South African Special Forces Brigade
Encyclopedia
The South African Special Forces Brigade (popularly known as "Recces") is the only Special Forces
unit of the South African National Defence Force
(SANDF).
On October 1, 1972, 1 Reconnaissance Commando was created at Oudtshoorn, South Africa. It was relocated a few years later to Durban
, South Africa. This was the first South African Special Forces unit.
The South African special forces played a significant role in the country's 30 year long border war
in Namibia
and Angola
.
South African Special Forces now consists of Special Forces Headquarters in Pretoria, 4 Special Forces Regiment in Langebaan, 5 Special Forces Regiment - Phalaborwa
and the Special Forces School in Murrayhill.
4 Special Forces Regiment specialise in maritime-related activities, whereas 5 Special Forces regiment specialises more in overland techniques, especially long-range infiltration.
The Brigade is not a part of the South African Army
, it is directly under the command of the Joint Operations Division of the SANDF.
on 1 October 1972. On 1 January 1975, this unit was relocated to Durban
, Natal, where it continued its activities as the airborne specialist unit of the special forces.
Later, two additional Reconnaissance Commandos were formed:
On 1 January 1981, a re-organisation of Special Forces took place, as part of which the Reconnaissance Commandos and other special forces were transformed into an independent formation, directly under the command of the (then) South African Defence Force
(instead of the South African Army). As part of the re-organisation, the various Reconnaissance Commandos were also given the status of regiment
s. In the latter part of the same decade, a Special Forces headquarters and a Special Forces stores depot were also added to the Special Forces structure.
Between the years 1981 and 1990, Special Forces was home to unconventional operations such as Project Barnacle, the Civil Cooperation Bureau
and a variety of other operations conducted under the aegis of 7 Medical Battalion Group
.
In 1991, the structure of the special forces underwent another change, when the special forces headquarters was disbanded and a Directorate Reconnaissance, reporting directly to the Chief of the Army, was established instead.
Another organisational change followed in 1993, when the Directorate Reconnaissance became 45 Parachute Brigade. As a result of this, all the units were renamed: 1 Reconnaissance Regiment became 452 Parachute Battalion, 4 Reconnaissance Regiment became 453 Parachute Battalion and 5 Reconnaissance Regiment became 451 Parachute Battalion.
As a result of the changes that took place in South Africa after the first fully democratic elections, the special forces organisation was changed to its current structure in 1996. The Special Forces Brigade, as it is presently known, consists of 4 and 5 Special Forces Regiments as well as 1 Maintenance Unit, which provides logistic support. Designation of these forces as being of "brigade"-size, however, is highly misleading. Total fighting manpower of 4 and 5 Special Forces Regiments combined does not approach even the strength of a regular infantry battalion.
As part of the military transformation process, 1 Special Forces Regiment was disbanded in 1996.
.
The main enemy then was a group known as SWAPO (South West Africa’s People Organization). It was a guerrilla
organization fighting for an independent Namibia
.
One of the "Recces"' most effective operations came in 1982: Operation Mebos penetrated deep into Angola and destroyed the SWAPO Headquarters. In Operation Askari
, in the winter of 1984, the "Recces" cut off almost all supply lines to and from the SWAPO in Angola. In 1985, a "Recce" team undertook the controversial Operation Cabinda, a failed attempt to sabotage Angolan oil installations run by Gulf Oil
.
In early summer of 1985, another "Recce" team under the command of SADF Captain Andre Diedericks crossed into Angola’s Cuando Cubango
province, and with UNITA
's help, protection and escort was secretly deployed around Menongue
area. The team had at their disposal the 9K31 “Strela-1” AA system manned and operated by the team members. Team’s mission was to carry out covert combat operations, code names "Catamaran 1," "Catamaran 2" and “Cerberus” with the goal to disrupt air traffic in Cuando Cubango province by shooting down air transports, combat aircrafts and gunships using the AA system.
On 11 June 1985, roughly 80 km from Menongue, the team shot down Angolan airplane, a light utility aircraft, Britten-Norman
BN-2 “Islander”
. The “Islander”, in route from Menongue to Cuito Cuanavale with a crew of 2 and 5 passengers was also carrying 69 million kwanzas (Angola’s currency), several months of salary for FAPLA’s 16th Brigade’s personnel based in Cuito Cuanavale
. When the “Islander” fell to the ground the money was stolen and the remains of the dead passengers had been pillaged by UNITA soldiers attached to protect the "Recce" team.
On 25 November 1985, the same “Recce” team had also shot down an “Aeroflot” Antonov AN-12
, cargo airplane. The AN-12 transport en-route from Cuito Cuanavale to Luanda carrying 8 crew members and 13 passengers crashed approximately 43 km south-east of Menongue. All people on board (twelve Soviet and nine Angolan nationals) died in the crash.
. A soldier must be self-controlled and mature. Soldiers are ejected from the course if there is any suggestion of mental instability. The Physical Test includes 40 continuous push ups
, 67 sit ups
in two minutes, fireman lift, three-kilometre run in full gear in thirteen minutes, a rope climb (to show upper body strength ), 40 shuttle runs in 95 seconds and wall scaling. A student must scale a 10 feet (3 m) wall, complete a fifteen-kilometre march in less than 120 minutes and perform 120 shuttle kicks.
For the duration of Selection, the candidates do not sleep or eat, and have no rest period at all.
Only an extremely small percentage of persons who begin Selection ever pass it. In some years, no-one has managed to pass Selection, and there are other cases where only 1 or 2 persons out of an entire Selection group pass.
, tracking
and survival
, demolition
s and tactics in urban as well as rural areas.
Advanced Airborne Training: a recruit will be taught about military free-fall
such as HALO and HAHO
. They will also learn about helicopter operations – how to rappel
fast down a rope out of helicopters. Combat extraction
is also taught, along with learning how to set up a LZ
.
Land training consists of many things: including sniping
, demolitions and reconnaissance
. Bushcraft and survival is also taught. Climbing
and photography
are taught to new recruits. Urban and rural combat is perhaps the newest training – developed quite recently, this training provided South Africa with a new counter-terrorist
force. Medical
and communications
training is also given to those who wish to become qualified.
Maritime training consists of the use of small boats, underwater demolitions, swimming, diving
, beach reconnaissance and navigation
. It is thought to be based on the SBS
training.
As a special forces unit they also have access to a wide variety of standard and non-standard firearms.
Standard operator badges are silver, but a gold badge with an embedded diamond is awarded to Operators with more than 10 years of active service.
Special forces
Special forces, or special operations forces are terms used to describe elite military tactical teams trained to perform high-risk dangerous missions that conventional units cannot perform...
unit of the South African National Defence Force
South African National Defence Force
The South African National Defence Force is the armed forces of South Africa. The military as it exists today was created in 1994, following South Africa's first post-apartheid national elections and the adoption of a new constitution...
(SANDF).
On October 1, 1972, 1 Reconnaissance Commando was created at Oudtshoorn, South Africa. It was relocated a few years later to Durban
Durban
Durban is the largest city in the South African province of KwaZulu-Natal and the third largest city in South Africa. It forms part of the eThekwini metropolitan municipality. Durban is famous for being the busiest port in South Africa. It is also seen as one of the major centres of tourism...
, South Africa. This was the first South African Special Forces unit.
The South African special forces played a significant role in the country's 30 year long border war
South African Border War
The South African Border War, commonly referred to as the Angolan Bush War in South Africa, was a conflict that took place from 1966 to 1989 in South-West Africa and Angola between South Africa and its allied forces on the one side and the Angolan government, South-West Africa People's...
in Namibia
Namibia
Namibia, officially the Republic of Namibia , is a country in southern Africa whose western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Angola and Zambia to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and east. It gained independence from South Africa on 21 March...
and Angola
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...
.
South African Special Forces now consists of Special Forces Headquarters in Pretoria, 4 Special Forces Regiment in Langebaan, 5 Special Forces Regiment - Phalaborwa
Phalaborwa
Phalaborwa is a town situated in the Mopani district, halfway up along the length of the Kruger National Park in the Limpopo province in South Africa. The Lowveld, also known as Valley of the Olifants, has the highest winter temperatures in South Africa. The rainfall is low and the average winter...
and the Special Forces School in Murrayhill.
4 Special Forces Regiment specialise in maritime-related activities, whereas 5 Special Forces regiment specialises more in overland techniques, especially long-range infiltration.
The Brigade is not a part of the South African Army
South African Army
The South African Army is the army of South Africa, first formed after the Union of South Africa was created in 1910.The South African military evolved within the tradition of frontier warfare fought by commando forces, reinforced by the Afrikaners' historical distrust of large standing armies...
, it is directly under the command of the Joint Operations Division of the SANDF.
History
The first South African Special Forces unit, 1 Reconnaissance Commando, was established in the town of Oudtshoorn, Cape ProvinceCape Province
The Province of the Cape of Good Hope was a province in the Union of South Africa and subsequently the Republic of South Africa...
on 1 October 1972. On 1 January 1975, this unit was relocated to Durban
Durban
Durban is the largest city in the South African province of KwaZulu-Natal and the third largest city in South Africa. It forms part of the eThekwini metropolitan municipality. Durban is famous for being the busiest port in South Africa. It is also seen as one of the major centres of tourism...
, Natal, where it continued its activities as the airborne specialist unit of the special forces.
Later, two additional Reconnaissance Commandos were formed:
- 4 Reconnaissance Commando, specialising in seaborne operations, was established in the coastal town of LangebaanLangebaanLangebaan is a town in the Western Cape province of South Africa on the eastern shore of Langebaan Lagoon.Langebaan is situated 120 km north of Cape Town, just off the R27, about 28km from Vredenburg and 20km from Saldanha Bay...
, Cape ProvinceCape ProvinceThe Province of the Cape of Good Hope was a province in the Union of South Africa and subsequently the Republic of South Africa...
. - 5 Reconnaissance Commando was established at the Duku-Duku camp in NatalNatal ProvinceNatal, meaning "Christmas" in Portuguese, was a province of South Africa from 1910 until 1994. Its capital was Pietermaritzburg. The Natal Province included the bantustan of KwaZulu...
, but was later moved to PhalaborwaPhalaborwaPhalaborwa is a town situated in the Mopani district, halfway up along the length of the Kruger National Park in the Limpopo province in South Africa. The Lowveld, also known as Valley of the Olifants, has the highest winter temperatures in South Africa. The rainfall is low and the average winter...
in the TransvaalTransvaal ProvinceTransvaal Province was a province of the Union of South Africa from 1910 to 1961, and of its successor, the Republic of South Africa, from 1961 until the end of apartheid in 1994 when a new constitution subdivided it.-History:...
province.
On 1 January 1981, a re-organisation of Special Forces took place, as part of which the Reconnaissance Commandos and other special forces were transformed into an independent formation, directly under the command of the (then) South African Defence Force
South African Defence Force
The South African Defence Force was the South African armed forces from 1957 until 1994. The former Union Defence Force was renamed to the South African Defence Force in the Defence Act of 1957...
(instead of the South African Army). As part of the re-organisation, the various Reconnaissance Commandos were also given the status of regiment
Regiment
A regiment is a major tactical military unit, composed of variable numbers of batteries, squadrons or battalions, commanded by a colonel or lieutenant colonel...
s. In the latter part of the same decade, a Special Forces headquarters and a Special Forces stores depot were also added to the Special Forces structure.
Between the years 1981 and 1990, Special Forces was home to unconventional operations such as Project Barnacle, the Civil Cooperation Bureau
Civil Cooperation Bureau
The South African Civil Cooperation Bureau was a government-sponsored hit squad during the apartheid era that operated under the authority of Defence Minister General Magnus Malan...
and a variety of other operations conducted under the aegis of 7 Medical Battalion Group
7 Medical Battalion Group
7 Medical Battalion Group is the specialist Airborne Medical Battalion of the South African Military Health Service. The Battalion's main task is to render medical support to the South African Special and Airborne Forces....
.
In 1991, the structure of the special forces underwent another change, when the special forces headquarters was disbanded and a Directorate Reconnaissance, reporting directly to the Chief of the Army, was established instead.
Another organisational change followed in 1993, when the Directorate Reconnaissance became 45 Parachute Brigade. As a result of this, all the units were renamed: 1 Reconnaissance Regiment became 452 Parachute Battalion, 4 Reconnaissance Regiment became 453 Parachute Battalion and 5 Reconnaissance Regiment became 451 Parachute Battalion.
As a result of the changes that took place in South Africa after the first fully democratic elections, the special forces organisation was changed to its current structure in 1996. The Special Forces Brigade, as it is presently known, consists of 4 and 5 Special Forces Regiments as well as 1 Maintenance Unit, which provides logistic support. Designation of these forces as being of "brigade"-size, however, is highly misleading. Total fighting manpower of 4 and 5 Special Forces Regiments combined does not approach even the strength of a regular infantry battalion.
As part of the military transformation process, 1 Special Forces Regiment was disbanded in 1996.
Operations
The South African "Recces" were deployed to many local hot spots during the late 1970s and early 1980s, particularly AngolaAngola
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...
.
The main enemy then was a group known as SWAPO (South West Africa’s People Organization). It was a guerrilla
Guerrilla warfare
Guerrilla warfare is a form of irregular warfare and refers to conflicts in which a small group of combatants including, but not limited to, armed civilians use military tactics, such as ambushes, sabotage, raids, the element of surprise, and extraordinary mobility to harass a larger and...
organization fighting for an independent Namibia
Namibia
Namibia, officially the Republic of Namibia , is a country in southern Africa whose western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Angola and Zambia to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and east. It gained independence from South Africa on 21 March...
.
One of the "Recces"' most effective operations came in 1982: Operation Mebos penetrated deep into Angola and destroyed the SWAPO Headquarters. In Operation Askari
Operation Askari
Operation Askari was a military operation by the South African Defence Force during the South African Border War and Angolan Civil War....
, in the winter of 1984, the "Recces" cut off almost all supply lines to and from the SWAPO in Angola. In 1985, a "Recce" team undertook the controversial Operation Cabinda, a failed attempt to sabotage Angolan oil installations run by Gulf Oil
Gulf Oil
Gulf Oil was a major global oil company from the 1900s to the 1980s. The eighth-largest American manufacturing company in 1941 and the ninth-largest in 1979, Gulf Oil was one of the so-called Seven Sisters oil companies...
.
In early summer of 1985, another "Recce" team under the command of SADF Captain Andre Diedericks crossed into Angola’s Cuando Cubango
Cuando Cubango
Cuando Cubango is a province of Angola and it has an area of 199,049 km² and a population of approximately 140,000. Menongue is the capital of the province. The governor of the province is General Eusebio de Brito. According to 1988 US government statistics, the provincial population was...
province, and with 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...
's help, protection and escort was secretly deployed around Menongue
Menongue
Menongue is a town and municipality in Cuando Cubango Province in Angola.It is the terminus of the southern railway from Namibe.-History:Menongue, formerly Serpa Pinto, was originally named for Alexandre Alberto da Rocha de Serpa Pinto, a late 19th-century Portuguese explorer of the interior of...
area. The team had at their disposal the 9K31 “Strela-1” AA system manned and operated by the team members. Team’s mission was to carry out covert combat operations, code names "Catamaran 1," "Catamaran 2" and “Cerberus” with the goal to disrupt air traffic in Cuando Cubango province by shooting down air transports, combat aircrafts and gunships using the AA system.
On 11 June 1985, roughly 80 km from Menongue, the team shot down Angolan airplane, a light utility aircraft, Britten-Norman
Britten-Norman
Britten-Norman is a British aircraft manufacturer owned by members of the Zawawi family from the Sultanate of Oman, making it the last remaining UK independent commercial aircraft producer....
BN-2 “Islander”
Britten-Norman Islander
The Britten-Norman BN-2 Islander is a 1960s British light utility aircraft, regional airliner and cargo aircraft designed and originally manufactured by Britten-Norman of the United Kingdom. The Islander is one of the best-selling commercial aircraft types produced in Europe. Although designed in...
. The “Islander”, in route from Menongue to Cuito Cuanavale with a crew of 2 and 5 passengers was also carrying 69 million kwanzas (Angola’s currency), several months of salary for FAPLA’s 16th Brigade’s personnel based in Cuito Cuanavale
Cuito Cuanavale
Cuito Cuanavale is a town and municipality in Cuando Cubango province in Angola. The names Kuito Kuanavale or Kwito Kwanavale are sometimes used, although this is a mutation of the original Portuguese name....
. When the “Islander” fell to the ground the money was stolen and the remains of the dead passengers had been pillaged by UNITA soldiers attached to protect the "Recce" team.
On 25 November 1985, the same “Recce” team had also shot down an “Aeroflot” Antonov AN-12
1985 "Aeroflot" Antonov An-12 crash
On November 25, 1985, an “Aeroflot” Antonov AN-12, cargo airplane in route from Cuito Cuanavale to Luanda was shot down by South African Special Forces and crashed approximately 43 km east of Menongue, the provincial center of the Cuando Cubango province, Angola...
, cargo airplane. The AN-12 transport en-route from Cuito Cuanavale to Luanda carrying 8 crew members and 13 passengers crashed approximately 43 km south-east of Menongue. All people on board (twelve Soviet and nine Angolan nationals) died in the crash.
Selection
The Ultimate Challenge, as South African Special Forces Selection is often called, is considered one of the harder special forces selection courses in the world. A soldier must meet very high requirements to even attend Special Forces Selection. In accordance with SANDF regulation, only South African citizens are permitted.Pre-selection training
This includes all aspects of psychological and physical tests. For the psychological tests, soldiers will be given written tests and oral interviews with Special Forces NCOsNon-commissioned officer
A non-commissioned officer , called a sub-officer in some countries, is a military officer who has not been given a commission...
. A soldier must be self-controlled and mature. Soldiers are ejected from the course if there is any suggestion of mental instability. The Physical Test includes 40 continuous push ups
Press up
For the 2004 single by Freestylers, see Push UpA push-up, or in British English a press-up, is a common calisthenics exercise performed in a prone position by raising and lowering the body using the arms...
, 67 sit ups
Sit-up (exercise)
The sit-up is a strength training exercise commonly performed with the aim of strengthening the hip flexors and abdominal muscles. It begins with lying with the back on the floor, typically with the arms across the chest or hands behind the head and the knees bent in an attempt to reduce stress on...
in two minutes, fireman lift, three-kilometre run in full gear in thirteen minutes, a rope climb (to show upper body strength ), 40 shuttle runs in 95 seconds and wall scaling. A student must scale a 10 feet (3 m) wall, complete a fifteen-kilometre march in less than 120 minutes and perform 120 shuttle kicks.
Parachute selection course
Basic Parachute School is one of the most demanding. All Special Forces candidates who aren't parachute-qualified will have to attend this course.Special Forces orientation course
This is a time when a student will learn what Special Forces are and what they do. He will be told about what to look forward to in training. He is made to train every day to get into shape for the toughest part of Selection yet.Special Forces selection
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.For the duration of Selection, the candidates do not sleep or eat, and have no rest period at all.
Only an extremely small percentage of persons who begin Selection ever pass it. In some years, no-one has managed to pass Selection, and there are other cases where only 1 or 2 persons out of an entire Selection group pass.
The cycle
Once past the Selection process, he will be placed on a training cycle to acquire the skills required. These include: air co-operation, water orientation, obstacle crossing, bushcraftBushcraft
Bushcraft is a long-term extension of survival skills. A popular term for wilderness skills in Canada, The UK, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa, the term was popularised in the southern hemisphere by Les Hiddins in Australia as well as in the northern hemisphere by Mors Kochanski and...
, tracking
Tracking
Tracking can refer to:*Tracking , separating children into different classes according to their academic ability*Tracking, in computer graphics, a vital part of match moving...
and survival
Survival skills
Survival skills are techniques a person may use in a dangerous situation to save themselves or others...
, demolition
Demolition
Demolition is the tearing-down of buildings and other structures, the opposite of construction. Demolition contrasts with deconstruction, which involves taking a building apart while carefully preserving valuable elements for re-use....
s and tactics in urban as well as rural areas.
Advanced Airborne Training: a recruit will be taught about military free-fall
Free-fall
Free fall is any motion of a body where gravity is the only force acting upon it, at least initially. These conditions produce an inertial trajectory so long as gravity remains the only force. Since this definition does not specify velocity, it also applies to objects initially moving upward...
such as HALO and HAHO
HALO/HAHO
Military free-fall form of insertion.PurposeDelivering personnel, equipment, or supplies.HALOHigh-Altitude/Low-OpeningHAHOHigh-Altitude/High-OpeningOrigins...
. They will also learn about helicopter operations – how to rappel
Abseiling
Abseiling , rappelling in American English, is the controlled descent down a rock face using a rope; climbers use this technique when a cliff or slope is too steep and/or dangerous to descend without protection.- Slang terms :...
fast down a rope out of helicopters. Combat extraction
Extraction (military)
Extraction , in tactical combat and special operations use, is the process of removing constituents from a targeted site when it is considered imperative that they be immediately relocated out of a hostile environment and taken to a secured area under friendly control...
is also taught, along with learning how to set up a LZ
Landing Zone
A Landing Zone or "LZ" is a military term for any area where an aircraft can land.In the United States military, a landing zone is the actual point where aircraft land...
.
Land training consists of many things: including sniping
Sniper
A sniper is a marksman who shoots targets from concealed positions or distances exceeding the capabilities of regular personnel. Snipers typically have specialized training and distinct high-precision rifles....
, demolitions and reconnaissance
Reconnaissance
Reconnaissance is the military term for exploring beyond the area occupied by friendly forces to gain information about enemy forces or features of the environment....
. Bushcraft and survival is also taught. Climbing
Climbing
Climbing is the activity of using one's hands and feet to ascend a steep object. It is done both for recreation and professionally, as part of activities such as maintenance of a structure, or military operations.Climbing activities include:* Bouldering: Ascending boulders or small...
and photography
Photography
Photography is the art, science and practice of creating durable images by recording light or other electromagnetic radiation, either electronically by means of an image sensor or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film...
are taught to new recruits. Urban and rural combat is perhaps the newest training – developed quite recently, this training provided South Africa with a new counter-terrorist
Counter-terrorism
Counter-terrorism is the practices, tactics, techniques, and strategies that governments, militaries, police departments and corporations adopt to prevent or in response to terrorist threats and/or acts, both real and imputed.The tactic of terrorism is available to insurgents and governments...
force. Medical
Combat medic
Combat medics are trained military personnel who are responsible for providing first aid and frontline trauma care on the battlefield. They are also responsible for providing continuing medical care in the absence of a readily available physician, including care for disease and battle injury...
and communications
Military communications
Historically, the first military communications had the form of sending/receiving simple signals . Respectively, the first distinctive tactics of military communications were called Signals, while units specializing in those tactics received the Signal Corps name...
training is also given to those who wish to become qualified.
Maritime training consists of the use of small boats, underwater demolitions, swimming, diving
Diving
Diving is the sport of jumping or falling into water from a platform or springboard, sometimes while performing acrobatics. Diving is an internationally-recognized sport that is part of the Olympic Games. In addition, unstructured and non-competitive diving is a recreational pastime.Diving is one...
, beach reconnaissance and navigation
Navigation
Navigation is the process of monitoring and controlling the movement of a craft or vehicle from one place to another. It is also the term of art used for the specialized knowledge used by navigators to perform navigation tasks...
. It is thought to be based on the SBS
Special Boat Service
The Special Boat Service is the special forces unit of the British Royal Navy. Together with the Special Air Service, Special Reconnaissance Regiment and the Special Forces Support Group they form the United Kingdom Special Forces and come under joint control of the same Director Special...
training.
Weaponry
- AK 47
- AKMAKMThe AKM is a 7.62mm assault rifle designed by Mikhail Kalashnikov. It is an upgraded version of the AK-47 rifle and was developed in the 1950s....
- RPKRPKThe RPK is a 7.62x39mm light machine gun of Soviet design, developed by Mikhail Kalashnikov in the late 1950s, parallel with the AKM assault/battle rifle...
- R4 and R5 Assault rifleR4 assault rifleThe R4 is a 5.56mm assault rifle that was introduced into service with the South African Defence Force in 1982, replacing the earlier 7.62mm FN FAL rifle, that was manufactured in South Africa under a license agreement from Fabrique Nationale as the R1...
- FN FALFN FALThe Fusil Automatique Léger or FAL is a self-loading, selective fire battle rifle produced by the Belgian armaments manufacturer Fabrique Nationale de Herstal . During the Cold War it was adopted by many North Atlantic Treaty Organization countries, with the notable exception of the United States...
rifle - Heckler & Koch MP5Heckler & Koch MP5The Heckler & Koch MP5 is a 9mm submachine gun of German design, developed in the 1960s by a team of engineers from the German small arms manufacturer Heckler & Koch GmbH of Oberndorf am Neckar....
Submachine gun - Vektor SP1 handgun
- Various sniper rifles including the Denel NTW-20Denel NTW-20The NTW-20 is a South African anti-materiel rifle or large-calibre sniper rifle, developed by Denel's Mechem division in the 1990s. The weapon was designed by Tony Neophytou and intended for deployment against a wide variety of targets, including parked aircraft, telecommunication masts, power...
anti-materiel rifleAnti-materiel rifleAn anti-materiel rifle is a rifle that is designed for use against military equipment rather than against other combatants ....
As a special forces unit they also have access to a wide variety of standard and non-standard firearms.
Operator's Badge
All South African Special Forces operators receive the Operator's Badge, which is given only to those members who have completed all the qualifications as an Operator. It consists of an inverted Commando Knife within a laurel wreath, which is meant to symbolise both special forces (the knife) and victory (the wreath).Standard operator badges are silver, but a gold badge with an embedded diamond is awarded to Operators with more than 10 years of active service.
See also
- Delta ForceDelta Force1st Special Forces Operational Detachment-Delta is one of the United States' secretive Tier One counter-terrorism and Special Mission Units. Commonly known as Delta Force, Delta, or The Unit, it was formed under the designation 1st SFOD-D, and is officially referred to by the Department of Defense...
- SEAL Team Six
- Special Activities DivisionSpecial Activities DivisionThe Special Activities Division is a division in the United States Central Intelligence Agency's National Clandestine Service responsible for covert operations known as "special activities"...
- Special Air ServiceSpecial Air ServiceSpecial Air Service or SAS is a corps of the British Army constituted on 31 May 1950. They are part of the United Kingdom Special Forces and have served as a model for the special forces of many other countries all over the world...
Further reading
- Peter Stiff The Silent War, Galago Publishing Pty Ltd 1999 ISBN 0620243007
- Andre Diedericks Journey Without Boundaries, Just Done Productions Publishing ISBN 9781920169589
- Jack Greeff A Greater Share of Honour, Just Done Productions Publishing ISBN 9781920315061