On 30 September 1985 the Angolan and Cuban forces operating in Angola suffered a spate of helicopter losses that effected their ability to support their troops. For a long time they were not able to understand what had happened to their valuable helicopters and...
Lubango, March 1986. Maj Eduardo Gonzalez directing preparations for the MiG-23 ferry flights from Lubango to Huambo, to position for the C-130 interception missions
Capt Raul Rubio strapping into the front seat of a MiG-23UB for a night-training flight during March 1986
In the dramatic power struggle for Angola in 1987, South African Air Force Mirage F1s tackled MiG-23s in the skies above south-western Africa. Lionel Reid recounts the story Angola 1987. The Soviet and Angolan MPLA forces decided on an ambitious plan: a large-scale...
Cuban pilot of MiG-21 killed in Angola, other sources say MIG-23 ML near Lubango
During Angola's long-running civil war, MiG-21s of the Cuban Air Force were frequently deployed to attack ground targets manned by rebel forces or engage South African Air Force Mirage F1s conducting cross-border strikes. Most MiG-21 losses over Angola were attributed...
The early MiG-23 variants had a number of design shortcomings, including airframe strength and reliability, engine performance, maneuverability and radar performance. A considerable redesign of the airframe was conducted, resulting in the MiG-23ML (L - Lyogkiy or...
Fighter pilot memoirs & accounts of Cuban, SAAF and Angolan air combat in Southern African skies Most books on the Angolan Bush War, especially those in English, present the South African perspective of events. Now a former MiG-23 Squadron Commander of the Cuban...
Angolan and Cuban Forces, 1976-1983 As of mid-1976, the civil war in Angola was seemingly decided: supported by a large contingent of Cuban forces, the MPLA established itself in power in Luanda. Its native competitors, the US-French-Zaire-supported FNLA, and UNITA,...
Twelve Months that Transformed a Continent The story of the Cuban-South African war in Angola in 1987–88 through the eyes of the South Africans who fought in it. The Angolan Civil War lasted over a quarter of a century, from 1975 to 2002. Beginning as a power struggle...
The southern element of the FAPLA offensive was launched from the area of Cuito Cuanavale on 14 August 1987. The brigades involved here were 25 Brigade, already deployed east of the Cuito River at Tumpo, and 16, 21, 47, 59, 66, 8, and 13 Brigades, which were deployed...