Battle of Quifangondo
Encyclopedia
The Battle of Quifangondo occurred on November 10, 1975, the day before the MPLA declared Angola
's independence from Portugal
and was the first major battle in the beginning Angolan Civil War
(1975-2002). By that time, the MPLA under Agostinho Neto
had gained control of the Angolan capital Luanda
while the two rival liberation movements, FNLA and UNITA
, fought for a foothold in the capital themselves before independence could be declared.
The FNLA-force, a coalition of rebels under Holden Roberto
, was made up of 1,000 FNLA fighters, 120 mostly white Portuguese Angolan soldiers under the command of Colonel Santos e Castro, two Zairian Army battalions led by the 7th Battalion's commander Colonel Mamina Lama and about 50 South African troops under the command of Brigadier General Ben Roos.
Attacking from north-eastern Angola, the FNLA defeated the MPLA at Porto Quipiri before marching to Quifangondo on their way to Luanda. South African forces had entered Angola from Southwest Africa, occupied all of southern Angola and handed it over to UNITA. By November 10 they had come within a few hundred km of the capital.
Less than 24 hours before independence, Roberto, ignoring advice that a frontal assault would not work, decided to launch an attack against Luanda.The cities defences were put up around the strategically located village of Quifangondo, about 10 km to the east of Luanda.
to support the attack, located on high ground at Morro da Cal, as well as an opening air strike by Canberra
bombers. Two 130 mm
Zairian Army guns of North Korean
origin would also be brought to bear.
On the eve of the battle, Cuba
launched a large scale intervention (Operation Carlota) on behalf of the MPLA and airlifted first special forces to Luanda. They were urgently needed to man the six BM-21
multiple rocket launcher
s supplied by the Soviet Union
, the first to arrive in Angola and brought into position at the last minute. (The launchers delay had been caused by logistical problems in obtaining fuses
for the weapons — in any event their late deployment prevented their detection and ensured complete surprise.)
The SAAF air strike went ahead as planned, and the artillery shelled the FAPLA positions overnight. However, the ground attack was not pressed in immediately afterwards. The attacking force marched in a single line along the Bengo River and faced a force of 1000 Cuban and FAPLA troops across the river. The Cubans and MPLA defenders waited until the entire attacking force was boxed in the killing zone between the coast and the lagoon
, before bombarding the them with mortars
and 122mm rockets, destroying most of the FNLA's armored cars and six Jeeps carrying recoilless rifle
s in the first hour of fighting. Witnesses estimated the Cuban-led force shot 2000 rockets at the FNLA. Cubans then drove forward, launching RPG-7
rocket grenades, shooting with anti-aircraft guns, killing hundreds. The SADF gunners were powerless to help, as their outdated guns
were significantly outranged by the Cuban rockets.
Furthermore, when one of the Zairian Army's North Korean
130mm guns which could shoot the distance was fired for the first time, the breach exploded, killing the Zairian lieutenant commanding the two guns; his men refused to fire the other gun after that. The Zairian gun crew was so incompetent that they had forgotten to charge the artillery pieces' recoil mechanisms with lubricant, which caused the gun's breech to erupt on the first firing. Additionally, the guns' firing tables were in Korean and could not be read or used by the guns' French-speaking Zairian crew.
Roberto spent the night of Angola's independence, November 10, at his base in Ambriz, about 70 miles (112.7 km) north of Quifangondo where he had maintained his command in the previous several months. When Roberto arrived near Quifangondo the next morning, he discovered some of his forces in disarray retreating north-east in fragmented groups. The capital's skyline had lit up with fireworks at midnight on November 10 in celebration of the country's independence from Portugal. FNLA troops on the ridge northeast of Quifangondo, who had never previously seen fireworks, saw the skyrockets on Luanda's skyline and panicked again, thinking they were more of the dreaded Cuban 122mm rockets that had hit their advancing column hard in the valley earlier in the day.
Colonel Santos e Castro's Portuguese Angolan commando force was also in disarray due to the loss of most of their Panhard
armored cars and the death of some of their crews in the previous day's battle. They had consolidated a short distance northeast of their earlier occupied position on a ridgeline, leaving the SADF guns and a small SADF force there to protect the SADF's guns as the most forward element and vulnerable to any MPLA-Cuban ground attack. SADF Brigadier General Ben Roos threatened to withdraw his artillery guns immediately from northern Angola if his guns were not protected by a line of troops forward of the guns. Roberto was furious at the Portuguese Angolan officers for leaving the SADF guns exposed.
No further FNLA effort was made to advance through the Quifangondo valley to Luanda. With Cuban support pouring into the country, in the following weeks the FNLA was all but annihilated in a number of further battles in north-eastern Angola. The Zairians had taken flight and the South African gunners eventually withdrew to Ambrizette where they were evacuated by SAS President Steyn, a South African Navy
frigate
, thereby ending Operation Savannah
. The Cuba-MPLA largely ended the FNLA's importance in the Angolan Civil war.
The defeat at Quifangondo became known amongst the FNLA as "Nshila wa Lufu" ("Road of death").
Angola
Angola, officially the Republic of Angola , is a country in south-central Africa bordered by Namibia on the south, the Democratic Republic of the Congo on the north, and Zambia on the east; its west coast is on the Atlantic Ocean with Luanda as its capital city...
's independence from Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
and was the first major battle in the beginning Angolan Civil War
Angolan Civil War
The Angolan Civil War was a major civil conflict in the Southern African state of Angola, beginning in 1975 and continuing, with some interludes, until 2002. The war began immediately after Angola became independent from Portugal in November 1975. Prior to this, a decolonisation conflict had taken...
(1975-2002). By that time, the MPLA under Agostinho Neto
Agostinho Neto
António Agostinho Neto served as the first President of Angola , leading the Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola in the war for independence and the civil war...
had gained control of the Angolan capital Luanda
Luanda
Luanda, formerly named São Paulo da Assunção de Loanda, is the capital and largest city of Angola. Located on Angola's coast with the Atlantic Ocean, Luanda is both Angola's chief seaport and its administrative center. It has a population of at least 5 million...
while the two rival liberation movements, FNLA and UNITA
UNITA
The National Union for the Total Independence of Angola is the second-largest political party in Angola. Founded in 1966, UNITA fought with the Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola in the Angolan War for Independence and then against the MPLA in the ensuing civil war .The war was one...
, fought for a foothold in the capital themselves before independence could be declared.
The FNLA-force, a coalition of rebels under Holden Roberto
Holden Roberto
Holden Álvaro Roberto founded and led the National Liberation Front of Angola from 1962 to 1999. His memoirs are unfinished.-Early life:...
, was made up of 1,000 FNLA fighters, 120 mostly white Portuguese Angolan soldiers under the command of Colonel Santos e Castro, two Zairian Army battalions led by the 7th Battalion's commander Colonel Mamina Lama and about 50 South African troops under the command of Brigadier General Ben Roos.
Attacking from north-eastern Angola, the FNLA defeated the MPLA at Porto Quipiri before marching to Quifangondo on their way to Luanda. South African forces had entered Angola from Southwest Africa, occupied all of southern Angola and handed it over to UNITA. By November 10 they had come within a few hundred km of the capital.
Less than 24 hours before independence, Roberto, ignoring advice that a frontal assault would not work, decided to launch an attack against Luanda.The cities defences were put up around the strategically located village of Quifangondo, about 10 km to the east of Luanda.
Battle
At Roberto's request, the SADF provided three World War II-era 140mm howitzersBL 5.5 inch Medium Gun
The BL 5.5 inch Gun was a British artillery gun introduced during the middle of the Second World War to equip medium batteries.-History:In January 1939 a specification was issued for a gun to replace the 6 inch 26 cwt howitzers in use with most medium batteries...
to support the attack, located on high ground at Morro da Cal, as well as an opening air strike by Canberra
English Electric Canberra
The English Electric Canberra is a first-generation jet-powered light bomber manufactured in large numbers through the 1950s. The Canberra could fly at a higher altitude than any other bomber through the 1950s and set a world altitude record of 70,310 ft in 1957...
bombers. Two 130 mm
130 mm towed field gun M1954 (M-46)
The 130 mm towed field gun M-46 M1954 is a manually loaded, towed 130 mm artillery piece, manufactured in the Soviet Union in the 1950s. It was first observed by the west in 1954...
Zairian Army guns of North Korean
North Korea
The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea , , is a country in East Asia, occupying the northern half of the Korean Peninsula. Its capital and largest city is Pyongyang. The Korean Demilitarized Zone serves as the buffer zone between North Korea and South Korea...
origin would also be brought to bear.
On the eve of the battle, Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
launched a large scale intervention (Operation Carlota) on behalf of the MPLA and airlifted first special forces to Luanda. They were urgently needed to man the six BM-21
BM-21
The BM-21 launch vehicle , a Soviet truck-mounted 122 mm multiple rocket launcher, and a M-21OF rocket were developed in the early 1960s. BM stands for boyevaya mashina, ‘combat vehicle’, and the nickname means ‘hail’. The complete system with the BM-21 launch vehicle and the M-21OF rocket...
multiple rocket launcher
Multiple rocket launcher
A multiple rocket launcher is a type of unguided rocket artillery system. Like other rocket artillery, multiple rocket launchers are less accurate and have a much lower rate of fire than batteries of traditional artillery guns...
s supplied by the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
, the first to arrive in Angola and brought into position at the last minute. (The launchers delay had been caused by logistical problems in obtaining fuses
Fuse (explosives)
In an explosive, pyrotechnic device or military munition, a fuse is the part of the device that initiates function. In common usage, the word fuse is used indiscriminately...
for the weapons — in any event their late deployment prevented their detection and ensured complete surprise.)
The SAAF air strike went ahead as planned, and the artillery shelled the FAPLA positions overnight. However, the ground attack was not pressed in immediately afterwards. The attacking force marched in a single line along the Bengo River and faced a force of 1000 Cuban and FAPLA troops across the river. The Cubans and MPLA defenders waited until the entire attacking force was boxed in the killing zone between the coast and the lagoon
Lagoon
A lagoon is a body of shallow sea water or brackish water separated from the sea by some form of barrier. The EU's habitat directive defines lagoons as "expanses of shallow coastal salt water, of varying salinity or water volume, wholly or partially separated from the sea by sand banks or shingle,...
, before bombarding the them with mortars
Mortar (weapon)
A mortar is an indirect fire weapon that fires explosive projectiles known as bombs at low velocities, short ranges, and high-arcing ballistic trajectories. It is typically muzzle-loading and has a barrel length less than 15 times its caliber....
and 122mm rockets, destroying most of the FNLA's armored cars and six Jeeps carrying recoilless rifle
Recoilless rifle
A recoilless rifle or recoilless gun is a lightweight weapon that fires a heavier projectile than would be practical to fire from a recoiling weapon of comparable size. Technically, only devices that use a rifled barrel are recoilless rifles. Smoothbore variants are recoilless guns...
s in the first hour of fighting. Witnesses estimated the Cuban-led force shot 2000 rockets at the FNLA. Cubans then drove forward, launching RPG-7
RPG-7
The RPG-7 is a widely-produced, portable, unguided, shoulder-launched, anti-tank rocket-propelled grenade launcher. Originally the RPG-7 and its predecessor, the RPG-2, were designed by the Soviet Union, and now manufactured by the Bazalt company...
rocket grenades, shooting with anti-aircraft guns, killing hundreds. The SADF gunners were powerless to help, as their outdated guns
BL 5.5 inch Medium Gun
The BL 5.5 inch Gun was a British artillery gun introduced during the middle of the Second World War to equip medium batteries.-History:In January 1939 a specification was issued for a gun to replace the 6 inch 26 cwt howitzers in use with most medium batteries...
were significantly outranged by the Cuban rockets.
Furthermore, when one of the Zairian Army's North Korean
North Korea
The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea , , is a country in East Asia, occupying the northern half of the Korean Peninsula. Its capital and largest city is Pyongyang. The Korean Demilitarized Zone serves as the buffer zone between North Korea and South Korea...
130mm guns which could shoot the distance was fired for the first time, the breach exploded, killing the Zairian lieutenant commanding the two guns; his men refused to fire the other gun after that. The Zairian gun crew was so incompetent that they had forgotten to charge the artillery pieces' recoil mechanisms with lubricant, which caused the gun's breech to erupt on the first firing. Additionally, the guns' firing tables were in Korean and could not be read or used by the guns' French-speaking Zairian crew.
Roberto spent the night of Angola's independence, November 10, at his base in Ambriz, about 70 miles (112.7 km) north of Quifangondo where he had maintained his command in the previous several months. When Roberto arrived near Quifangondo the next morning, he discovered some of his forces in disarray retreating north-east in fragmented groups. The capital's skyline had lit up with fireworks at midnight on November 10 in celebration of the country's independence from Portugal. FNLA troops on the ridge northeast of Quifangondo, who had never previously seen fireworks, saw the skyrockets on Luanda's skyline and panicked again, thinking they were more of the dreaded Cuban 122mm rockets that had hit their advancing column hard in the valley earlier in the day.
Colonel Santos e Castro's Portuguese Angolan commando force was also in disarray due to the loss of most of their Panhard
Panhard
Panhard is currently a French manufacturer of light tactical and military vehicles. Its current incarnation was formed by the acquisition of Panhard by Auverland in 2005. Panhard had been under Citroën ownership, then PSA , for 40 years...
armored cars and the death of some of their crews in the previous day's battle. They had consolidated a short distance northeast of their earlier occupied position on a ridgeline, leaving the SADF guns and a small SADF force there to protect the SADF's guns as the most forward element and vulnerable to any MPLA-Cuban ground attack. SADF Brigadier General Ben Roos threatened to withdraw his artillery guns immediately from northern Angola if his guns were not protected by a line of troops forward of the guns. Roberto was furious at the Portuguese Angolan officers for leaving the SADF guns exposed.
No further FNLA effort was made to advance through the Quifangondo valley to Luanda. With Cuban support pouring into the country, in the following weeks the FNLA was all but annihilated in a number of further battles in north-eastern Angola. The Zairians had taken flight and the South African gunners eventually withdrew to Ambrizette where they were evacuated by SAS President Steyn, a South African Navy
South African Navy
The South African Navy is the navy of the Republic of South Africa.-Formation:The South African Navy can trace its official origins back to the SA Naval Service, which was established on 1 April 1922....
frigate
Leander class frigate
The Leander class, or Type 12I frigates, comprising twenty-six vessels, was among the most numerous and long-lived classes of frigate in the Royal Navy's modern history. The class was built in three batches between 1959 and 1973...
, thereby ending Operation Savannah
Operation Savannah (Angola)
Operation Savannah was the name given to the South African Defence Force's 1975–1976 covert intervention in the Angolan Civil War.-Background:...
. The Cuba-MPLA largely ended the FNLA's importance in the Angolan Civil war.
The defeat at Quifangondo became known amongst the FNLA as "Nshila wa Lufu" ("Road of death").