South African Air Force carries out hot-extraction of troops in Democratic Republic of Congo

It is still amazing how the intricacies of communication, combined with technology, can impact on international peace keeping missions.

At dusk, on the first day of September 2010, 14 SANDF Infantry Troops were transported by one of the international members of the UN to an operational area in the DRC in fulfilment of South Africa’s peace keeping commitment to the continent.

There was just one little glitch in the GPRS instruction - a matter of “e” and “o”. GPRS will get you there. Just be sure of the spelling of your destination…The difference between “Kalembe” and “Kalembo” on the GPRS resulted in dire straits for South African National Defence Force (SANDF) Infantry troops when they were mistakenly dropped in the stronghold of a rebel group.

Some of our Infantry soldiers were able to communicate with the rebels. When the rebels realised that the soldiers were South African, our people were allowed to initiate evacuation procedures.

According to United Nation’s (UN) policy, night flying during peace keeping operations in Africa is not permitted. The initial UN crew, who dropped the SANDF troops in the wrong destination, could not obtain UN authority to turn around and extract our people, as by that time it was already dark.

In Goma, an expert South African Air Force (SAAF) Oryx helicopter crew was available to extract our forces to safer ground.  With Night Vision Goggles (NVG) the SAAF Oryx crew departed from Goma with special UN permission from New York.

Maj Pietersen, commander of the SAAF Oryx helicopter, is familiar with the area where the SANDF troops were. It is a mountainous terrain and the crude gravel landing strip is situated in a narrow valley with no infrastructure.

Night extraction in such conditions is only for the brave of heart. With the troops only half an hour’s flight away from Goma, Maj Pietersen departed under emergency conditions with only an hour’s fuel capacity in the Oryx’s tanks. At that time, the information given to the crew was that there were 17 SANDF Infantry troops with baggage to be extracted.  During that first flight, Maj Pietersen realised that according to flight safety regulations, there was not enough fuel for the mission, and when they approached the landing zone, he also identified the lack of lighting as a danger to the mission.

Visibility at dusk was also very poor due to the hazy condition of the African sky prior to the first rains in September. Subsequently, Maj Pietersen decided to return to Gomato re-strategize the extraction mission of the SANDF Infantry soldiers.

Back at Goma, it was full dark and the air finally became less hazy. Maj Pietersenthen dispatched a second fully-refuelled Oryx helicopter under command of Maj Stefan King, co-piloted by Lt Uri Badenhorst with FSgt Sarel Beukes as flight engineer, to extract our soldiers. On board were also a translator,  as well as the commander of the SANDF Infantry troops stationed at Goma. This time, communication was more accurate. There were only 14 soldiers with baggage, not 17, and the landing strip was lighted by wooden fires.

Through their expertise, skill and aided by Night Vision Goggles, the Oryx crew performed a hot-extraction night mission. 

Two days after the incident, the SANDF Infantry troops were deployed to the proper destination to continue with peace keeping roles. 

By Ms Hanrie Greebe, Directorate Corporate Communication Services, SAAF