Ambushed on the Way to the Border AAR

The day job has been getting in the way of gaming lately, although I have been doing some painting for a project that will see War for Slow Readers move into another theatre...watch this space.

Three of us did play a game using the modified Cold War 83 rules a couple of weeks ago though. This pitched a mercenary led platoon of the FNLA against an advancing Cuban company.

The Cubans were spearheading the FAPLA offensive in northern Angola and their objective was to cut the dirt road that can (just) be seen on the extreme top left of the picture below. The FNLA had three entrenchments located on the low ridge between the road and the advancing communists. HMGs were positioned in the flanking trenches and a couple of assault rifle stands were in the central trench. Behind the ridge the mercenaries, armed with FN SLRs were positioned so they could co-ordinate the defence. The only reserve was a stand of assault rifles and a GPMG armed technical.

None of the FNLA were revealed to the approaching Cubans until they opened fire or moved while in line of sight.

Comrade Chris duly tried to walk his troops on the table in a two up one back formation right into the killing zone. One platoon took casualties in a hail of .50 cal fire straight away, the survivors were suppressed.

It looked like it was all over for the Cubans. One platoon was decimated and had gone to ground, their comrades on their left knew someting very bad was happening and the third platoon hadn't even got over the start line i.e. on the table.

Chris kept his cool though and got his left flank platoon moving using the cover that was available. He managed to reconfigure his advance and push his third platoon up on the extreme right where thick bush gave some shelter from FNLA spotters.

Jeff opened up with everything he had and what followed was a desperate firefight as the relatively poorly trained FNLA attempted to get rounds down from the security of their trenches while the Cubans tried to suppress their tormentors and move forward.

The FNLA committed the Technical on their right when the .50 cal entrenched there was suppressed. A couple of Cuban RPGs went astray and it looked like another Communist platoon was going to be shot up as the FNLA gunner prepared to fire. He got off one burst before his weapon jammed, and then the technical exploded! One can only assume that the crew was careless with a cigarette butt in a vehicle that was loaded with live ammunition and gasoline...

By now the Cubans had abandoned all pretence at battle drill. Instead of fire and movement it was a case of pouring as many rounds into the FNLA as possible and anyone who could move was running flat out at the ridge.

Not subtle and not pretty, but it worked.

The Cubans suppressed each postion in turn and when they got into close quarters they were not taking prisoners.

I'd placed a 10 turn limit on the game as an arbitrary way of modelling exhaustion of ammunition and men. It was close but the Cubans got a fireteam across the road on turn 10, having killed or routed all but two the FNLA stands.

Another Cuban victory but at a high cost - a whole platoon's worth of Havana's finest were killed or wounded. The FNLA took another pounding - their poorly trained troops failing to old their ground. Another blow to FNLA morale and four more mercenaries were killed along with a dozen Angolan fighters.

AAR Triumphant March of Socialism?

A small village in NE Angola, mid November 1975

I used the above table for this battle. The rules were an adapted version of Cold War 83. Instead of individual figures I had three or two man fireteams per base. Vehicles were mounted invidually. This means I can use my 15 mm figures as they are based for the AK 47 Reloaded rules.

Cold War 83 uses an ingenious mechanism to represent training, morale and fatigue called 'Bottle'. Simply put, a figure (or base in this case) is assigned a Bottle value and all actions and attempted actions are influenced by this value. Unusually, the player as to throw a score on 2D6 below a base's current Bottle value to succeed in movement or combat actions. So, the higher a base's Bottle, the more chance it has of actually doing what the player wants it to; whether that's moving, spotting, firing and hitting a target, unjamming a weapon or just about anything else you can think of. Bottle changes during a game, usually downwards, as your men respond to the stress of combat, are wounded or, in some cases, are inspired to bravery etc.

When their Bottle falls to below 2, they're assumed to rout, curl up in a ball, surrender or othrwise find a way of no longer taking part in combat.They can also be killed outright, most often when the firing enemy scores a 'critical success' - that is a successful 2D6 score that is a double.

In my game I assigned the FNLA's two mercenary stands, armed with a total of 6 G3 Rifles a Bottle value of 8 to reflect their training in the Foreign Legion or the Paras etc, as well as their experience as hard bitten dogs of war. Their Angolan FNLA comrades were only rated at 6, indicating they are conscripts with little experience but who have gained some appreciation of the dangers of war. They're armed with a total of 7 x AK47 Assault Rifles, 2 x PK LMGs and a couple of RPG 7 Grenade Launchers, presumably courtesy of the Chinese before they lost faith in Holden Roberto. Crucially the FNLA have one vehicle that's a runner, a Toyota pick up truck armed with a .50 cal HMG, and crewed by two Angolans also rated at 6. One item there is no shortage of is hand grenades.

I decided that the village was deserted, the locals having made themselves scarce when the soldiers showed up. All the built up area, rough ground and woods templates were assigned a 'clutter value' of 3, meaning that once contact is made then a stand has to subtract that number from its Bottle value if it wants to move anywhere or hit anything in the template. There are three gentle hills to the NW, NE and SW of the village that don't impede movement but block line of sight. Most of the area is light bush with a clutter value of 1. The roads are rated 0.

The mercenary Jean Langarotti set up as all round a defence as he could manage with the resources to hand. I decided the FNLA would deploy first and then the road entrance tthat he MPLA would enter on would be chosen randomly. This simulates the 'frontless nature of the fighting' (see the previous post). The MPLA would move without dicing for success against Bottle until contact.

The MPLA were represented by a full platoon of motorised infantry, transported in three newly aquired URAL trucks, with an 8 men squad per truck split into 3 fireteams with a total of 6 x AK47s, 1x PK LMG and an RPG 7. Like their FNLA opponents they were rated at 6 for Bottle.

Six Cuban Special Forces soldiers provided the leadership and expertise. Two were in a GAZ jeep mounting an HMG on point, and another five, including the force commander, Leiutenant Alonso, in the follwing GAZ jeep, also equipped with an HMG. These were given a Bottle rating of 9.

The MPLA attempted to get on table on turn 1. The point jeep was hit by the HMG mounted in the Toyota technical, obviously the Cubans weren't anticipating an ambush! So much for their training and experience. Although they suffered some damage, neither the vehicle or the crew were incapacitated by this first burst of fire. As their comrades followed them into he kill zone however, an FNLA fireteam, emboldened by the noise and the obvious power of the technical's HMG, opened up with everything they had, namely an LMG and two AK 47s.

The leading Cuban jeep was destroyed and the following one accelterated into the cover of the buildings south of the FNLA technical. Two URAL trucks followed, taking rounds on the way in. The third URAL didn't make it on to the table, the sound of the firefight obviously leading the driver to stamp on the brakes.

One brewed up Cuban jeep in the background, the FNLA technical and fireteam that did the damage in the foreground. Note that the FNLA firteam's bottle rating is inicated by the two small green dice. It's at 7 because of the proximity of Langarotti who can be see in botom of the picture



From this point on things went rapidly downhill for our heroic revolutionaries. Of the two URALs that drove towards the village, one copped a burst from the Toyota's .50 cal and the resulting mayhem led the hapless Alonso and his comrades to go to ground and become suppressd as they were within 7.5 cm of the truck that was hit. The second URAL truck came under fire from another FNLA fireteam before it reached the cover of the buildings and the crew were killed and the troops on board all suppressed. The only postive thing the MPLA managed to do was get the third truck on the table and under cover in the woods to the north of their entry point.

By  the end of turn three more and more fire was being poured into the MPLA and Cubans either in, or just outside, the buildings and casualties were mounting. The squad in the third truck disembarked and moved forward to engage Langarotti and his men from the cover of the woods but by then it was all too little, too late. The rest of the MPLA's force was either suppressed and/or had a Bottle rating of 2, meaning there was nothing they could do about their predicament.

Here you can see the MPLA & the Cubans with their rapidly dwindling Bottle scores


At this point I decided to end my little experiment. What have I learned? Firstly, I really like the rules and especially the Bottle mechanism. At last I can see what others rave about. This is a fast play rule set that gives a flavour of how I imagine the chaos of a firefight to play out. As the player, you can see the danger your litte men are in, but getting them do do what you want to get out of it is another matter. With a little thought I think I can come up with plenty of scenarios involving all sorts of pressure on the protagonists - not shooting at civilians in the war zone, securing the merchandise from Mr Arms Dealer, avoiding being filmed by a news crew as your men go on the rampage/break and run/loot and pillage - are a few that have just come to mind. Secondly, get out off your trucks and spread out as soon as you hear incoming fire...

The Truimphant March of Socialism?

Mid November 1975. The FNLA offensive on Luanda in the north has been halted. The South African led forces  on the southern front have started to retreat towards Benguela. The MPLA's grip on Luanda becomes more secure as each day goes by. Soviet Anatov transport aircraft fly Cuban troops into Luanda round the clock. The Cubans are supplied with heavy equipment from freighters docked in Luanda's harbour. One of the freighters is 'The Carlotta', the same name that has been given by Fidel Castro to the operation that is sending thousands of Cubans to Africa. Carlotta was a the leader of a slave revolt. For Fidel and the Cuban leadership Angola represents their revolutionary destiny - more slaves came from this part of Africa than anywhere else, many of them were shipped to the Caribbean, now their descendants are coming home to liberate Angola from the Imperialists.

At least that's the official version. The Soviets have swallowed bile and are providing arms and transport to their 'tropical socialist' allies. The MPLA is now trying to secure the approaches to Luanda to the north and south using recently recruited Cuban led troops kitted out with Soviet supplied weapons and transport.



But where is the front? Comrade Farrusco, fighting near Lubango for the MPLA , told Ryszard Kapuscinki:

'In Europe they taught me that a front is trenches and barbed wire, which form a distinct and visible line...on a river, along a road, or from village to village. You can trace it on a map with a pencil...here the front is everywhere and nowhere...there is too much land and too few people for a front to exist...so the front doesn't consist of a line but points, and moving points at that...Every unit is a front, and a potential front. If our unit runs into an enemy unit , those two poteial fronts turn into a real front. A battle occurs.'

'This is a war of ambushes. On any road, at any place, there can be a front.'

'You can travel the whole country and come back alive, or you can die a metre from where you're standing. There are no principles, no methods.'

'This war is a real mess. Nobody knows just where they stand.'

Jean Langarotti and Kurt Semmler know where they stand. They're holed up in a small township at a crossroads about 100 km east of Luanda. Since the defeat at Caxito and the death of their leader Carlo Shannon, the two mercenaries have been retreating into the interior. Their transport has all broken down or run out of gasoline. They have one Toyota pick up truck that is a runner, and mounts a 50 cal machine gun. The South African Jan Dupree and the Briton Gary Watson, together with two Portuguese, are the only other trained and experienced men they have. There are thirteen Angolans with them, all of them FNLA, poorly trained conscripts. Between them they have a couple each of PK LMGs and RPG 7s, half a dozen G3 rifles, and seven Kalashnikovs.

They know they have to move, and move soon. The trouble is there is a dust cloud on the horizon and that can only mean one thing. The MPLA have caught up with them.

Langorotti softly whistles 'Spanish Harlem' and makes is dispositions.

The battle that followed was fought using an adapted version of Cold War 83 rules by Wessex Games. Full AAR in a couple of days.

London 8 November 1975

'So The Service has had an agent in Angola?'


'Yes sir, completely deniable naturally. The operation is codenamed SILVERBACK. An agent was infiltrated into the group of mercenaries recruited by Carlo Shannon in London on behalf of the FNLA.'


'Shannon is dead though...'


'And the FNLA's offensive was a fiasco, Shannon should never have attacked when he did. SILVERBACK is telling us that he didn't want to but Holden Roberto insisted on it. Apparently Shannon was killed in street fighting in Caxito, leading from the front. A house was booby trapped and his command group was caught in it. They were fighting Angolans but the Cubans were running the show. SILVERBACK thinks that the group Shannon was with were leading an attack on a Cuban command post.'


'Hmmm...what now? It appears Castro is sending everything he has to Luanda and after the St John's incident he's doing it overtly. The whole of his merchant marine has been mobilised.'


'The Cuban's will get stronger. They'll have thousands of men on the ground within a month. SILVERBACK tells us that the FNLA are stepping up recruitment again in Paris and Callan has reports that Banks is active in London...'


'God help us. And the Soviets?'


'Very quiet. They must be giving Castro approval. It's only a matter of time before Soviet heavy lift aircraft start moving Cubans to Luanda. They'll use the Cubans as proxies. This is part of their plan to expand their influence in the region sir.'


'Hmmm...yes. Well keep me informed. And make sure Callan watches Banks.'

Task Force Zulu Command Post Benguela 30 October 1975

'Zulu One this is Bluetop over'

'Bluetop, Zulu One receiving over'

'Zulu One, you are authorised to proceed with Savannah immediately. Objective Kingpin over'

'Bluetop, roger that...resume Savannah, objective Kingpin, over and out'

'Hey, Johnny get me the code book, where the bloody hell is 'Kingpin'?'

Pause

'Christ, it's on the bloody coast road...Porto Amboin...'

'How far?'

'Has to be 400 klicks.'

'Bloody hell...get the battalion COs on the brigade net, orders group 2000'

Caxito AAR (2)

This proved to be a a lot of fun. The battle see-sawed for the whole game. The deployment rules ensured the shooting started straight away. The MPLA declared one of the building templates in Caxito and the large hill that dominated the diagonialy opposite quarter as objectives. The FNLA went for the road entrance at the table edge that was the most distant from Caxito in an attempt to get the MPLA to divide their forces.

This was not to be. The Cuban advisors ensured the MPLA deployed carefully, putting a full company of infantry on the hill and another, supported by the Command Group and HQ platoon, in Caxito.

The FNLA drove a company of technicals within HMG & AA range of the troops on the hill, but outside of effective range of their assault rifles and RPGs, and spent the rest of the game blasting away at them. The fact the MPLA successfully dug in on turn 1 mean they elected to soak up the pressure rather than charge across open ground at a line of Jeeps and Toyotas bristling with 30 and 50 cal machine guns and 20mm AA guns. Some losses were suffered but their morale held and the objective was never in danger.

The rest of the FNLA force focused on Caxito. Fighting in the town was bloody, largely as the MPLA elected to defend from within templates, rather than sitting at the edge and taking fire. In reality this would approximate to defenders occupying buildings within a built up area rather than on the outskirts, sacrificing the ability to fire at the attackers as they approached for the impact of ambushes with automatic weapons and grenades at short range. Most of the comabt was therefore close assaults.

The much vaunted Cuban supplied BM-21s MRLs proved largely ineffectual. Only one fire mission arrived and, as it was directed at infantry in a built up area, its impact was negligible. One can imagine the frantic calls for fire from the Cuban forward observer before his postion was overrun.

The battlefield with the MPLA postion on the hill in the foreground. In the built up area in the left background a desparate battle is raging...FNLA technicals can be seen by the road on the left.

As the mercenary led FNLA force fought their way into the township an understrength company of MPLA troops broke and fled. This proved the high water mark of the FNLA's fortunes however, for as they attempted to dislodge the Cuban Command group and HQ platoon, their advance stalled. The Cubans had fortified their postions and every building was either a strongpoint or booby trapped. Machine guns were deployed with mutually supporting arcs of fire and three or four man fireteams armed with AK47s and grenades were on hand to counter attack at any sign of the enemy penetrating their postions.

The FNLA mercenary leader, 'Colonel' Shannon had always suspected this would be a tough fight so was not unduly surprised when his usual tactics of charging the enemy in a blaze of automatic fire enjoyed limited success. The flight of the undertrained Angolan troops before his first assault was a bonus but he always expected a more determined, or better prepared, foe would put up more resistance.

Two things sealed the fate of the FNLA attack. The first was the booby trap that exploded as Shannon and his command group were clearing a cluster of buildings only metres from his Cuban counterpart's command post. The mercenary was mortally wounded and the attack lost its impetus. Shortly afterwards, a column of jeeps armed with recoiless rifles and HMGs arrived to reinforce the MPLA and took up postions on the outskirts of town, providing much needed support for the Cuban fighters. This column also ensured the third objective was denied to the FNLA.

So, the battle ended with a decisive victory to the communists. Luanda was secured and it now loks like an MPLA government will be installed in independence day on 11th November.

Caxito AAR (1)

This was the brief we used for the Battle of Caxito, played using Peter Pig's AK47 Reloaded rules with some adaptations

 

 

Caxito 3 November 1975

Situation

Task Force Blue, an FNLA unit originally of  brigade strength, has reached Caxito, about 30 kms from Luanda.

The Task Force is led by an Anglo-Irish mercenary and former Royal Marine Commando non commissioned officer, ‘Colonel’ Carlo Shannon. Since crossing the border with Zaire two weeks ago Shannon’s force has dwindled to around 1000 men, about 60 of whom are British, French and Portuguese mercenaries. They are well supplied and have plenty of transport in the shape of lorries, jeeps, landrovers and the ubiquitous Japanese built pick up trucks. There is no artillery support however, and morale is brittle.

FNLA cadre in Luanda have been decimated and guerrilla units in the surrounding countryside have been largely destroyed by the MPLA’s military wing, FAPLA. FAPLA is well armed with Soviet supplied light weapons such as AK 47s and RPG launchers. There are around 30 Cuban advisors fighting alongside the FAPLA front line units. At the end of October a Cuban registered ship, the ‘Vietnam Heroico’, docked in Luanda and unloaded a cargo of heavier weapons and ammunition. Half a dozen BM-21 multlple rocket launchers and the specialist  troops to operate them arrived with the cargo.

Against Shannon’s advice, the political leader of the FNLA, Holden Roberto, the brother in law of Zaire’s dictator, President Mobuto, has insisted that Task Force Blue launch an attack on the capital. Angola is due to be granted independence on 11^th November, although Portuguese colonial rule has effectively already collapsed, and Roberto wants to install a government by then.

The fighting is bloody and confused. As Task Force Blue makes its bid to capture Luanda front lines cease to exist and a mobile free for all of attacks, ambushes and counter attacks ensues.

Deployment

The FNLA are the attacking force. Divide the table into four quarters. The FAPLA player chooses two diagonally opposite quarters and choose two objectives in these quarters. The FNLA player identifies another objective in either of these quarters.

The FAPLA player deploys two units in his quarter(s).

The FNLA player deploys three units in his quarter(s).

Forces

FAPLA

Commander & HQ stands (prof)

1^st Company (militia)

6 x small arms

3 x RPG

2^nd Company (militia)

6 x small arms

3 x RPG

Mobile detachment A (regular)

3 x HMG technicals

Mobile detachment B (regular)

3 x RCL technicals

The FAPLA player has an artillery asset of 12. This represents the BM-21 unit. Should it come into play it has the same effect as an airstrike so as to represent the devastating effect of massed rockets on morale.

FNLA

Command & HQ stands (prof)

Alpha Company (militia*)

1 x small arms stand (prof) mercenaries

5 x small arms (militia)

2 x Unimog Trucks

Bravo Company (militia*)

1 x small arms stand (prof) mercenaries

5 x small arms (militia)

2 x Unimog Trucks

Charlie Company (regular)

4 x HMG Technicals

1 x AA Technical

Delta Company (regular)

2 x HMG Technicals

1 x RCL Technical

3 x small arms

1 x Unimog Truck

* these units fight as regulars whilst the mercenary stand remains with them. As soon as it is destroyed or lost they revert to being militia

The FNLA player has an aggressive shot asset of 12, this represents the plentiful supplies of ammunition Shannon has been furnished with courtesy of the CIA.

Arrivals

Can be diced for from turn 2 as per the rules. The table edge of any enemy quarter is an enemy base edge and there are no ‘flank’ edges.

Victory

Countdown is from 21. At game end victory points are allocated as follows:

Defender

1D6 + 3 to offset numerical disadvantage and lack of mobility

D6 + 2 for each objective held

2D6 + 1 enemy command destroyed or fled

2D6 + 1 each enemy unit destroyed or fled

+ 2 for each template occupied by foot

+ 2 for each destroyed enemy vehicle

+ 1 for each destroyed enemy foot stand

Attacker

2D6 + 4 for each objective held

2D6 + 1 enemy command destroyed or fled

2D6 + 1 each enemy unit destroyed or fled

+ 2 for each template occupied by foot

+ 2 for each destroyed enemy vehicle

+ 1 for each destroyed enemy foot stand

FNLA Offensive Stalls: Mercenary Leader Killed

The Guardian 6 November 1975

FNLA Attack on Luanda Halted, 'Mercenary Leader Killed'

Portuguese Mercenaries and FNLA troops after the abortive attack on Luanda (Rueters)

Sources in  the Angolan capital of Luanda allege that a CIA backed offensive by troops loyal to the Angolan National Liberation Front (FNLA) has been halted. A spokesman for the People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA), a Marxist organisation with Soviet support, stated that heavy fighting only 20 miles from Luanda had led to the total  defeat of the FNLA and its 'mercenary led' army. 'The FNLA attacked two days ago and MPLA cadre fought a series of defensive battles to secure the capital. The FNLA forces were made up of mercenaries and troops supplied by the President of Zaire in support of his brother in law, the CIA puppet Holden Roberto' he said.

Unconfimed reports from Kinshasa state that the commander of the FNLA forces in the attack, the Anglo-Mercenary Carlo Shannon, was killed by a booby trap in the town of Caxito, as he led his men in 'desperate' street fighting.

A Portuguese businessman, Jose Ronaldo, crossed the front lines late yesterday and provided an eye witness account of the fighting as he waited to be evacuated by air to Lisbon by his government. 'By midday yesterday the FNLA had stopped moving forward,' he said. 'The noise of the fighting had died down and they seemed to be re-grouping.'

Mr Ronaldo said that former Portuguese army officers fighting with the FNLA alleged that Cuban troops were involved in the battles of the last few days. 'They told me the Cubans fought hard and were using heavy weapons, including rocket launchers,' he said.

Havana has confirmed that it has a 'military mission' in Luanda that is providing 'fraternal support' to the MPLA, but denies that its troops have been in combat. (Rueters)

FNLA and former Portuguese army officers on the road to Luanda (Rueters)

3rd November 1975: Task Force Blue Attacks

FNLA Troops begin the push on Luanda

FNLA troops, spearheaded by a battalion group led by Anglo-Irish mercenary Carlo Shannon, finally launched their attack on Luanda on 3rd November 1975.

Although Shannon's leading elements were only 35 km from the capital he was correct in anticipating a tough fight. The military wing of the MPLA, FAPLA, had been organising increasingly effective resistance and the fighting was bitter and confused.

By the second day of the attack, any semblance of front lines had disappeared as the protagonists fought in what could only be described as a free for all. Mobile units on both sides attacked and counter attacked, only to be cut off and ambushed. 



FNLA column reacts to MPLA ambush

Our next game in 'War for Slow Readers' will attempt to re-create this episode of the struggle...



Caxito 31 October 1975

Holden Roberto arrives at Shannon's Forward Command Post

From Shannon's perspective the conference with Roberto was deeply disturbing.

Although his forces were at the gates of Luanda Shannon was acutely aware of two growing problems - the lack of supplies, chiefly fuel, and stiffening MPLA resistance. To commit to an attack on the capital now was, in the view of the Anglo-Irish mercenary, fraught with risk.

He had established links with the self styled 'Commadante Zero', a guerilla leader who professed loyalty to the FNLA and who was operating in the area around Luanda. Zero was unequivocal, the FNLA cadres in the city had been massacred, the population was more likely to support the MPLA than any attacking FNLA force, there were rumours of more Cuban troops arriving any day now.

Shannon counselled caution but Roberto was adamnant: the advance must be resumed as soon as a convoy carrying fuel and beer arrived. This was due within the next 48 hours. History would wait for no man, the hour had come and Luanda was ready to be taken and an FNLA government installed.

Pause for Thought

Although I've been off work this past week I haven't done as much on 'War for Slow Readers' as I intended. I've almost completed painting Colonel Shannon and his associates, together with a couple of HMG armed jeeps and some Unimogs. I couldn't resist starting to paint the first elements of the Cuban airforce, a MiG 21 and a MiL 8 but nothing is finished.

I've been distracted by reading about another favourite period of mine, the English Civil War (more accurately the British Civil Wars), specifically Lindsay Davis's epic novel 'Rebels & Traitors' which I've thoroughly enjoyed. I even fought a battle between the Scots Covenanters and the Royalists last night - set in North Lancashire in 1644.

I've had plenty of time to think and to look at my map of Angola though. Painting Colonel Shannon has got me to thinking there is a substantial sub plot here in northern Angola which could spawn a mini campaign all of its own.

We're on the brink of either a successful FNLA thrust on Luanda or an ignominious defeat for Shannon, possibly at the hands of Cuban forces, if they arrive in time. Even if Shannon enters the capital there is every prospect of prolonged street fighting a la Bierut.

Other aspects to consider are the influence of the international press corps, the actvities of a Soviet mole in the South African armed forces, and increased CIA and MI6 involvement in support of the FNLA.

Task Force Blue & The Dogs of War

Colonel Shannon (at the wheel) and his merry men: from left - Gary Watson (in beret); Kurt Semmler; Jan Dupree; Jean Langarotti

I'm spending the next week or so putting the finishing touches to Task Force Blue. This is the operation invading Angola from the north with a battalion of FNLA troops supported by two battalions of Zaire's army. The leadership and specialist troops are provided by mercenaries recruited by Anglo-Irishman C.A.T Shannon, appointed 'colonel' by Holden Roberto, the FNLA leader.

This Shannon is based on the anti-hero of Fredrick Forsyth's novel "The Dogs of War', although he is clearly not the same guy. He's alive, for one thing - Forsyth's Shannon shot himself after a diagnosis of lung cancer. Our Shannon gets involved in Angola almost five years after he successfully organised and led a coup in Zangaro. In the interim he's worked in the Sudan and the Middle East and took on the FNLA contract despite his misgivings of working for an organisation that was involved with the CIA.

The quality of the troops he's commanding is woeful. The FNLA have spent at least ten years in barracks in Zaire and really aren't up for a scrap. The two Zairian Commando Battalions he's been assigned are very poor- President Mobuto has loaned them to his brother in law Roberto largely because he wants them in Angola where he believes they are potentially less trouble than if they were back home.

Despite this, Task Force Blue has made good progress. There has been virtually no resistance from the MPLA's military wing, FAPLA, and during the few encounters with hostile forces TF Blue's electic mix of technicals - Toyotas, Landrovers and Jeeps - have proved decisive weapons.

It's 30 October 1975 and Shannon is 50km from Luanda. He has about 1000 men still with him (the rest have deserted) plus 60 or so white mercenaries, about half of whom are former Portuguese army. He has plenty of transport - trucks and technicals - but is struggling for fuel and medical supplies (one of the perennial problems of running mercenary based operations is providing adequate medical support). In the above picture one of his men is about to be MEDEVACed by a CIA supplied helicopter (he's the one whose feet Semmler is cradling).

Shannon plans to halt for a few days before deciding whether to drive on the capital. His decision will be influenced by how successful he is in solving the supply situation and to what extent the southern task forces can support any attack on Luanda. He has meeting with Roberto tomorrow and is expecting to be told that he has to attack at once.

Firefight at Folgares

Task Force Zulu was halted at Chibia. Although the casualties were relatively light in military terms, the political impact was such that Pretoria was unwilling to press on and risk further losses.

A debate ensued amongst the South Africans. The majority of military officers advocated allocating 'full blooded' support to TF Zulu by the SAAF and the deployment of airborne forces to quickly secure Lubango and its airfield. A minority view held that whilst FAPLA and its Cuban advisors had held the line at Chibia they couldn't do this everywhere and, instead of reinforcing failure, the SADF should make Task Force Foxbat's the priority axis of advance.

By 25 October Foxbat's leading FNLA battalion had reached Folgares where it had paused to regroup and resupply. The battalion's South African cadre of advisors, together with the bulk of the transport element, were some 5km south of the unit's main postion in the township itself. Two understrength infantry companies and the support company were deployed in the township. As evening approached these units were attacked in their rear by a full battalion of FAPLA regulars that had been completely missed by aerial reconnaissance.

FNLA Command Elements deployed in township

The ensuing firefight was confused and noisy. The FAPLA advance proceeded in fits and starts. One company entered the township but was fought to a standstill by FNLA troops that had dug in amongst the buildings in the town centre. Mortar and recoiless rifle fire, though largely inaccurate, seemed to intimidate the FAPLA troops and forestalled a close assault. To the west of Folgares FAPLA troops advanced cautiously and seemed reluctant to probe possible FNLA postions in dense bush. The arrival of an SADF armoured car platoon caused consternation amongst FAPLA's supporting mobile detachment of technicals until a lucky burst from a jeep mounted .50 cal machine gun disabled an Eland armoured car.

As dusk fell the fighting petered out. The FNLA held Folgares and had suffered no fatal casualties, although a dozen men were wounded. An Eland armoured car was written off and two more disabled, and there were several casualties amongst their South African crews, one of which was fatal. Three FNLA technicals had also been destroyed by very accurate fire from the FAPLA HQ platoon, composed mainly of Cuban advisors, For its part FAPLA had lost six dead and ten wounded with another three missing. Half a dozen Soviet built GAZ jeeps had either been destroyed or disabled by fire from the SADF armoured cars.

The FAPLA commander was dismayed, His men had not managed to press home their attack. The FNLA commander, Captain Mouriniho, was equally concerned. Although he had held the town, he never imagined that FAPLA were present in such strength in this area, nor that they had the wherewithall to mount an attack in such strength. 

In the small hours of 26th October Foxbat reported to Pretoria that their line of supply was insecure.

At the same time Cuban headquarters in Luanda received a report from their most senior officer in southern Angola that unless reinforcments were forthcoming he could got guarantee the security of Benguela and the coast road all the way to the capital.

Both sides believed their respective postions were hopeless...

Progress Report

A busy week and a half over Christmas and the New Year with 6 x T55s, 6 x BTR 60s, 6 x GAZ 69 Jeeps 'Technicals' and 6 x Toyota Pick Up 'Technicals' painted and based. I've also finished off 20 stands of Cuban Infantry and have made progress painting 10 stands of Cuban RPGs.

The T55s and BTR 60s will obviously be Cuban/FAPLA, as will the GAZ 69 Technicals. The Toyotas could be FNLA/UNITA or FAPLA.




T55s and a BTR 60



GAZ 69 Jeeps and a Toyota Technical

Toyota Technical with 23mm AA Gun



The Cuban/FAPLA army is almost complete. I have to paint some mortars, URAL trucks, a couple of helicopters and MiG 21 (although I'll probably leave the air support until after I've completed the FNLA/UNITA/SADF ground forces). UNITA and FNLA infantry are just about finished- the big job is going to be the SADF vehicles and infantry together with some trucks and Landrovers that will be also used by UNITA and FNLA. I have another couple of weeks off work so should be able make a dent in that lot...we'll see.

Progress Report

The South Africans arrived last week courtesy of Peter Pig. Great service - I only ordered thm what seems like a few days ago - and lovely figures and models.

So, I now have my Cuban/UNITA/FAPLA/SWAPO infantry to finish (and after a marathon session yesterday these are coming along nicely - pictures to follow) as well as tanks, APCs, technicals, a couple of helicopters (Mi 24 and Mi 17) and a MiG 21 as well as the South Africans. My forthcoming month off is going to be busy.

I've been thinking about terrain and have decided that whilst my miniature world maker river and roads will suffice I'm going to get new hills, trees and buildings as well as a new basecloth for this project. The thinking at present is 'teddy bear fur' in a light beige or sandy colour for the basecloth: three of Battlefront's desert hills, one extra large and two large; and about a dozen or so buildings from Peter Pig & Timecast. For the vegetation I'll use Irishserb's technique of model railway trees and lichen.

I hope to be able to play my first game by mid February.

Up to know events in War for Slow Readers hae mirrored what actually happened. That will change soon. Once the South African 2nd Infantry Division crosses the border to secure the  Ruacana-Calueque hydro-electric scheme and the US begins to send money and arms to back UNITA then the Cuban response may or may not follow history's script.

FNLA on the rampage...

A number of counterfactuals are possible:

• A stronger or weaker Cuban intervention than what actually occured
• UNITA and or the FNLA capture Luanda in late 1975 or early 1976
• South Africa intervenes more decisively
• The Soviets airlift Cuban troops en mass and provide naval and air support on a large scale
• The US and British, through mercenary troops and covert assistance to UNITA and the FNLA, shore up the South African position far more than they really did.

And that only takes us to March 1976!

There are the fascists Helmut!

As the war unfolds we may get an SAS raid on Luanda airport to destroy Soviet spy planes shadowing the Royal Navy Task Force heading for the Falklands; East German Kommandoes and Soviet Spetsnatz being deployed along and across the Namibian border; and Cuban mechanized troops taking on the SADF in support of SWAPO.

Soviet Tupolov Luanda 1982

The 80s are going to be very interesting in Angola...

Alvor Agreement, Lisbon, January 1975, and Subsequent Events

Leftist military officers overthrew the Portugese Government in the Carnation Revolution on April 25, 1974, The MPLA, FNLA, and UNITA each negotiated peace agreements with the transitional Portuguese government and began to fight each other for control of Luanda and the country. Holden Roberto, Agostinho Neto, and Jonas Savimbi met in Bukavu, Zaire in July and agreed to negotiate with the Portuguese as one political entity. They met again in Mombasa, Kenya on January 5, 1975 and agreed to stop fighting each other, further outlining constitutional negotiations with the Portuguese. They met for a third time in Alvor, Portugal from January 10-15 and signed what became known as the Alvor Agreement.

The agreement did not establish a mechanism to verify the number of troops that could be maintained by each political group. All three parties soon had forces greater in number than the Portuguese, endangering the colonial power's ability to keep the peace. Factional fighting renewed, reaching new heights as foreign supplies of arms increased. In February the Cuban government warned the Eastern Bloc the Alvor Agreement would not succeed. By spring the African National Congress and SWAPO were echoing Cuba's warning.

Leaders of the Organization of African Unity organized a peace conference moderated by Kenyan President Jomo Kenyatta with the three leaders in Nakuru, Kenya in June. The Angolan leaders issued the Nakuru Declaration on June 21, agreeing to abide by the provisions of the Alvor Agreement while acknowledging a mutual lack of trust led to violence. Many analysts have criticized the transitional government in Portugal for the violence that followed the Alvor Agreement in terms of a lack of concern about internal Angolan security and favoritism towards the MPLA. High Commissioner Coutinho, one of the seven leaders of the National Salvation Junta, openly distributed ex-Portuguese arms and military equipment to MPLA forces at the expense of the other competing parties.



Admiral Coutinho, centre, with Agostinho Neto of the MPLA, left, and Joans Savimbi of UNITA, right.


Edward Mulcahy, Acting Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs in the US State Department, told Tom Killoran, the U.S. Consul General in Angola, to congratulate the PMC rather than the FNLA and UNITA on their own and Coutinho for Portugal's "untiring and protracted efforts" at a peace agreement. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger considered any government involving the pro-Soviet, Communist MPLA, to be unacceptable and President Gerald Ford oversaw heightened aid to the FNLA

In July the MPLA violently forced the FNLA out of Luanda and UNITA  withdrew to its stronghold in the south and declared war. By August the MPLA had control of 11 of the 15 provincial capitals, including Cabina and Luanda. South Africa intervened on October 23, sending 1,500 to 2,000 troops from Namibia into southern Angola.

Angola in 1975: Some Basic Facts

Angola's borders in 1975 were the same as today. It had, and has, an area of  481,321 square miles (1,246,620 km²). It was, and is, comparable in size to Mali and is nearly twice the size of the US state of Texas, or five times the area of the United Kingdom.


In 1970, when the last official census was completed the population was 5.8 million. By 1975 it was estimated at 6.5 million. 


Angola was bordered by Namibia to the south, Zambia to the east, Zaire to the north-east, and the South Atlantic to the west. The exclave of Cabinda also bordered the Congo to the north. Angola's capital, Luanda, lies on the Atlantic coast in the northwest of the country.


Crudely, the country can be divided into a coastal plain 60-100 km wide, a hilly and mountainous belt and a high plateau.

 The climate is Angola's average temperature on the coast is 60 °F (16 °C) in the winter and 70 °F (21 °C) in the summer. It has two seasons; dry season (May to October) and hot rainy season (November to April). The vegetation is largely savannah with belts of tropical rain forest near major waterways. 

The factions that fought the colonial war against the Portuguese, and each other, had their bases in different geographical regions. The National Front for the Liberation of Angola (FNLA) were strongest in the north and had troops in neighbouring Zaire, as it was in 1975. The Marxist MPLA, or People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola's, core support came from the the Mbundu ethnic group as well the educated intelligentsia in Luanda, and other urban centres, as well as Angolan activists in Portugal. The party had formal links with Soviet and East European Communist parties. UNITA, the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola, was founded in 1966. UNITA was led by Jonas Savimbi after he broke with the FNLA.  UNITA's leadership was drawn largely from the Ovimbundu in the Central Southern region.

Storm Clouds

February 1975

 

“Peele’s source in Luanda finally came up with something on the Cubans”

“Anything of substance Neil?”

“Hard to say Sir, a Major Perez and a Major Cadelo spent the last couple of months over there on a ‘fact finding mission’, they met with Neto, who apparently asked for the world, but we know nothing of the response from Havana”

“Is Neto’s star on the rise?”

“The MPLA seem to be gaining ground but it’s hard to tell. The Portuguese are trying to broker a deal between the factions but I suspect they will cut and run eventually. The Chinese dabbled with the FNLA but they’ve pulled out. The Cousins are spending a bit on Roberto and his merry men though”

‘’Hmm…and Savimbi?”

“Unsure Sir, UNITA are very quiet. There’s some indication that Pretoria are taking an interest there.”

“Do the Cousins know that?”

“Highly unlikely Sir, should we tell Ross?”

“Over lunch Neil, over lunch”

August 1974

‘…the next item gentlemen, is Angola…the Cousins tell us Havana has sent two representatives of the DGI to Luanda…they want to know if our people know anything about this…Harry?’

‘Peele may be able to tell us something, he had a source in Luanda, at least he did until there was a rush on flowers in Lisbon’

‘Find out what you can. Next…there is a delicate matter in Cyprus I believe Anthony?’

January 1975 The White House

'Gentlemen, this is a map of Africa and here is Angola. Now, in Angola we have three factions. There's the MPLA, they're the bad guys. The FNLA, they're the good guys and there's UNITA and Jonas Savimbi we don't know too well'