly, the environment generally associated with the intuitive approach accurately describes what we potentially face in combat. I think it reasonable to conclude that when an individual faces such conditions, the net affect is degradation on his decision-making effectiveness. Leaders will not overcome all the uncertainty or stress in combat situations, but their experience will help them make decisions. As such, the studies tended to focus on individuals who regularly face such conditions. Personnel in law enforcement, fire protection, medical services, and infantrymen were participants in research. Virtually all organizations reached similar conclusions, namely that they can conduct exercises under realistic conditions to increase member experience and their ability to make more effective decisions when in stressful situations. Members of the Forestry Service expressed the need to incorporate tactical decision games in training to make more effective decisions when combating forest fires. Mr. Mike Kuypers states in his 1997 report to the National Fire Academy that “tactical decision games add to the trainees’ experience base, prepares (sic) them to respond under uncertainty and time pressure, and requires (sic) them to formulate their intent.”13 He goes on to address the mechanics of TDEs in decision skills training. It reads like a “civilianized” version of what many in the military advocate. One such notable within the military community is Major John F. Schmitt, United States Marine Corps Reserve (USMCR). He published a work in 1994 titled Mastering Tactics: A Tactical Decision Games Workbook. It is an excellent source that includes both tactical decision games (exercises) and supporting information on their relevance towards improving tactical skill and decision-making capability. He also has another comparable piece, Designing TDGs, which provides outstanding insight into how to design effective exercises, in addition to further discussion on how individuals decide. I strongly recommend both

works as a must for anyone interested in the application of TDEs in the military environment. They provide a great “how to” start point for those interested in designing such exercises for their own training.

Web Connectivity

The drive to better incorporate technological aids in our doctrine and training also provides some additional opportunities with these types of decision-making exercises. The recent development of an “Infantry” website (www.infantry.army.mil) to foster improved communication between the field and the schoolhouse has been a catalyst for the sharing of such helpful training techniques. Foremost, the website is a platform to rouse the intellectual debate about our profession. The links to Infantry Magazine and The Infantry Forum provide a place for soldier interaction and the relatively instantaneous sharing of ideas that is not hindered by geographic location. The medium also enables a means for TTP exchange, such as TDEs. Our intent is to manage such a repository of TDEs here in the Combined Arms and Tactics Directorate at the Infantry School. While using these exercises as a training tool is not new, the simplicity to use, share and discuss with others outside your immediate setting is something that we have yet to achieve as a community. Infantry Magazine will include a TDE in all subsequent issues. It will also include a “solution” from the community at large. We will place copies of the published TDEs on our website (http://www.infantry.army. mil/CATD/tactics/index.htm) as well so that anyone can readily download them for their own use or refinement. We will also add exercises that we receive to the online collection. Perhaps the best part of the TDE website is that anyone can get the electronic copies and tailor them to their own specific needs or echelon. This forum also enables us to post more solutions from those in the field and stir a healthy professional debate on warfighting. Timely and effective decision-making is essential to the success of military

Army Talk Magazine

operations. Participating in tactical decision exercises is but one means to develop and hone the skills necessary for executing and communicating decisions in a judicious manner. I cannot argue that this, in and of itself, makes the leader. I do submit that it will make leaders more effective at facing stressful or uncertain situations. I understand that much of this case was nothing new to a good portion of those reading this article. What we at the Infantry School hope is that this is the beginning of a sharing of techniques for training subordinate leaders in decision- making skills. Other sites of interest related to the subject are the following: h t t p : / / w w w. m c a - m a r i n e s . o r g / Gazette/gaz.html http://knox-www.army.mil/center/ dtdd/doctrine/armordoc.htm Wilbur Gray, “A Short History of Wargames,” available from http:// www.nhmgs.org/articles/historyof wargaming.html; Internet; accessed 22 May 2001, 1. 1

David B. Lee, “Wargaming: Thinking for the Future,” available from http://www.airpower.maxwell. af.mil/airchronicles/apj/3sum90. html; Internet; accessed 22 May 2001, 2. See also Andrew Wilson, The Bomb and the Computer (New York: Delacorte Press, 1968), 3.

Mark Diehl, “What is Wargaming,” available from http://www. tabletoptactics.com/wargaming.htm; Internet; accessed 24 May 2001, 3. See also Gray, 2.

Gray, 2.

Michael Howard, The FrancoPrussian War: The German Invasion of France 1870-1871, (London, Routledge, 1989), 453-455. 5

Lee, 1-3.

Author’s personal experiences as an Observer/Controller for over two years at the Joint Readiness Training Center at Fort Polk, Louisiana. 7

Von Schell addresses the need to train in peace what you expect in war throughout the course of his work. He states, in one of the instances, that after contact, “we cannot expect to be able to issue long winded orders, either written or oral. Whatever order we are able to issue must be short and must be clear. If we hope to do this in war we must practice it in peace.” Brad Bergstrand, “Situating the Estimate: Naturalistic DecisionMaking as an Alternative to Analytical Decision-making in the Canadian Forces,” available from http://wps.cfc. dnd.ca/irc/nh/nh9798/0021.html; Internet; accessed 11 May 2001, 1-2. 9

Bergstrand, 4.

M. St. John, J. Callan, and S. Proctor, “Tactical Decision-making Under Uncertainty: Experiments I and II,” Technical Report 1821, April 2000, Pacific Science and Engineering Group, Inc., SSC San Diego, San Diego, CA 92152-5001. Also compared their findings with Bergstrand’s, as well as Arden Dahl, “Command Dysfunction: Minding the Cognitive War,” (Thesis, School of Advanced Air Power Studies, Air University, 1996); available from http://www.fas.org/man/eprint/ dahl.htm; Internet; accessed 11 May 2001. 11

Bergstrand, 4.

Mike Kuypers, “An Analysis of Decision Making in Wildland Firefighting: How Single Resource Dozer-Plow Firefighters Do It,” (Research Project submitted to the National Fire Academy, October 1997), C-2.

Reprinted from Infantry Magazine”

Adolf Von Schell, Battle Leadership, (Quantico, Virginia, The Marine Corps Association, 1988) 55. Captain 8

Issue 02 - April 2008

Come and meet some of our authors and buy a signed copy of their books. A wide variety of South African stories will be on sale from Children’s fiction to Military Historybooks to suit all tastes at reasonable prices. Authors will be giving talks throughout the day

Date:

SATURDAY 17TH MAY Time:

9am - 4pm

Venue: NBS Education Centre

DURBAN BOTANIC GARDENS For more information contact: publish@justdone. co.za or 031-7673653 35

Military Map Symbols Size Indicator

 ) #

## ###

Meaning Installation Team Squad Section Platoon/Troop

Company/Squadron

Battalion

|||

Regiment/Group

Brigade

Division

XXX

Corps

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Army

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Example

Army Group/Front

! * e ! * e ! * e ! * e ! * e ! * e ! * e ! * e ! * e ! * e ! * e

These are the most basic symbols (indicating the size). If there is interest, ATMAG can print more of the symbols in future issues. Please let me know. AT MAG

Army Talk Magazine

Letters to the Editor

k het die briewe oor brig genl McGill Alexander se MAverhandeling oor die aanval op Cassinga met belangstelling gelees. Ek het ook sy verhandelin onder oë gehad en moet erken dat die deeglik nagevors en onder woord gebring is. Dit is egter nie bo kritiek verheewe nie, iets wat die skrywer van die verhandeling seker self sal erken. In sy verhandeling het hy bv verwys na 'n "monograph" wat ek in Junie 1978 opgestel het. In een enkele paragraaf was hy uiters krities oor die stuk wat ek opgestel het. In hierdie verband gun my egter enkele opmerkings en regstellings. Eerstens maak hy die opmerking dat ek "an official military historian" ten tyde van die opstel van die stuk was. Dit is nie waar nie - ek was op daardie tydstip 'n dokumentalis, en hoewel ek heelwat krygshistoriese artikels, en bydraes geskryf het, en selfs medeskrywer van kryghistoriese werke was, was ek nooit 'n "amptelike militêre historikus nie net soos brig genl M. Alexaander! In hierdie verband was ek 'n rolspeler omdat daar op daardie tydstip na die oordeel van wyle brig Willem Otto (wat my opdrag gegee het om die stuk op te stel) nie 'n amptelike krygshistorikus was om dit te skryf nie. En brig genl McGill Aleander sal sekerlik begryp dat 'n majoor nie kan weier as 'n brigadier hom beveel om 'n wettige opdrag uit te voer nie.

Please send your letters to armytalk@justdone.co.za Opinions are those of the respective authors.

met my te gesels nie? Ek is nooit hieroor gekontak nie, anders sou hy dalk meer begrip vir my tekortkominge gehad het.

Ten slotte hoop ek van harte dat hy nie eksepsie gaan neem teen my teenkritiek 10 dae 'n kroniek wou hê om aan nie. Ek dink steeds dat dit in die geheel die Hoof van die SAW te wys wat die 'n hoeie verhandeling is wat met die Dokumentasiediens binnekort sou nodige regstellings publikasie verdien. besoek. Kol (afdt) C.J. Nöthling Verder maak hy die stelling dat ek klaarblyklik onderhoude gevoer het samhic1@absamail.co.za met "key participants" wat aan die aanval deelgeneem het. Ja, ek het omtrent tien minute met kol Jan Breytenbach gesels, ek feitlik niks uit hom gekry nie. Dit was al wat Cassinga betref. Ek het tov Chetequera baie goeie samewerking van maj Kruger (later lt genl) gehad en myns insiens is hierdie deel van die operasie goed weergegee omdat hy darem daaraan gedink het om 'n volledige bundel met dokumente saam te stel. As sy goeie vriende by Cassinga dit ook gedoen het! .Daar moet onthou word dat ek net 10 dae gehad het om die wêreld te versit, hoe sou ek onderhoude kon voer.

Hy (M. Alexander) het ook 'n probleem met die sekerheidsklassifikasie. Op grond hiervan bevraagteken hy die kredietwaardigheid van die dokument. Genade! Ek was nie verantwoordelik vir die toekenning van die sekrehiedsklassifikasie nie, maar wel brig Otto. En wat die Voorts bewer hy dat ek "quite clearly kredietwaardigheid betref, weet ek nie had access to official documentation wat dit met die sekerheidsklassifikasie at the time". Dit is pure bog. waar te doen het nie. kom hy daaraan? Laat ek hom reghelp: Hy het ook 'n klagte oor ek het toegang gehad tot een enkele bronneverwysings. Feit is dat daar beplanningslêer en enkele fakse, nie bronne was om na te verwys nie. maar geen sitraps ens nie. In daardie Ek het ook opdrag gehad om nie 'n stadium was die hele operasie nog in bronnelys saam te stel nie. die grootste geheimhouding gehul en geen argivale rekords is nog van dier Hy noem ook dat daar blatante foute Leër of die Lugmag na die SAW Argief en onakkuraathede was. Hy noem oorgeplaas nie. Die generaal weet mos egter geen voorbeeld nie. Die feite dat sulke argiewe nie sommer binne 2 wat ek gestel het, was gebaseer op die jaar oorgeplaas word nie. Het hy dan skamele bronne tot my beskikking nie dieselfde probleem gehad toe hy wat ek deeglik gekontroleer het. sy navorsing by die SANW Argief Nou my groot vraag: Hoekom het gedoen het nie? Ek moes dus met die hy nie die stellings wat hy oor my karige dokumente tot my beskikking en my stuk maak, gekontroleer deur iets saamstel omdat brig Otto binne

Issue 02 - April 2008

Life as We Knew It … the Old SADF 1977 – 1994 R.I.P

his is my story …, possibly the same as many of the South African youngsters in the 1970’s

behaved. The perfect combination… a hardheaded, religious rebel who is prepared to fight for God and country… one for trouble.

My family’s history has actually followed that of South Africa. My Dad is of Dutch/French descend, farmers who were involved in the Great Trek, people who lived off their land, lived for their religion and believed that their government and leaders always did the correct thing. They never questioned this as they believed that a government is a tool used by the Creator to ensure peace and prosperity as well as civil obedience and order. Way back in the past we also lost family member in the Concentration Camps during the Anglo-Boer War. On the other hand my Mom’s people came from England and Ireland, deeply religious and people who were artisans, people who only believed in the Creator and depended on their skills to survive.

In the family it was expected that every male do his duty to the country…. it was required by law and by the senior members of the family, nobody had to try to worm his way out of National Service as according to them it was your patriotic duty and it made a man out of you … nobody mentioned dying once as far as I can remember and I can’t remember any of the senior people ever doing their bit for the country, except for voting once in a while or attending a political meeting before an election… mostly just to throw eggs or tomatoes at the candidates . Till today I believe that the only time they contributed was when they paid taxes. Few of them were members of the local Commando’s. They set the perfect example… mostly in talking…. And not actually being involved at all.

I was born on the 5th of November 1957, on Guy Fawkes Day, to the sound of fireworks exploding and skyrockets lighting up the sky… a noisy welcome to this world… this noise and color might have been the sign of a good, if there is something like a good omen that has followed me throughout my life. My dad decided to name me Daniel Francois van den Berg… Daniel being my Grandfather on my dad’s side and Francois being my Great-Grandfather on my dad’s side. Tradition was followed as expected by the senior members of the family and the same expected, should I have a son in future. To be the eldest child and the only son in a family from different religions and backgrounds, resulted in a rebel (Irish), for God and country (English), reasonably religious (Dutch) and hardheaded (French) type of person. Because of this I often had problems with the way people did things or

When I was young, it was fashion, perhaps the craze to buy and swop comics. The most sought after comics were the Incredible Hulk, Superman, Batman, Archie, The Flintstones and The Lone Ranger. Myself and a few friends read, swopped and collected every edition of The Lone Ranger we could lay our hands on and re-enacted every scene in it, wearing cowboy hats, holsters and toy guns when we played “cowboys and crooks”, never “cowboys and Indians”, because Tonto was one of the good people. For our birthdays we only wanted pistols, rifles, cowboy clothes and hats. In our eyes and mind he was the hero, who fought a just cause. We saved what was left of our pocket money, did odd jobs in the neighborhood and literally beg, stole (not quite) and borrowed money to go to the local cinemas, the Lantern in Parow and the Liberty, often called The Bughouse, in Goodwood. We left

home quite early to ensure that we stood at the front of the queue. Often we were the first to buy tickets for the 10 o’ clock show and being barefoot we insisted on sitting on the ground, closest to the screen to see the weekly episode of the adventures of The Lone Ranger. Straight after this episode we left the cinema and discussed and reenacted the episode at home. This was repeated Saturday after Saturday, often to the annoyance of our parents. As we grew older the “Cowboy and Crooks” phase gradually faded and then we started reading the G.I. Joe comics. Again our hero fought for freedom, was often wounded, but continued fighting as any decent respectable hero would. Our clothes changed to green or brown shirts and pants, with plastic helmets and mud as camouflage as we fought the war from trenches dug in the backyard. The trees in the backyard became lookout towers in our imagination and often out sisters were invited to play… but as the enemy. Our taste at the cinema also changed as we now sneaked in to watch “Kelly’s Heroes” or “The ballad of the Green Berets”. Being too young to be allowed to watch most of the war movies, we relied on people we knew at the ticket box to allow us, their old and supportive customers to watch the movies from the back row, in the dark. Our heroes, Clint Eastwood or John Wayne, were not cowboys anymore, but real soldiers, who fought wars, were wounded, but again they fought for freedom and justice. We even forgave our heroes for changing from dirty cowboys riding on tired horses to more modern soldiers, parachuting from aircraft or even commanding tanks. The Duke swopped his pistol for an automatic weapon, but he still was our hero. When we entered high school our world changed drastically… gone were

Army Talk Magazine

the comic book heroes as young ladies entered our lives and we had to endure romantic movies, often complaining, but silently enjoying it as well. We heard about compulsory registration for military service at the age of 16. Deep in our hearts we thought that it could not really be that bad… we’ve seen the movies, these guys were heroes… and they always got their lady. At this stage we were introduced to the compulsory Cadet Training system and every Friday morning we had to attend school wearing this nearly military uniform. So at sixteen, while still at school I had to register for National Service… the result was Rifleman Daniel Francois van den Berg SADF no 73296436… A number… not knowing what to expect, only that I had to report for duty as soon as I left school or college. The other guys who had done military training always told me how tough it was, what they had gone through, generally speaking I was scared to death, not knowing what to expect. This number became part of my life… a second ID number, will always be at the back of my memory. My first Call up papers were for Ladysmith, Natal, but I was still at school at the time and asked for exemption. Exemption was granted on condition that I report for duty, should I decide to leave school…. The added bonus was that I could face imprisonment for failing to do so… the fun had already started…. Threats and all. To be honest, prior to reporting for military service I did not jog or do anything special as preparation for National Service… I just decided that whether I was fit or not, if the soles of my feet were hard or soft, I would still have to go through the same as the other guys… just chilled out prior to reporting and waited for the big day to dawn. The evening prior to reporting for National Service I visited all my friends and family…. Just to say goodbye…. Quite a traumatic experience… everybody tried to look cheerful… the senior people gave me the goodbye pat

on the back, the ladies shed a tear as if theyexpected never to see me again…. A very long night. On the 7th of July 1977 (07/07/77) I had to report at the Castle in Cape Town, hair cut short, minimum civvie clothes, no liquor, bag with everything as prescribed on the list that accompanied the call up instruction .. Brasso, polish, oil, chain and locks, etc. and a few Rand pocket money … plus food to last me for one day…. destination… Grahamstown… 6 South African Infantry Battalion. We were processed by a group of mean looking individuals and searched for anything illegal. The family had gone on holiday… Saved me the embarrassment of being seen herded to Cape Town station. Till today I still have a fear of equal numbered dates in history … spells possible disaster… And usually does. The train

departed

6 SAI Beret Badge and the big journey started. A journey that started as one year and ended as two years plus 720 day and many more.

with kit, sleepingrolls and food… no space.. we were ordered to stay in the compartments…. Roll call every now and then… even deep into the night to ensure that no one went missing. At Grahams Town we were rushed onto the Bubble nose Bedfords… comments like:”Troep jy sien jou ma nooit weer nie “, “Ek is jou vrou, jou ma, jou ouma en jy gaan k@k”, were heard … good memories … the dominee just stood, without saying anything. Our kit was thrown onto the vehicles and we had to duck… and then came the “roofie ride”… we fell around as the vehicle accelerated and were flung to the front of the vehicle as the drivers braked … what a welcoming party. In base we were allocated bungalows, if you worked for the then South African Railways, you were appointed to see that the geysers were always fired up and hot water always available, if you worked for the Post Office, you were the platoon messenger, the Post Office/Telkom guys were appointed as “Bungalow Bill”, had to do all the maintenance. The farmers had to see to the gardens, the apprentice’s became “kakhuismechanics” and the rest had to do the never ending “chicken parades” We were ordered to shower… “Julle stink na civvie straat”, “Skrop julleself ”, “Julle is vuil”. The next morning we had to run to the sickbay for a medical … what a medical!!! … I’m colorblind. ..Three

As far as we traveled other guys were picked up… the tearful goodbyes were repeated at every station…. some were handed over to the police… threw the hardboiled eggs and other objects from the train … not even at base and already going to DB .. Adding extra days to their National Service. We were given foodpacks consisting of 2 slices of buttered bread, 2 very hard boiled eggs, a piece of fatty, cold sausage in a Styrofoam container and a Styrofoam cup of cold coffee. This was our food for the trip to 6 SAI in Grahamstown. After a while the compartments were overcrowded

Issue 02 - April 2008

6 SAI Shoulder Flash electrical cables about a centimeter in diameter were shown to me… black, blue, red … even a blind man could

pass this test. This was actually the most difficult part of the medical. Very few did not pass the medical… cannonfodder obviously was needed. The next stop was the barbershop… even if your hair was cut re the regulation you had to go as well… this was deducted from your money at month end, with the chutney you never saw… together with the deductions for breakages in the mess, company fund, contribution to the church and whatever contribution was the flavour of the day. Then we had to do the admin as required and ID photos were taken… “ Die Army is nou jou Ma en Pa, troep”. We were issued with clothes, bedding and a rifle… our “wife” for the duration of our military training … had to carry everything at once to the barracks… walked in a line helping one another … poor buggers who had to lead and end this line. Beds were made and ironed, the corners had to be bitten to get it “square”, the clothes in the “inspeksiekas” (inspection cupboard) arranged according to prescribed sequences and dimensions, floors polished and… Then the fun started … our first “afkak parade”… including “airplane PT “and waterbottles … great fun if you were a NCO/Officer. This did not end till at least half of the platoon vomited. This “opfok parades” became part of the everyday life in base… nobody knows why and nobody ever tried to ask. During the days we marched, had to attend lectures… “Who is the minister of Finance?”… Heaven knows what he had to do with the Army… did firstaid/buddy aid classes … ran from a to z and further, even before and after meals. At night it was inspections, lectures and the daily special treat … “opfok parades”. Then followed second phase and we went to the shooting range… on the way again an “opfok parade”. It seams to me the Army could never afford fuel as we had to push the vehicles from one point to the next… it had to teach us discipline, teamwork, endurance, and whatever the NCO’s could think of. “Staaldak”, webbing and “geweer” became part of everyday life with the 2, 4’s added

for fun and always under the threat of receiving a DD1… to be “klaad aan” for everything/anything that could be dreamt up. One evening .. I think it was September or October of 1977; we had to rush out of the bungalows for roll call. The NCO on duty said:”I have good news and I have bad news… what’s first?” We requested the bad news, expecting the worst. “Elvis has just passed away and the good news is that National Service has been extended to two years”. Absolute silence followed… the next moment someone said: ”Fok die Army” A choir repeated it… chaos. The next morning at roll call not all the troops turned up, the rest were on AWOL. Took a few days to get everybody back to base. I had to get out of this circus… the first opportunity was selection for the then State President’s Guard… to short… the next was Parabat selection… passed all the requirements and tests .. Then Infantry School popped along and I did the selection, not expecting any positive reaction. A few days later I was on my way to Oudtshoorn, not knowing what to expect.

Infantry School Arriving at Oudtshoorn station we formed up and the first words were: “Bid …rower …bid, jy sien jou ma nooit weer nie “. In base we were asked;”Wie wil grens toe gaan?” overeager hands went up. “Daar’s die grens van die kamp, hardloop soontoe”. The same routine followed as at Grahamstown, with Buttkop, FNkop, Noordhek, PG, Luiperdskloof, Four ways, Vasbyt Vyf, etc. added. We did Phase One, the rest followed and just before the Specialist

Phase we were told that due to the Namibian situation everybody had to do the “Platoon Leadership Course”. An accelerated course, meaning longer hours, more lectures, inspections and less sleep followed and then we flew to Grootfontein … the Border … not knowing what to expect … filled with fear. When the “Flossies” opened the cargo doors we felt the intense heat. Helicopter gunships were flying overhead. At the other end of the runway we saw Impala fighter jets armed with missiles… welcome to the operational area. Sun burned troops returning to the “States” boarded the plane as we packed everything onto the tarmac. Everybody boarded the “wit olifante” and then we were transported to “Southern Slums”, the transit camp. Here we were issued with ammo. The next day we left for Etalibase via Oshikati on the white road. At Oshivelo we did some training for a week or so and were then deployed at Etali (old base) … the normal patrols, guard duty, escort duties and kitchen duties. There I hit the jackpot, while on patrol I had to be casevaced… foodpoisoning due to diesel that was spilt on our rations … most of the platoon was also later evacuated for the same reason. Other platoons also experienced the same. When recovered we did operations, e.g. Vasvat from Okatopi – base and left the operational area for Oudtshoorn after plus minus 60 days. We left minus one of the guys who was killed in an unfortunate incident… shot by accident by one of his own buddies. Rifleman S.R. Strydom was wounded and passed away on 28 May 1978. His last words before being casavaced were, “Pray for me”, which the Corporal and platoon did. He died in the casavac chopper just as it took off from the TB… this was relayed by the pilot to the platoon. A sad loss… he was young, bright and could have contributed a lot to society and to his country The next Saturday was the Passing out Parade… some chap were RTU’ed (returned to unit) the previous evening… all the effort for nothing

Army Talk Magazine

… mom and dad attending and congratulating the new generation of NCO’s and Junior Officers . .. Excellent canon fodder. When given a choice of bases I requested to be posted to The Castle, The South African Cape Coloured Corps or Regiment Eastern Province. As always in the Army you get what you want… on Sunday morning I flew back to Namibia … to 31Bn – Omega Base – in the Caprivi.

31 “Bushman” Battalion Beret Badge Arriving there, via Grootfontein and Rundu, nobody knew that we were on our way and we had to sleep in the veld… we were given a 9mm pistol with an empty Uzzi-magazine, a G3rifle with an empty R1-magazine and a few AK47 rounds to defend ourselves with and dropped in the veld, a distance from the base. The next morning we were picked up and had to walk 20km via a route back to base. Allocated to companies we started training with the platoons, actually a very pleasant time in my life. Operations followed, e.g. Grappa 1 and 2, plus several other transborder ops, eg. Safraan, etc… What an experience working with the Bushmen, fantastic people, quite a memorable time. . Ops were conducted from old Kwando base in the Caprivi and all over the operational area e.g. Mpunguvlei, etc. I was amazed by the animal life in this area, could not get closer to paradise. Sadly my ways parted with this gentle and reliable people just after celebrating 40 days. After an ops a few of us were casevaced back to the “States” with malaria and yellow jaundice. Stayed in 1 Mil in Pretoria for close on 60 days was sent

home to recover and back again to 31 BN to “Klaar out”. Was sad to leave Omega and its people, but even the best in life has to end sometime. Finished, but not yet … Had to bum my way back to the good old RSA… a lift from Omega to Rundu… stayed over for a day or so as there was no transport or flights to the “States”… bummed a lift on a “wit olifant” to Grootfontein… stayed over in the Meteorite Motel/ Hotel… was not in the mood for a night in “Southern Slums”.. Nearly ate myself to death… bummed a flight with troops returning to Oudthoorn… hitched from Oudtshoorn to Paarl as the then Aircape had no available scheduled flights to Cape Town … and hitched from Paarl to Wellington .. Eventually back at home… nearly seven days later… thought I was finished … but not yet… it was only starting. Two months later I was informed that I had been allocated to Regiment Boland, a local military unit as a Citizen Force Member. A few months later the first call up arrived, resulting in 90 days mostly spent at Concor Base close to Ruacana in Namibia, after 14 days re-training at Lohatla… Survived a RVO (Raad van Ondersoek)…a Commission of Enquiry into an explosion and damaged caused by a rifle grenade that caught fire, exploded and destroyed a radio, luckily without the loss of life or injuries, nobody could have prevented it.. Other Operational camps followed at Ruacana with training at Oshivelo and several internal camps, e.g. Wellington, Worcester, Robertson, Mamelodi, and Cradock. As time progressed and courses were completed at Infantry School at Oudtshoorn and Danie Theron Battleschool at Kimberley promotion kicked in as full Lieutenant, Captain and Major, eventually being promoted to unit second in command .This was actually a very pleasant time… troops were visited at different locations, Margate, Mamelodi, Atteridgeville , etc. Could not have asked for better people as fellow soldiers, dedicated, well trained and honest human beings. Brave men… giving everything they had to South-Africa… sacrificing their

Issue 02 - April 2008

time, family and finances, sometimes their future as well. The social events were the highlight of the year… feeling proud wearing messdress, attending functions with the wife, etc…. listening to patriotic speeches by Members of Parliament and Military personnel, but everything had to come to an end .. After attending a final Officers gathering under the Old Regime we were informed that due to certain financial restraints and rationalization Military Units were either being closed or amalgamated with others Units … this decisions were echoed by the New Government. When we had the final farewell function at our Unit, the atmosphere was somber, everybody felt that they had been “dropped”, left on their own, rejected after so many years of faithful service, not even with a thank you. The general feeling was till here and no more further. Even the speeches were depressing, as if it gave a message of no hope for the future. Somebody even compared the situation to that of a patient being loaded into an ambulance, with no hope of surviving the trip to the hospital. That was the last time I dressed up, everything was packed away, for ever and ever… browns, boots, beret, messdress, the whole lot. I don’t even know where most of the kit is at present. I think the “staaldak” is a water bowl for the ducks and the shelter is used by my son to cover his motorcycle during rainstorm… well at least a use was found for it. If ever my sons or grandsons were forced by law to do National Service I’ll most certainly reconsider many options before they have to report … even if it results in helping them across the border… why ? .. If your country needs you and you respond… actually walk that extra mile… but later find yourself in a situation where they reject you, ignore you or even deny the fact that you ever existed… why go through al the trouble and hardship, even to the extend that you might even loose your life, if they turn the shoulder and leave you to fight and defend on your own.. Even being subjected to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission,

“When heroes fall, in love or war They live forever” From the song “Song for the lonely” by Cher

while those who gave the orders deny everything … was it worthwhile? We only were given orders by higher authorities and as in every disciplined army we had to do as ordered, whether you like it, wanted to do it or not. Like pieces on a chessboard we were moved around by someone higher up, someone we seldom or never saw, only to be taken off the board by a clever move at the end of the war… checkmate and game …. All over… nobody wins; nobody loses… only the guys on the ground that fought the war. I never received any notification from the SADF/SANDF stating that any further camps, etc. was required or that I was discharged /exempted from any further military participation… never asked as well. In the past “Borderstories” were heard at every barbeque… when last have you heard this? In a few years this generation will be gone and the stories … lies … forgotten… lets keep the memories alive… the stories… the “illegal” photographs… so that the generations to come can see what had happened, what happened afterwards and what we can avoid in future, actually the truth about the Border War. America had their Nam (Vietnam); we had our Nam (Namibia)… both human

disasters… wastage of life, money and time. The once young soldiers are now middle aged guys with paunches, no more young or fit, but the memories and fears are still with us… what will happen in the future… to us and our children or their children ? Some say they still have flashbacks… luckily I have escaped this… was help offered to them? Not sure, but I doubt this. What has happened to all the memento’s … the pens made from “operational” cartridges, the barracuda nets, the moulded R1’s, R4’s and 9mm’s that use to hang above the bar, all the stuff that we bought at SAWI, nobody knows why … is there a place/ museum where this can be displayed ? .. Let’s not mention everything “illegal” brought back… sometimes to impress the folks back home and then thrown away …. Lost forever… a massive gap in history. No memorial wall (to the best of my knowledge) where one can sit for a few minutes in silence and recall the past… this will help to heal the pain and memories. This is dedicated to those who came back home in “Jiffy bags” (body bags), or came home crippled, both mentally and/or physically, forgotten and rejected … we salute you…

Wally, Johannes, Hutchie, Kichner… this is for you and all the other … we won’t forget you… or what you have done… goodbye for now .. We’ll chat about it when we meet again on the other side… one day… what a party we’ll have….. The beers, perhaps a few Red Hearts will be on me, my friends … till then … I lift my hat and salute you. Till that day I’ll remember you all whenever a bottle of Red Heart Rum is opened and the first tot is poured and thrown over my shoulder or at sunset on the last day of every year when we toast all our fallen heroes. Remembrance Parades will always be my thank you for what you’ve done. Cheers Bergies

May 2005 and later (Continued)

was asked by a friend to rejoin to help out with some admin/ training and for the social. When I went for a Medical Exam I was turned down… reason … high bloodpressure… well let’s be honest… I’m not the young person I use to be… but they ignored my past record… clean, no criminal record, 17 years plus of excellent service… I would not have been operational if accepted… just saying that in the new SANDF they cannot accept me with high bloodpressure… just then a person walk in, wearing the new SANDF uniform .. Overweight and struggling for breath… obviously not fit for service in the old SADF or the new SANDF… no further comment .. The old SADF uniform stays in the cupboard for ever and ever as far as I am concerned… much safer…. High blood pressure and all … I can live with it. If the language in this offends somebody I have to apologize … that was the everyday non-official language used in

Army Talk Magazine

the SADF… well, when it comes to the grammar and the English used, please bear with me … it was a Boertjie who wrote the above.. I did not keep any record while involved with the Forces (1977-1994), this was written from memory and if something does not make sense please refresh my memory and tell me. Namibia was used instead of the then South West Africa, just so that people not involved in the War will know where it happened. Apologies to people/persons I have mentioned and who would prefer not to be mentioned or identified for reasons known to them… will remove references if possible and when notified.

Units: • • • •

History

6 SAI – Grahamstown Infantry School – Oudtshoorn 31 BN Caprivi – Namibia Regiment Boland – Worcester

Courses:

• Junior Leadership – Infantry School – Oudtshoorn • Battle Team – Danie Theron Battle School – Kimberley • Revolutionary Warfare – Infantry School – Oudtshoorn

Camps:

• Concor – Ruacana – Namibia • Republic Festival – Durban • Battle Team – Oudtshoorn – Infantery School • Ruacana – Namibia • Revolutionary Warfare – Danie Theron Battle School – Kimberley • Eastern Cape – Cradock, Adelaide, Somerset East • Boland – Worcester/Ashton • Boland – Wellington/Paarl • Pretoria – Mamelodi, Attridgeville • Several weekend camps – Worcester • Meetings – Worcester, The Castle, Silvermine • Functions – Worcester, Cape Town • Visiting personnel all over South Africa – Attridgeville, Grey Town, Margate, etc • Training Sessions – The

Castle, Silvermine, Worcester, Franschhoek • Parades – Worcester, Wynberg Military Base • Commemorative Marches – Cape Point To The Castle in Cape Town

Awards/Medals: • Pro Patria Medal • John Chard Medal • Merit Certificates – Regiment Boland / 31 BN • Service Medal • Several Certificates

Promotion:

• Rifleman to 2nd Lieutenant – 1978 • 2nd Lieutenant to Full Lieutenant – 1981 • Full Lieutenant to Captain – 1984 • Captain to Major – 1989

Positions:

• Rifleman: As part of a Section/ Platoon, Radio Operator, Etc. • Platoon Commander • Company Second In Command • Company Commander • Unit Second In Command • Various: Base Commander, Battle Team Commander, Operational Commander, Etc. … just names, does not mean much.

General Positive Points: • As the songs say – I saw places I would never have seen before. • I met people who became good friends… some still are. • The last year of National Service and the camps were a total contrast to the first year, a better life and more pleasant circumstances. • I came in contact with one of the oldest tribes in Africa, if not the world, who learnt me a lot about nature, life and survival, remarkable people who were also abandoned by the SADF after the war. • I experienced the best music ever …. Who can forget Rodriguez

Issue 02 - April 2008

(Sugarman, I Wonder), Jethro Tull (Aqualung, Locomotive Breath), Deep Purple (Smoke on the water, Burn), Journey (Wheel in the sky, Open arms), Eric Clapton (I shot the sheriff, Layla) and the worst music ever on Forces Favorites .. Patriotic and enough to cause depression… “Aan Jannie erens in die bos … vasbyt van Ma, Pa en die hond” … and as requested “Troepie Doepie” or “Ek verlang na jou” was played… enough to drive you insane or the “Dear Johnny” on air for everybody to hear “Peter I won’t be home when you return .. Will be with Jack, Thank you for everything” and the song played “What becomes of the broken hearted” … suicidal music… all part of the propaganda machine? • When a person wearing a uniform walked down a street, he or she was treated with respect, not that one expected it, but it was how people reacted at that stage.

Negative Points:

• Only 30 days credit given for 90 days (Namibia) duty • Many people lost jobs due to this system in spite of legislation • Relationships often suffered because of this… divorce, separation, etc. • No regard/feelings for personal situations • Promotion at work – A lot of males lost the chance of being promoted, just because they were in the Army for camps, etc. when decisions regarding promotion at work were made, they were absent. • Total lack of respect for the individual or his family – e.g. Postparade – when being told that your lady is the biggest slut in town and that the whole town had actually slept with her… being told this while you have to do pushups and the letter being passed around by the NCO’s .. Who smelled the perfume on the envelope and made crude remarks – quite humiliating. • Disruption of studies if

•

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application for exemption was turned down Caused financial hardship for many families… one person businesses or individuals who were not paid by their work, while doing military service. Total disruption of the family structure … up to two camps plus extra days per year… not at home at important times to support fellow family members. Unnecessary loss of precious lives… I have lost some good friends Language differences caused individual problems … English vs. Afrikaans … Rockspider vs. Souties – Boer vs. Engelsman Total disruption of everyday life… at work, at home, at play Young men lost 2 years plus 720 days and more if credits were incorrect – see 1) of their lives… amounting to more than 4 years plus – enough time for a degree plus honors (or part of it) or an apprenticeship… all for nothing Total indoctrination… in school, the army, radio, television, newspapers, even in church… all this influenced the everyday thinking of the individual … basically from the cradle to the grave .. Bombarded by this we believed everything… just proof again of the well organized system we were part of… we believed in what we saw and read, not thinking that it was designed to just to make us believe in what the authorities wanted. Total distancing by the spiritual leaders (Chaplains, etc) in the SADF – saw that things were going wrong but just stood to one side, without intervening – went with the flow – under the influence of the political leaders of the day or afraid of losing the jobs or indoctrinated by the system and prescribed what to do and say ? Farmers who had to prove that they owned the farms on which they farmed, that they farmed for a living, that this farm was their only source of income, that

the survival of this farm relied on their input, only so that they could apply to “klaar” out after a years National Service with the understanding that they would complete the second year at a later stage.. An absolute joke if I ever heard of one… these guys feed the nation, how they could be kept off their farms for so long and then interrupt their lives again.

Strange …. but True – Fact … not Fiction:

At the same point in time Transvaal Units were called up to do duty in the Cape Town area and Cape Town units were called up for duty in the Transvaal …. Baffles my mind why… local knowledge did not count … wasting time and money…. fear of being recognized. An individual living in the Transvaal (Gauteng), but allocated to a Cape Town unit had to come all the way to Cape Town to “klaar” in, travel back to do his camp, return to Cape Town to “klaar “out and then travel all the way back home, after completing a camp not even 40 kilometers from his home – a quick calculation adds up to 6000 kilometers plus traveled, instead of less than 200 kilometers that could have been traveled .. Explain the economical sense in this exercise … wasting time and money, causing people to be “gatvol” and negative, even before attending a camp. Running a 2,4 in a time that feels unsatisfactory to the CO Sgt Maj and having to repeat this exercise till the time acceptable to him is achieved … will the required time be run after the third 2,4 ? .. Explain this one to me? Training given to Bushman trackers by city dwellers who had done a tracking course… now I am even more confused… any volunteers out there who can solve this one? Having to do Bible study every morning/night for 15 minutes, just to be sworn at after this “stilte tyd”… most of the guys used this as another 15 minutes to catch up some valuable sleep as long as they were not caught out .. And sworn at.

Members of the Armed Forces were considered “Government Property” and treated as such … we always lived under the threat of being “klaad aan” … the DD1 threat … even if your hair was not cut according to regulation or to long .. They wanted to “kla “you “aan” … if your clothes were torn after an exercise, it was considered damage to Government Property and you could be “klaad aan” … ridiculous … but true. The “Dankie Tannie” parcel when “klaring in” or over Christmas was one of the highlights to me… the packet of Texan Plain 20 (I don’t smoke … it was something to swop), the writing pad and pen, the waterbag and “Swiss” knife… had quite a few of these in my time .. What would the anti-smoking campaign say about this today? The constant groups that visited the units to investigate one or other problem … investigating the abuse of alcohol by members… what else was there to do after hours… or an investigation by the late Professor Heyns to determine how religious members were or what their spiritual needs were .. While troops were abused and sworn at by instructors a few meters away. The best was the fact finding visits by Parliamentarians to the operational area… endless demonstrations… a waste of time and money… the braais and then the main feature of the tour… the pub… what they learnt, if anything, heaven knows .. Must have been a nice outing… and a waste of money… but one thing I’m sure of and that’s that some of them had an enormous appetite for liquor and could talk a lot of nonsense, even when sober … we had to stand at attention while addressing them … this visits were to show their support for the cause, to show that they appreciated what was done, to boost moral, to find out what they could do for us, to boost their own careers, it must have looked good in the newspapers and on television … just to end the war round the conference tables far away … where are they now ? Who can forget the “Alabama Studente

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Geselskap” from Potchefstroom… they were flown in, nearly everyone was brought in from the veld, they gave an excellent concert, must have had the prettiest ladies I have ever seen and continued to the next base… we enjoyed it, took the minds off the reality outside for a few hours… the bonus was that we could get extra beers.. Had the enemy known this… well…? Another pain in the butt was the endless visits by journalists and TV crews who saw us as alien beings, beings from another world… we had to sing, arrange parades, tell stories, act as guides, give demonstrations, act as guards, but was never asked what our opinions were, as this would not send out the right message .. This was reserved for the senior appointed members of staff and members of parliament … all for the great propaganda machine… for “volk en vaderland”. While we were on patrol we had to shave, even though there was a constant shortage of water… was not to offend the local population and to keep up moral! We even had to shave before returning to base… even was inspected on entering the base… a total contradiction as one had to shave everyday in the veld, but you had to camouflage your face as well… must have amused the local population ? At one stage everyone with rank had to wear it while on patrol… it use to disappear into backpacks once out of sight… the reason being that we had to show to the local population that we were in control .. In contrast with training where everything shiny and bright had to be camouflaged … would like to know what the policy was later on. Rat packs were designed by experts… but the problem was that most of the operational area had a constant water shortage and in my time the rat packs required a fair amount of water to prepare the food… will remember the tins of braised steak, whole peeled potatoes, sliced green beans, dog biscuits, ovamboes (sausages in brine), the vegetable salads and the one that nobody wanted to swop.. The tarzanbar

(energy bar). Ongoing changes to the rat packs concentrated on nutrition, not the reality, perhaps this changed later. Just remember that we were often instructed that a rat pack had to last for at least two days on patrol due to a shortage of rations. I can still see the faces of the troops when actually trying to eat the fuel tablets, thinking it was sweets… it sure wakes you up and leaves a bad taste in the mouth. Back in base it was coffee and rusks in the morning, brunch later and supper at night… most of the times the meals looked the same, smelt the same, but tasted different … heaven knows why … would not like to ask the reason for it. To me one of the biggest problems while in the operational area was the difference between orders given and the reality… a remark was made that the higher the rank, the lower the knowledge of the situation and reality … the 303-effect – 3 stars on the left shoulder .. 0 knowledge… 3 stars on the right shoulder… an example was when on a crossborder operation to find that no aircraft / backup was available as set out in the orders… in other words we were on our own till it could be arranged .. Whenever and from wherever and at a high cost to the soldiers in the veld… we returned earlier from the ops than scheduled when we found out what the facts were … aircraft attacking enemy bases … but when ground troops entered the base it was found that the base had been empty for some time … a costly operation .. Correct intelligence at a given time, but slow/delayed reaction resulting in failure/ no results? I was involved in both instances as part of the ground forces… quite demoralizing when walking into empty bases after seeing it being bombed by aircraft and seeing the victory rolls as they returned to base .. The enemy must have had a good laugh. The absolute best was when books were sent to the operational area … the first item everyone looked for was the Scope, only to find that the centrepage was removed or disfigured by Cokipen to our dismay .. we received piles of Huisgenoot, Landbou Weekblad,

Issue 02 - April 2008

etc. but seldom copies of Scope. … the ladies could have woken the lion or more in us, but I’m sure it would have been extinguished by the blue coffee we had to drink .. some says it was Condi’s Crystals … who know’s .. I don’t think it work … and just another question … why did the ladies have stars on their breasts, or was the RSA the only place in the world where ladies were not allowed to have nipples .. just asking .. what happened to their babies .. bottlebabies ? …. No wonder that adult South African men like booze in bottles .. they are missing something. When I was casevaced with malaria and yellow jaundice the military thought it fit to sent a parson and a few police officers to my mom to give her the news .. on seeing this crowd at our front door she expected the worst .. they told her I had yellow fever .. far from what I actually had ….was difficult to convince her of the fact that I was still alive … was this necessary ?. The next day she flew up to Pretoria just to make sure of the facts .. now that is what I would call a caring mother .. thanks mom .. may she rest in peace. All letters from the border were censored .. imagine receiving a letter with coki’d or scratched out sentences or part of it … trying to make out what was written/meant in the letter …this resulted in codes … “Say hello to Dad on his birthday “ … meaning .. “I’ll be home round about the time of Dad’s birthday” .. or .. “Are you still going to Italy for the holidays ?” … meaning “I’m in Etali Base”, etc. … this was usually discussed prior to leaving for the border, just to give them an indication where you were or when you expected to be back .. remember this was in the days before cellphones and security was everything … would like to know how cellphones would have affected this. As in life there was always a way round this all .. who can forget a “Bosmaatjie vir ‘n praatjie” .. the easiest way was to call Walvisbay Radio and bum a line home .. worked everytime .. the folks at home had a problem with saying “over” after every sentence .. was fun .. at least they

could talk to you. If caught you could be “klaad aan” for using state property under false pretences or worse .. BRUSH .. the radiodetecting unit could trace you, with tragic results, whether the call was made from a TB in the veld or an Eland armoured car. Just as a remark .. what has happened to the “Suiderkruis Fonds” (Southerncross Fund) .. we contributed generously .. received generously from them .. I think a Mrs. Albrecht was the lady in charge … she did a splendid job .. much appreciated by everybody. Overalls were issued to troops going to the border during my National Service .. has anybody ever tried to undress in a hurry if you had to go to the ablution blocks .. resulted in having to wash your overall more than planned ..mostly round the collar area .. “Gyppo guts” (runny tummy) was often a problem due to “dry” rations (ratpacks) in the veld and a combination of “wet” rations (fresh produce and meat) and “dry” rations in base .. ever tried to quickly get rid of an overall if you have stomach trouble .. just impossible … ask anybody … totally impossible and always to late. Group punishment .. if an individual did not or could not comply to certain criteria .. everybody was punished .. “maatjies wil nie saamwerk nie.” In 1979 nobody (NSM) was allowed to have a vehicle in base or in town (Oudtshoorn), but was not allowed to hitchhike when going on pass .. trains, busses or “ry veilig” had to be used .. with MP’s patrolling the area around Oudtshoorn to pick up offenders.

Basics

Training

• Often got the idea that instructors were not very competent, some immature, without experience .. a lot of noise, nothing more. • Language barrier caused problems – instructors not quite bilingual – Policy in SADF – total bilingualism – , but “One sentence in English.. the rest of your training will be in Afrikaans” – created tension between the

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• •

“Rockspiders” and “Souties”. This was one of the reasons why the language groups kept to their own (Bungalows with the majority being English or Afrikaans), trying to keep their own identity … quite a difficult situation for English speaking troops who had difficulty understanding/ speaking Afrikaans .. this caused the perception that the stupid Boertjies could only speak Afrikaans .. that they were still fighting the Boer war. Training based on breaking down the individual, not preparing for things to come After-hours a total “rondfok” .. unnecessary inspections, parades, a waste of time Total lack of understanding/ communication between PF’s and short term instructors .. we are in control not you attitude. Macho display and bragging – no purpose, as if to impress troops.. had opposite effect. “Hurry up and wait” policy – everything was done at a speed, only to sit around idle and wait – story of the SADF as I know it .. eg. coming back from a 7 days pass .. only to find that the instructors had to be back 3 days later … arriving at the shooting range … waiting for the ammo … sitting in the mess … waiting for the food, etc..

Junior Leadership

• Same as 1 • Sometimes training was without purpose as if just to keep troops busy • Level of instruction better – some operational experienced instructors .. at least they knew what they were talking about. • Why the endless singing-parades – nobody knows ? – even had to sing for the Brigadier !!!!

After

• Fantastic time – was not chased around or chased nobody around.. peace and quiet • Camps – experienced people who new about life and were well

trained • Camps – civilized and educated human beings • Camps – operational experienced people • Less “rondfok” – both by Civilian leadership and PF’s • Freedom to ask questions .. because of experience and knowledge. • More freedom to do what was expected and to use own initiative – better results. • Problem was that retraining was often done by less experienced instructors (PF,etc) which led to frustration and irritance – operational experienced soldiers being trained by freshly graduated officers and nco’s with little or no battle experience – eg. being given a detailed overview of the operational area by an officer who had never set foot there – being instructed what to do under fire by a person who has never been in this situation … has anybody ever tried to sent a radio report (contact report) while under fire .. only asking .. the best contact report I ever heard was on Operation Balpoot – choppers were busy north of the line and chasing a group of insurgents south .. on the radio we heard the following:”Kontak, kontak, ons fok hulle op”. – (“Contact, contact we are fucking them up”) • Less hectic and chaotic way of dealing with situations … better balanced .. better results • To me one of the worst problems was the “klaaring in/out” procedures .. after so many years of experience one had to fill in the same forms, go through the same procedures … irritating and unnecessary .. Hopefully computers can solve this problems .. not in my time .. we had to go through the same process everytime. • A problem was that due to National Service being fazed out, the lifeline of units was cut off, resulting in the slow death of units and eventual closure … a sad story .. the final nail in the coffin

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.. what has happened to all the traditions, records, photo’s, stories, etc. .. very sad if it has been lost to future generations and researchers.

Conclusion

What we had will never be again, refering to the levels of training, leadership, levels of maintenance of equipment, the quality of the soldiers and in most cases the leadership, their loyalty, despite the cowards in the government who hid and would not accept responsibility for what they, what they planned or the people whose lives were destroyed in the process. I still recall their promises that they would stand by and support us whatever might happen … their reference to the Holy Scriptures about what happened to Isreal when they listened to or when they disobeyed the Creator .. their reference to the “Rooi Gevaar”, the Communist hiding everywhere .. even the Dominees/ Parsons joining and echoing this ideology .. when we returned from an ops in Zambia the dominee started his sermon with: “SWAPO was weer te bang om te baklei” .. where are they now ? .. retired with a fat pension .. memories erased like the formatted harddrive of a computer .. sitting back and laughing with a beer or whiskey in the hand .. they caught us for the biggest joke, the biggest scam ever and we were bowled out brilliantly by the best oiled propaganda machine ever .. cleverly and ruthless. Not a thank you or a goodbye .. just silence and total denial I wonder where we got the medals and certificates … and for what? We at least have medals and certificates as proof … with their signature and approval … they have nothing .. just lies … deceit and total memory loss.

The South African Soldier vs the old South African Government:

• • • •

Who .. The South-African Soldier What …Fought? Where …In Namibia/Angola When …From the mid 1970’s till Namibian Independence • Why … As ordered by the then

R.S.A. Government and • And then ? … Returned .. forgotten, rejected, disillusioned and bitter, sometimes filled with hatred … for nothing ? • Who .. The old South African Government • What …Ordered the South African Soldier to fight • Where …In Namibia/Angola • When …From the mid 1970’s till Namibian Independence • Why … To defend it against the Communist Invasion and • And then ? … After independence in 1994 chose to forget about everything, the promises, the orders given, the propaganda and lies to protect their own hides and then disappeared off the face of the earth with a total loss of memory, accusing everyboby, but themselves for what had been done ….. But it does not end here … history repeats itself … • Who .. The old South African Government • What …Ordered the South African Soldier to fight • Where …In South African townships and rural areas • When …From the mid 1970’s till Independence in 1994 • Why … To defend it against the civil uprising and against communism and • And then ? … After independence in 1994 chose to forget about everything, the promises, the orders given, the propaganda and lies to protect their own hides and then disappeared off the face of the earth with a total loss of memory, accusing everybody, but themselves for what had been done ….. This is another story … to be told later . This standard six points were in all orders given, were taught at military bases countrywide, but the authorities who signed this orders forgot about it .. to suite themselves and protect their own hides.

Issue 02 - April 2008

They forgot about the loyalty, dedication, time wasted, lives wasted…, the future of South Africa

“Freedom is just another word for nothing left to lose” Kriss Kristofferson – Me and Bobby McGee Interesting characters: Basics: Derick Baxter – At that stage a total schemer . a practical joker, always in the crap, it did not bother him at all … was a crewmember on a tug in Table Bay Harbour. When I saw him a few years ago he was neatly dressed, sofisticated .. a total change. Thinus van der Heyden, “Nartjie” Nortje, Danie Hill, Johan van der Vyver … these four gentleman were from the same school in Worcester in the Western Cape and three of them worked for the same company… old buddies .. Thinus, Danie and Johan also went to Infantryschool .. Thinus or “Pielangtong” as he was known also went to 31Bn, our ways parted when he was wounded and when I “klaared” in at Regiment Boland , Danie and Johan were there. A small world … coincidence or fate.

Infantry School: Jan Vogel – a tough intelligent soldier … Joined the Permanent Force .. now the owner of a Service Centre/Filling Station in Cape Town . His buddie, Frans du Plessis, from Sasolburg, also disappeared off the face of the earth after National Service .. only to reappear on the SAReunited website years later .. now living in Canada. Walter Vroegop .. still to my knowledge the only person to rock up naked at a rollcal .. in the middle of the winter in Oudtshoorn … he also guarded his washing with his rifle with a fixed bajonet .. but everybody tried to be friendly with him .. why ? .. he had two pretty sisters. Victor Ball … a person who carried

no hatred .. everybody always joked with him .. we carried his bed out of the bungalow, tied him to the bed and left him outside in the Oudtshoorn winter … we tied a chain round his genitals, and chained him to the telephonebooth … just because he was always on the telephone .. we tipped his bed over … not a sound .. he was well respected by every one …. the perfect gentleman and my nomination for the Nobel peace prize.

The Company .. Nicky Coetzee, Leon Heinlein, “Kokatiel”, Nella, Osborne .. gave all they had and more

drove into a lamppost .. his lady was also killed .. she was the passenger on the motorcycle. All the ranks .. the best one could get .. we had fun, worked hard and had traditions we kept and honoured … I really miss it..

Robert Frazer .. a farmer from the Eastern Cape .. strong as an ox and tuff .. always prepared to give as much as he took …. At the end of each day his treat was a liter of Coke and a packet of biscuit .. he did not share this with anybody .. a real asset to the SADF .. took no nonsense, but did the job in his own way.

Sgt Gene du Randt .. an Officer in some bases and a NCO in other .. please don’t ask questions … that’s another story … always in trouble .. but always there if a difficult situation should arise .. a big loss when he decided to return to civilian life .. tough as nails and strong as an ox although he was slightly built. My squad … Leon Nortje, Bert Taljaard and Robert “Badprop” Bath .. a mixture of humor, knowledge … an ex-Rhodesian and two Boertjies .. a recipe for chaos .. will always remember the groundhog days, the friendship and the wit … not forgetting the headaches and laughter. We tried to lead the platoon as a team, not as individuals … I’m still trying to figure out who actually was in charge ..

Loffie Euverad .. a farmer from the Tulbagh area in the Western Cape .. one for humor .. took the mikey out of everyone … was always in the thick of it .. if something was happening you were sure to find him organising it or part of it … never a dull moment with him around .. his face told everything.

31BN: Edwina Mahne – “The Angel Of Omega” – a nurse with a passion for what she did … loved and respected by everybody. Patricia Raw – the daughter of the late member of parliament, Vause Raw, a nurse who knew what she did .. could be strict and honest, but could also party with a vengeance. Frans Gunther .. “Tsjalo” – “The White Buffalo” – the soldier’s soldier .. a commanding officer who knew what he did and believed in what he did. Gawie Nel, Rooies, Frannie, Ben Wolff, Jaggies .. the seniors .. soldiers who lived for their country and could party till dawn. The late Brian du Preez, Swazi Naude, the late Johan “Spekenham” Viljoen, the late Pieter “Piet” Linford Jnr., Leon Heinlein – Good company and people with great knowledge .. always willing to help … the perfect people to be in battle with … as friends not enemies.

All the people at Omega – the Bushmen, staff, just everybody … this was the best time in my life.

Regiment Boland: I cannot exclude anyone .. excellent leaders .. the two Viljoens, Bernardie du Plessis (Doep, Mootjie), Kokkie … the other .. Stoney, Steven Pierce, the Smith’s .. to many to mention .. the hundreds of other ranks .. excellent friends who always looked after one another .. in the operational area and at home .. they were always there … whenever … wherever .. always. 2Lt Rassie Southey .. a Tourgide and busdriver for the then South African Railways – “klaared” out and lost his life while on his motorcycle – crashed into a South African Railways Tourbus – a week after returning home after a camp … his saying was “Gee vir die harlekyn nog wyn, gee hom gas”… a joker but a soldier who was serious about what he did .. we shared a few bottles of wine and tried to solve all the problems the world had .. he passed away before we could .. Alan Gericke – lived by his wits .. known as “Woodstock” by everybody .. killed the same evening after returning from SWA .. lost control,

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Wanted - All Soldoedies - Dead or Alive! record of all the "soldoedies" or "Botha Babes" that attended the College. This is a fact, and now it has become my passion to include each and every student that cleared in at the College, in my book.

y name is Lorraine Martin (previously Slabber, born Barry)

I completed my voluntary National service at the SAAWC, George, in 1971, then known as the Civil Defence College. This was the guineapig year, and noone knew what to expect. On completion I was offered a permanent force post and was appointed at Western Province Command, The Castle, Cape Town. To cut a long story short, I served in the Army for 27 years and took early retirement as a WO1 in the personnel corps. I moved around in SA and Namibia, and can testify that introducing uniformed women into the Defence Force, was a huge step in the right direction for the SADF and SANDF. Sadly the College was closed in 1998 for various reasons that I still need to research. Looking back on what I learnt, and hearing so many women agreeing with me about the importance of what we were taught at the College, and how their foundation was secure, something inside me has been egging me on to write my memoirs of a very colourful, challenging, satisfying career. Then John Dovey sent me an e-mail out of the blue, and helped me make up my mind to put pen to paper. After reading some of his material about military life, I realised that there is no

This is history that will never be repeated! Each selected student has a taile to tell, and a contribution to make. The least I can do, is to include each and every name of all students, in year and platoon context. There is no official database to fall back on. All the records are buried in the archives and very difficult to get hold of. NOW, this is where each and every person reading this newsletter can assist me. There are students out there that are grannies now, mothers, daughters, wives, friends, and you must know at least one person that was a soldoedie. Please send me their contact details asap. OR ask them to contact me Telfax: (028) 537 1717 Cell: 082 850 4318 and preferably by e-mail whales@ witsand.co.za, with name and year in the subject line. You can post me some pics and details, newspaper clippings, certificates if you like to P.O. Box 1, Witsand.6666. Instructors are also requested to send me their details. Mention dates, platoon and anything you think will be interesting to the readers. A great find! The student that performed the retreat ceremony of the old South African Flag, and that hoisted the New South African flag has made contact. This is history at its best. Another great find! I have spoken to the first student of colour at the College and got her details. Hey folks, this is what transformation is all about. I need to know a lot more, and if you can help me I can include these very important events and happenings. Let us not get lazy now because it is in the past. We need to preserve the past and I do not know of any other way to do

Issue 02 - April 2008

it than to put it on paper, for everyone to read and enjoy. Will you please help me? |If you have a platoon picture, please write out the names and send it to me. This will be quicker than receiving one name at a time. My book will be in both english and afrikaans, so as u vir my u storie in afrikaans wil stuur, doen dit gerus. After all we all learnt to speak both languages in school. There is also a growing demand for a reunion of the 1971 group of students. Please let me know what you think about that. Genl Magnus Malan, Brig MJ Du Plessis, Col Hilda Burnett (Botha), Col Monica Moolman have all given me such positive encouragement to continue, push through and publish. Now how can I go against all that brass? I will keep you posted with the progress of numbers. I need approximately 5,700 student names. I will also have a role of honour so please let me know of deceased students aswell. Thank you for reading this far, and I hope you have caught some of the excitement that I am living with at the moment. Every time I download my e-mails, there is another name. Thank you so much. Lorraine Martin (Barry) Ex Soldoedie 1971.

Navy’s Border War

was involved in some way or other with the SA Navy’s part in the ‘Border War’ from that first evening on 3 November 1975 until I retired at the end of 1990. On that autumn day, 3 November 1975, I as SSO Ops(Navy) at Silvermine, became the first person in the Navy structure to become aware of Operation Savannah,.

From the very first the part played by the SA Navy was kept very, very secret to the extent that notwithstanding the involvement of 2 frigates ships’ companies (some 400 men) plus another 100 plus on SAS Tafelberg the first time some little part of the story of our involvement came out was in the official history of the operation published some 6 years later. Even though all the serving officers were gathered in the Simonsberg cinema hall early in 1976 and briefed on what the Army and Air Force had done and achieved during Savannah, we were not allowed to brief them on what the Navy had achieved – it was considered far too secret and far too sensitive to even tell the men whose profession it was to run the ships that participated. I retired at the end of 1990 and during the following year for the first time began to write down my memories of what had happened during those 15 years. However I soon realised that I had already forgotten many of the details and additionally that there had been many operations of which I had no knowledge. I then tried to persuade Chief of the Navy to allow me access to the files in order to write the story of SA Naval Operations in the 1970s and 80s, even if the result had to be classified Secret and kept in the files for future reference. Regretfully this request was denied. Having become more involved in the history of our Navy in the years since I have come to realise that the history prior to the Second World War, during the Second World War and even of the first 30 years after that War ended, that is until the time of Operation Savannah in 1975, has been relatively

well documented and is available to the public in any number of excellent books and pamphlets published over the years or soon to be published. Regretfully this is not so for the operations, carried out almost exclusively by the strike craft and submarines, in the years between 1975 and 1990. In addition I am given to understand that even the files containing the official records of those operations were all destroyed in the early 1990s. As a result the only available source of information about these operations lies in the memories of those who took part, on the ships themselves or as part of the planning and/or operational staff. If we wait too long then these memories are also going to be lost to us. This would indeed be a great pity as all South Africans should be very proud of the highly professional manner in which our Navy conducted these operations. We should also remember that this same professionalism is the foundation on which our new democratic Navy has been built. I therefore believe that we need to urgently make a move to record these memories, before those who hold them succumb to the passage of time and pass on to greener pastures. I understand the concerns that some might have linked to the fear about repercussions if these facts become public. Very similar concern about exacerbating sensitivities were expressed at the time that I wrote the book ‘Three Frigates’ in regard to the loss of the President Kruger, yet time has shown those fears were groundless. I sincerely believe that the passage of twenty years or more from when these operations were carried out, is sufficient to overcome most if not all of these sensitivities. However if any individual who wishes to contribute should request that his memories remain anonymous, or requests that his name not be used these requests will be honoured.

or on the Naval Staff conducting the operations, or for that matter were part of those forces who took passage in the ships for these operations, that you take the time and the trouble to record those memories whether in writing or on a cassette or CD and let me have a copy. I will undertake to form a permanent ‘library’ of all information that I receive (probably in the SA Naval Museum library together with the oral histories being compiled by the Naval Heritage Trust) and also try and compile the most comprehensive history possible of the ships and men who set the stage for our present Navy. I also undertake to do so in a positive manner so that those who serve today and in the future can look back with pride to ships and men who went to sea during that period of conflict. My e-mail address is wiggyben@gmail. com and my Cell phone number is 082 835 4493

My request is that all who have memories of that time, whether you were serving in the ships participating,

Army Talk Magazine

Cuito Photos

Water Tower, Cuito Cuanavale

BM21 Rounds

Abandoned FAPLA Tank near Samaria

Bridge over Cuito River

Cuban Soldier in front of a T62, Cuanda Cubango

Issue 02 - April 2008

Mechanised Section Attack (Dry), De Brug, 2003

Army Talk Magazine