South African Special Forces

[Trident-za]

http://www.recce.co.za/modules.php?op=modload&name=gallery&file=index&include=albums.php

I've included the link to their image gallery. I suspect that very few of you know anything about them. I don't know much about their current abilities, but I do know they used to be regarded (in the 80s) as the best in the world by many, primarily due to the fact that they were "operational" 12 months of the year.

Another interesting fact: prior to 1990 over 100 000 soldiers had attempted "selection", but only 480 were badged as operators. Unless my maths is really crap, I think that works out to be a 0.48% success rate. Is there any SF unit anywhere in the world with such a low number? Oh, and to prevent any racist remarks, a big percentage of the successful candidates were black - strangely enough, this was the LEAST racist unit in the country.

P.S. I know the photos are mostly low quality - I don't think they ever employed professional photographers :)

[Trident-za]

A few SA SF stats.

http://www.recce.co.za/index.php?module=ContentExpress&func=display&ceid=27&bid=29&btitle=Special%20Forces&meid=63

My brother was a medic (ex-paratropper) assigned to 1 Recce for 2 years, and was involved in their selection courses. According to him, the selection was "f****ing tough".

[Trident-za]

An extract from the official site, explaining how a typical "reconnaissiance" mission would go in the Angola war. A few things to note : unlike most western SF units, these guys were without any GPS, satellite, aircover etc.. They fought against a variety of enemy troops including the Soviet Spetznaz.


A Small Team, (2 Operators), or a Team, (12 Operators), would do this. In such an operation, a Reconnaissance Mission would be undertaken on an enemy strategic position – on a military position or a military complex in a (for example, in Angola).



Firstly, one would have to infiltrate. This would entail walking to the target area -

In enemy territory all the way.
In a war situation, with enemy soldiers and forces (very good and highly trained ones) all along the route - constantly searching for us.
With potentially hostile local population all over the place, who would instantly inform the enemy soldiers if we were detected.
With the enemy having complete air superiority, and having helicopter and helicopter gunship patrols frequently.
With no possibility of any support, resupply or evacuation by ground or air.
Carrying all food, water, sleeping equipment, military equipment, and ammunition - of a quantity that could last for weeks.
Meaning that the weight of one's rucksack - excluding webbing and weapon/s - would be 60kg to 80kg - or in some cases 100kg. (As an educational exercise, just try to walk normally - or lift - a rucksack weighing 80 kg).
Walking in over 300km to 400km or more - inside enemy territory.


Infiltration would be long and arduous, moving mostly at night, conducting anti-tracking, lying up in hides in the day, avoiding all enemy forces and local population - all the while carrying this killing weight, navigating accurately through the bush or through mountains, crossing crocodile-infested, deep and fast-flowing rivers (not by bridge), coming across lions and other dangerous animals, eating and drinking hardly anything to conserve rations, tolerating all weather conditions from freezing to frying and from tropical rain to no water at all, never speaking, never cooking, never making noise, always doing anti-tracking, always alert - all the while aware that if you were compromised, you were on your own, and however far you were in - so far you would have to get out - without any help, and with the full and mighty force of the enemy hunting you.



At the target area, one would have to get into a hide right at the enemy position - which could be a base harbouring thousands of enemy soldier. “Right at” the enemy position meaning right in direct sight of the base with the naked eye. One may also have to move around to various hides at various points around the enemy base, all the time making maps, notes, records, assessments, etc. On various occasions, the reconnaissance would entail penetrating right inside the actual enemy base to conduct reconnaissance.



Once enough information had been obtained, one would have to exfiltrate - all the way back - on foot, with all the obstacles and challenges that one had faced on the infiltration. The only difference would be that one may be running low on water and food - and could not -without extreme danger of being compromised - take food from fields or go to rivers / waterholes for water, as these are they are routinely busy or watched.



If one was compromised on the infiltration or exfiltration, the enemy would deploy hundreds or thousands of men between the contact point and the border - by plane, by helicopter, by vehicle, on foot from their forward bases. They would form huge interdiction lines cutting off direct escape routes, and would conduct hundreds of patrols, and have standing ambushes all over the place. Their aircraft and helicopters would fly all over the area - searching. Also, they would get onto your tracks - and chase you - running you down with teams and teams of fresh men, changing when they got tired so that they were always fresh while you got tired. Trying to force you into their ambushes in front of you, with stopper groups deployed at the sides to prevent you from escaping to the side.



One would have to survive such a situation, applying Escape and Evasion techniques - sometimes over hundreds of kilometres - running, lying up & hiding, passing stealthily through enemy positions, or staying in cover while they walked right over you, or entering into contact (a firefight) with enemy forces - never stopping, never sleeping, and never giving up.



If one of your colleagues was killed or wounded, you would carry him out with you. If you were all wounded, those who could still walk would carry those who could not.



If and when you managed to escape and get back over the border, you would rest up for a short period, and start all over again with another operation, time and time again, year in and year out.



This is what a Special Forces Reconnaissance operation entails. There are many and various other examples of reconnaissance tasks that are even more arduous than this example - which is a relatively standard example.





The thing that gets to me is the "no possibility of resupply or evacuation" bit. If you got slotted, they just buried you wherever you were. The physcological impact of this must be immense - the whole "leave no man behind" concept is non-existent under these circumstances.

[Trident-za]

Sorry to bore you all... but I've been reading a bit on the SA SF and one thing that struckme personally is the "operational security" nature of the unit. I once spent 5 months deployed in a base (which I won't name) in South Africa for operational purposes, and have subsequently discovered that this base was the "Special Forces HQ" for the country - I had no idea!

Also, I spent a week in the base of 1 Recce Reg in 1990 - bumped into a few "operators" along the way, but didn't notice very much SF activity at all, despite the fact that the base was the "training and selection" HQ. These guys really kept a low profile - a far cry from the SAS and SEALs (not trying to imply anything negative about either unit).

[Duke]

Are these units segregated?

[Trident-za]

"Segregated"? In terms of race, you mean? No... never have been, never will be.

[Duke]

Its a joke. But are you saying back during Apartheid, South African units weren't divided by race?

[Trident-za]

Its a joke. But are you saying back during Apartheid, South African units weren't divided by race?

No. I'm not saying that -MOST units were. The "Recces" were not ever! My unit (Parachute Battalion) had an entirly black company - we were "segregated" in that black soldiers were in seperate companies, but mostly because of language issues. There are 11 official languages in South Africa. This can cause the odd "problem" in communication :)

[Dominique]

I could have sworn that they didn't start allowing blacks into the Recce Regiments until the late 70's. If I remember the first unit to run a selection course for blacks was 5th Recce. I could me mistaken though.

While I'm thingking about it, the Pathfinders were an all white unit also.

[pinkeye]

it's my understanding that sa sf would frequently turn "rebels", thereby gaining a potentially important advantage in the bush. thus, many units had black members.
the selous scouts were particularly impressive. these guys would go into the bush for weeks and months with virtually nothing but a pair of shorts, sneakers (quieter than boots), and their rifles. they would live off the land, eating everything and anything they could get their hands on. those were some tough guys, and they put any of today's gadget-obsessed forces to shame.

[Trident-za]

While I'm thingking about it, the Pathfinders were an all white unit also.

Yes, the Pathfinders (technically part of the Parachute Battalion and thus not SF) were whites only until the early 90s. The whole SA SF was only created in 1972 and I think it took at least 3 years before they started recruiting black Africans. So, mid to late 70s would be right.

Aside from race issues, though, there is quite a lot more worth knowing about the "recces" and the Selous Scouts - both were formidable combat units with remarkable track records. Don't let the "race card" detract from the reality that these guys were world-class soldiers - it truly is the least important thing about the unit.

[Dominique]

Well, form my understanding of the Pathfinders, they were on of several special forces/ COIN units (i.e. 32 Battalion)run by the intellignece services, military, or the Police. They were only assigned to 44 Para as a cover.

The Pathfinders were mostly made up of foreigners Rhodesians, Americans, British, Aussies, Portuguese, etc., and were primarily used for raiding and cross border motorized recon operations. Sort of a modern day LRDG.

As for the Selous Scouts, they were a Rhodesian unit, not South African. After the Rhodesian government fell, a lot of them, along with the Rhodesian SAS, moverd to South Africaand were used to form to new Recce Regiments. If I remember correctly, the SAS formed 6 Reece and the Selous Scouts formed 3 Reece.

Also it was the Selous Scouts that provided 5 Reece with its training on working with "turned" black guerrillas.

[Trident-za]

Well, form my understanding of the Pathfinders, they were on of several special forces/ COIN units (i.e. 32 Battalion)run by the intellignece services, military, or the Police. They were only assigned to 44 Para as a cover.

The Pathfinders were mostly made up of foreigners Rhodesians, Americans, British, Aussies, Portuguese, etc., and were primarily used for raiding and cross border motorized recon operations. Sort of a modern day LRDG.



That is incorrect. I was IN the Parachute Battalion, and knew several of the Pathfinders personally. Recruiting was done straight from the battalion, although the "citizen force" pathfinder companies drew men from a variety of different places. The reality is that the majority of the members were trained at Tempe (1 Para Bn base). I can see where the confusion would arise - South Africa had 2 year conscription, and nearly all these guys had to do "camps" once every year or 2. When this happened, they were all assigned to 44 Para if they were qualified paratroopers. Obviosuly, 44 Para also had a number of permament force personnel, including from other countries.


32 Battalion was comprised of ex-Angolan troops/insurgents. More than 80% of them speak Portuguese. The unit was not technically regarded as being SFs, although they saw a hell of a lot of combat. My company worked with 32 Battalion on a few ocassions - in my opinion they are nearly all nuts, most had been constantly at war since the age of 10.



As for the Selous Scouts, they were a Rhodesian unit, not South African. After the Rhodesian government fell, a lot of them, along with the Rhodesian SAS, moverd to South Africaand were used to form to new Recce Regiments. If I remember correctly, the SAS formed 6 Reece and the Selous Scouts formed 3 Reece.



That is correct - if you read my posts you will see that I never claimed the Selous Scouts were South African. That wasn't the point - the point is that they were awesome!

[Ngati Tumatauenga]

There was a book published a number of years ago about the history of the Rhodesian SAS. Unfortunately the name escapes me. But if half of what was written was true(which I don't doubt) then your right those guys are awsome. It also spoke of the co-operation between Rhodesian SF and SA SF especially during the latter stages of the conflict. Of particular note were the cross border raids on terrorist camps in which a couple of hundred or less Rhodesians were knowingly pitted against several thousand terrorists.
And they won.

Balls that clang.

[Trident-za]

There have been a few books on the Rhodesian SAS - the best is written by Barbra Cole (her husband was an operator) called "The Elite". And yes, they all have "balls that clang". :)

[Dethstar]

They needed black guys for undercover operations, I read about one massive operation into Lesotho, against ANC bases, using almost entirely black operators.

Thanx for the thread trident-za

[mikec62001]

Hi everyone...

Quick question regarding SA Special Forces...

I was looking for books about the SA Special Forces and found this

We Fear Naught but God: The story of the SA Special Forces "The Recces" - Paul Els
New revised and updated edition 2009.
The story of the elite South African Special Forces ("the Recces") from inception in the 1960s to disbandment in 1993. A unique account of one of South Africa's premier units, masters in the art of reconnaissance and clandestine warfare.

It mentions the SA Recces were disbanded in 1993....What are SA Current Special Forces..

Any info at all?...Were the Recces reformed?

Does anyone know...Cheers in advance

[baboon6]

Hi everyone...

Quick question regarding SA Special Forces...

I was looking for books about the SA Special Forces and found this

We Fear Naught but God: The story of the SA Special Forces "The Recces" - Paul Els
New revised and updated edition 2009.
The story of the elite South African Special Forces ("the Recces") from inception in the 1960s to disbandment in 1993. A unique account of one of South Africa's premier units, masters in the art of reconnaissance and clandestine warfare.

It mentions the SA Recces were disbanded in 1993....What are SA Current Special Forces..

Any info at all?...Were the Recces reformed?

Does anyone know...Cheers in advance

The three permanent force Recce Regiments (1, 4 and 5 Recce) were not actually disbanded in 1993, they were redesignated 451, 452 and 453 Parachute Battalions of 45 Parachute Brigade. (44 Parachute Brigade was the "normal" parachute formation; Recces like normal Paras wore the maroon beret). 2 Recce Regt, the Citizen Force (reserve) unit was indeed disbanded and reserve Recce personnel attached directly to regular force units. Later in the 1990s these battalions were redesignated 1, 4 and 5 Special Forces Regiments of the Special Forces Brigade. 1 SF Regt has since been disbanded, 4 and 5 SF continue, along with the Special Forces School and SF Maintenance Unit.

EDIT: should have written Supply Unit, not Maintenance Unit (its former name)

If you look at the pages for the individual regiments on the page Dave linked to you will see more on their history. The current designation as SF Regiments started in 1995

[Dave76]

It mentions the SA Recces were disbanded in 1993....What are SA Current Special Forces..

Any info at all?...Were the Recces reformed?

Does anyone know...Cheers in advance
There now is a Special Forces Brigade which is made up of two Special Forces Regiments (4 & 5) with a supporting Special Forces Supply Unit and a Special Forces School.
For more info:
http://www.recce.co.za/index.php?meid=83

[mikec62001]

Cheers guys..thanks for the info

[vor033]

That is incorrect. I was IN the Parachute Battalion, and knew several of the Pathfinders personally. Recruiting was done straight from the battalion, although the "citizen force" pathfinder companies drew men from a variety of different places. The reality is that the majority of the members were trained at Tempe (1 Para Bn base). I can see where the confusion would arise - South Africa had 2 year conscription, and nearly all these guys had to do "camps" once every year or 2. When this happened, they were all assigned to 44 Para if they were qualified paratroopers. Obviosuly, 44 Para also had a number of permament force personnel, including from other countries.


32 Battalion was comprised of ex-Angolan troops/insurgents. More than 80% of them speak Portuguese. The unit was not technically regarded as being SFs, although they saw a hell of a lot of combat. My company worked with 32 Battalion on a few ocassions - in my opinion they are nearly all nuts, most had been constantly at war since the age of 10.



That is correct - if you read my posts you will see that I never claimed the Selous Scouts were South African. That wasn't the point - the point is that they were awesome!

Some of the info i have read over the years about SA Pathfinders say that the first Pathfinder company was formed in about 1980 and a large proportion of this unit were foreign and had mainly served in the Rhodesian Forces. A Book by a guy called Peter Macleese covers a period when he was the unit Sergeant Major dealing with selection and training, he was a Brit ex Para ex SAS ex Mercenary ex Rhodesian SAS and also says the unit was almost entirely foriegn.

This unit lasted about 2 years and operated in SWA/Angola and got the nickname the Philistines - The Unit was eventually reorginsed and became part of 44 Airborne Brigade which it wasnt part of before, and took on the normal Pathefinder Role.

In the Osprey Book South African Special Forces there is a good section on them, along with info on the Para Batts, Hunter Group, Recce's , 32 Battalion and 32 Battalion Recce wing and is a good read if you can get hold of it.

[mikec62001]

Relevant subject but probably not the correct forum...but does anyone know of any good books that you could recommend regarding the SA Recces?

Looking for a a bit more detailed info on selection, training, operations and some pics etc

Found this site that seems to have quite a few

http://www.bushveld.net/store3/erol.html#364x0&&

Cheers

M

[JoshuaS]

Some of the info i have read over the years about SA Pathfinders say that the first Pathfinder company was formed in about 1980 and a large proportion of this unit were foreign and had mainly served in the Rhodesian Forces. A Book by a guy called Peter Macleese covers a period when he was the unit Sergeant Major dealing with selection and training, he was a Brit ex Para ex SAS ex Mercenary ex Rhodesian SAS and also says the unit was almost entirely foriegn.

This unit lasted about 2 years and operated in SWA/Angola and got the nickname the Philistines - The Unit was eventually reorginsed and became part of 44 Airborne Brigade which it wasnt part of before, and took on the normal Pathefinder Role.

In the Osprey Book South African Special Forces there is a good section on them, along with info on the Para Batts, Hunter Group, Recce's , 32 Battalion and 32 Battalion Recce wing and is a good read if you can get hold of it.


From 1976, 1 Parachute Battalion possessed a limited pathfinder capability in the form of a small group of permanent force members who were Dropping Zone Safety Officer and Free-fall qualified

In May 1978 Operation Reindeer took place, part of which was the airborne assault on the Angolan town of Cassinga. Although the final outcome of the assault can be regarded as a success, it became clear during the operation and debriefing, that a method of guaranteeing the correct and safe dropping, grouping and especially the extraction of paratroopers, was urgently required. That capability did not exist, especially the means to covertly insert behind enemy lines and to do a reconnaissance on the target.

This led to the then CO of 1 Parachute Battalion, Col. D.J. Moore, requesting Maj Joos Rabie to formulate staff and equipment tables and to establish guidelines for the formation of an extended Pathfinder capability within 1 Parachute Battalion. The guideline that was followed was copied from the British SAS, USA Pathfinders and the Reconnaissance Regiments of the SADF. The aim was to train the Pathfinder to be on par with the Recce’s in their training schedule, regarding land warfare, but specializing in pathfinder and airborne operations.

In that same year the first National service memebers were trained as Pathfinders and 9 members made it to qualify as pathfinders. The did service in Rhodesia seconded to Selous scouts.

After the first Pathfinder group of 1978 it was decided to train new National Service Pathfinders on a yearly basis.

During the year 1980 there were no national service members trained as Pathfinders and that role were fulfilled by a permanent force group consisting mainly of foreigners whom joined the SADF after the independence of Zimbabwe(Rhodesia). The Philistines, as they became known, was officially formed in Nov 1980 by Col Breytenbach, the Officer Commanding 44 Parachute Brigade and they were named The Pathfinder Company. Captain Botes, who served with 32 Battalion, became commanding officer of the unit and WO2 McAleese, who served in the British SAS, was recruited as the company sergeant major. This group of Pathfinders did not fall under the command of 1 Parachute Battalion but rather 44 Parachute Brigade .They did extended operational duty in Angola and also participating in Operation Daisy, were they had excellent outcome. In January 1982 Col Bestbier took over command from Jan Breytenbach and the first thing he did was to disband the Brigades Pathfinder company and transferred those who were still under contract to the SADF to 32 Battalion.

From the 1981 National Service intake there were again Pathfinders trained that came operational at the beginning of 1982

[percor]

Hi everyone,
I am looking for all the information I can find about the South African HF Radio Fuchs SO-25. Is there any place in South Africa where I can get parts or accesories for this radio?
Thank you all for your time,
Percor

[wilhelm]

Hi everyone,
I am looking for all the information I can find about the South African HF Radio Fuchs SO-25. Is there any place in South Africa where I can get parts or accesories for this radio?
Thank you all for your time,
Percor

Fuchs Electronics are now part of the Reutech Group. They made fuzes, radios, etc.

http://www.fuchs.co.za/

Perhaps they can help.

My brothers ex father in law used to work for them. I'll see if I can get in touch with him.

You may get some help in this thread:
http://www.militaryphotos.net/forums/showthread.php?64954-South-African-National-Defence-Force/page156

[percor]

Fuchs Electronics are now part of the Reutech Group. They made fuzes, radios, etc.

http://www.fuchs.co.za/

Perhaps they can help.

My brothers ex father in law used to work for them. I'll see if I can get in touch with him.

You may get some help in this thread:
http://www.militaryphotos.net/forums/showthread.php?64954-South-African-National-Defence-Force/page156

Thank you Wilhelm for your help, I really appreciate it.
I just send an e.mail to Fuchs and I hope they answers me.
Thanks again,
Percor

[JoshuaS]

Hi Percor
The last time I have checked this is a thread for SA SF. So why are you asking about radios?

[percor]

Hi Percor
The last time I have checked this is a thread for SA SF. So why are you asking about radios?

Sorry JoshuaS if I bother you with my post.
I think that SA SF also use radios, so that is the reason I am trying to get information about that. Nothing more.
Best regards
Percor

[percor]

Fuchs Electronics are now part of the Reutech Group. They made fuzes, radios, etc.

http://www.fuchs.co.za/

Perhaps they can help.

My brothers ex father in law used to work for them. I'll see if I can get in touch with him.

You may get some help in this thread:
http://www.militaryphotos.net/forums/showthread.php?64954-South-African-National-Defence-Force/page156

Thank you Wilhelm again for your help. I contacted Fuchs and they answer me the same day.
Best regards,
Percor

[percor]

Fuchs Electronics are now part of the Reutech Group. They made fuzes, radios, etc.

http://www.fuchs.co.za/

Perhaps they can help.

My brothers ex father in law used to work for them. I'll see if I can get in touch with him.

You may get some help in this thread:
http://www.militaryphotos.net/forums/showthread.php?64954-South-African-National-Defence-Force/page156


Thank you so much Wilhelm for your help. The guys from Reutech Group are really great!!! they send me the SO25 original manual. And contacted me with a surplus in South Africa.
I really apreciate your help.
Here is a pic of the Fuchs SO25 with the amplifier.
Best regards
Percor

[wilhelm]

Thank you so much Wilhelm for your help. The guys from Reutech Group are really great!!! they send me the SO25 original manual. And contacted me with a surplus in South Africa.
I really apreciate your help.
Here is a pic of the Fuchs SO25 with the amplifier.
Best regards
Percor

Good news!

I'm glad I managed to help. I was not aware that radio was used in Argentina, although I recall a rumour when I was in the Army that South Africa had suppled radios to Argentina. I think this was in the 1980's or thereabouts?

[percor]

Good news!

I'm glad I managed to help. I was not aware that radio was used in Argentina, although I recall a rumour when I was in the Army that South Africa had suppled radios to Argentina. I think this was in the 1980's or thereabouts?

Argentine's Army and Gendarmeria (inland frontier guards) used and still have Thomsons TRC 300. The army built the same South African model SO25 and bought newer models to France (TRC 300-4). I can't say how this Fuchs came to my country. They are extremely rare radios. The Army used Thomsons in the Malvinas/Falklands 1982 war. As I know only France, South Africa, Australia, Argentina and Irak have Thomson/Fuchs TRC 300 / SO25 in their forces.

Thank you again,
Percor

[nawdish]

This is a section I copied and pasted from the Special Forces League.Selection is an event during which candidates are placed in an extremely mentally and physically demanding set of situations and circumstances, through which they must pass. It is in duration approximately a week. Selection is carefully and specifically designed so as to be impossible for a human being to complete on finite physical resources alone. In order to be able to complete selection, one has to draw on the infinite resources of the mind, as well as resources of will and spirit, to possibly continue and complete. For the duration of Selection, the candidates do not sleep or eat, and have no rest period at allIts no wonder such a small percentage ever made it , this bit just blows my mind ,A whole week of continua’s training ,no food no rest .And to think that they have only been getting maybe 4 hour sleep a day during the last 5 weeks before selection. I once had to man a radio by myself and I only got relieved on the 4th day in the morning, I had gone without sleep for 3 days, I had plenty of coffee and food and never had to do any PT and I can tell you I was starting too hear voices people that didn’t exist were have conversations around me in my head. AND that just the beginning of the training.I had the privilege of spending a day with a sergeant from 5 recce, he was recovering from a bullet wound to the leg so he was seconded to our unit for the day, we were doing exercisers and this guy took a liking to me and decided I would help him for the day, He was one of the friendliest guys I had ever met, i can tell you that made alot of people Jealous .

[zealot66]

The SA special forces are a hollow shell of what they were prior to 93. I am currently reading a book on the history of the Recces by Peter Stiff- The Silent War. Detailed to a fault. The lack of actual operators really makes a person understand why there are so few books. A revived interest in Rhodesia's SAS and Selous Scouts has elevated demand for more SA border war history as well. The things they did were insane. After the fall of Rhodesia, many moved onto the SA SF's at the invitation of the SA army. Some only lasted a year due to the cultural differences of the Afrikaaner and the more loose Rhodie. However, some went on to serve in both wars. Willem Ratte who can be found on Facebook is a treasure trove of information as he served from 73 in Rhodesia's SAS and was a commander of the 32 battalion's recce group.

These guys relied on soldiering skills alot more than any technology and it makes it all the more impressive what they did. If you aren't aware there were several Americans who served in both wars as well. I have been fortunate enough in my research to talk to several of these guys. In my new Novel/Series, I use several South African/Rhodesian bred characters. The US aren't the only ones who developed spec ops. DR Tharp

[intelligenzija]

The SA special forces are a hollow shell of what they were prior to 93. I am currently reading a book on the history of the Recces by Peter Stiff- The Silent War. Detailed to a fault. The lack of actual operators really makes a person understand why there are so few books. A revived interest in Rhodesia's SAS and Selous Scouts has elevated demand for more SA border war history as well. The things they did were insane. After the fall of Rhodesia, many moved onto the SA SF's at the invitation of the SA army. Some only lasted a year due to the cultural differences of the Afrikaaner and the more loose Rhodie. However, some went on to serve in both wars. Willem Ratte who can be found on Facebook is a treasure trove of information as he served from 73 in Rhodesia's SAS and was a commander of the 32 battalion's recce group.

These guys relied on soldiering skills alot more than any technology and it makes it all the more impressive what they did. If you aren't aware there were several Americans who served in both wars as well. I have been fortunate enough in my research to talk to several of these guys. In my new Novel/Series, I use several South African/Rhodesian bred characters. The US aren't the only ones who developed spec ops. DR Tharp

very good book.. had to leave it in africa, together with Cry Zimbabwe