Recce Selection

SAAF Buccaneers

A convoy of Ratel 20’s and 90’s from 61 Mechanised battalion crosses the SADF -built pontoon bridge over the Kavango river, upon the withdrawal from Southern Angola 30 August 1988

A 3 Squadron Mirage F1CZ on alert at AFB Ondangwa circa 1981. Note the wingtip mounted Matra R550 air-to-air missile

32 Battalion member: Thunis Ferreira during Operation Forte, Angola, 1985

32 Bn Troop

Echo Coy platoon from 32Bn just east of Techamutete during Operation Askari 1984

Frans Van Staden from 32 Battalion during ops Askari, 1984
Taken North East of Cassinga, Jan 1984 (SADF – 32 Battalion during the South African border war in Angola)

SGT. Dean Viljoen team leader of Koevoet team Zulu Delta with some of his team members having a look at enemy weapons they picked.

A Coy lines

Mac Da Trindade on a patrol break in Angola, he served in E coy and recce wing of 32bn

32 Bn Medics

32 Battalion: Cmdr. T.T. De Abreu (front/centre) & his crew during Ops Modular, 1987

Recce Wing

2Lt William Grimes 2Lt Andre Truter

South African SF Recce’s in Angola, 1980’s Courtesy Mike West

Bravo Coy, 61 Mech, Call sign 22 Zero. 1981, Ops Protea and Daisy.

4 Recce team comes ashore

SADF Recce: Chris Schutte and a monkey Fort Doppies, 1980’s

201 on parade

SWATF 101 Battalion on patrol

Koevoet Casspir on ops

101Bn Casspir

4 Sai and 61 Meg during Ops Dolfyn

SADF Recce operators destroy bridge on the Soviet Front in Mozambique

2 Squadron Mirage IIICZ in low vis

SAAF Mirage III RZ’s of 2 Sqdn

2 Mirage III RZ’s of the SAAF

A beauts photograph of SAAF Canberra B(i) Mk 12, tailnumber 452, operated by 12 Squadron, flying low over the African bushveld.

This specific aircraft was lost in Angola in 1979, when the pilot was hit by small arms fire as the aircraft was pulling off the target, during a combat mission. Both crew members perished.

This was the only…Read More

12 Squadron Canberras

12 Squadron Canberra Bombers flying in formation

Koevoet Casspir

Koevoet loading up

South African Air Force 2 Squadron Mirage IIICZ is seen landing at Air Force Base (AFB) Ondangwa after returning from a bombing mission in Southern Angola.

Very rare photo of South African Spec Forces in the late 80’s in Angola

Readying for patrol at Ongandjera (ZN?)

Gunner position (left side front) in a Casspir… Standard issue was a FN-MAG mounted hand operated turret, the two handle bars that allowed you to rotate the turret can be easily seen here, to fire the MAG you basically had almost like a bicycle brake lever that allowed u to fire the weapon

Koevoet morning parade at Ongandjera, Namibia

Koevoet at Ongandjera, Namibia

Inside of a Koevoet Casspir

1, 4, and 5 Recce operators during the last ever Small Team course, just after the Angolan War

South African 1 Recce operator L CPL Ribeiro, missing and listed as dead during casualty transport in Angola, August 1976. He served as an Angolan paratrooper before joining the SADF. Ribeiro was one of the founding members of 32 Battalion. Here he is wearing “Recce 1st camo pattern” which was the inspiration behind 32Bn camo

Recce Operators

On Ops

South African 4 Reconnaissance Commando operators prepping for Operation Nobilis, 10 July 1984.

Ruggie Erasmus

Koevoet teams gathering to move out on patrol in the vast Ovambo hinterland.

Hunting from inside the Casspir