Mozambique’s bush war from the sky

Mozambique’s Cabo Delgado Province, the setting of an ongoing jihadist insurgency since 2017, has seen a wide range of private and government forces carrying out air operations. Now the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) is weighing in as well.

DAG Alouette PembaCredit DAG

Specialists: Dyck Advisory Group operated a small helicopter fleet in Cabo Delgado, conducting air strikes against the insurgents. In March 2021, its aircraft rescued more than 200 Mozambican and foreign civilians after Palma was overrun by the insurgency. Picture: DAG.

In June this year, following a Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) summit in Mozambique capital, Maputo, the deployment of a military force to help combat violent extremism in Cabo Delgado was agreed.

Angola, Botswana, Lesotho, South Africa, and Tanzania have all committed troops, while Zimbabwe has stated that it could deploy personnel to train the Mozambique armed forces (FADM).

Meanwhile, Rwanda announced in July that it was deploying 700 soldiers and 300 policemen to Cabo Delgado to support the FADM, using RwandAir Airbus A330-300s to airlift the troops. Armoured vehicles were also flown to Mozambique.

All this activity comes in the wake of the ever-worsening security situation in Cabo Delgado Province, which has been ongoing since 2017.

The FADM were the first to fly into Cabo Delgado, with their Mi-8T aircraft transporting personnel and cargo. In April 2019, one aircraft crashed during a logistics flight, leaving just two Mi-8Ts in the inventory.

The rapidly degrading security outlook eventually prompted the Mozambique Government to reach out to Russia’s Wagner Group for support, leading to the deployment of troops, together with Mi-17 and Mi-24 helicopters in September 2019. Wagner’s presence proved short-lived, however, and it pulled out in November 2019 after suffering several fatalities, and failing to establish a working relationship with the FADM or the Mozambican Police.

Meanwhile, in September 2019, the Mozambican Police contracted South African company, Dyck Advisory Group (DAG), which was conducting counter-poaching in southern Mozambique, to support security operations in Cabo Delgado.

DAG’s contribution centred on air support, with a small fleet of SA341 Gazelle, Alouette III, Bell UH-1H, Bell 206, Bell 407, and AS350 helicopters, Cessna 208, Diamond DA-42, Bat Hawk ultralights and a CADG Helix intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) aircraft.

One of the Gazelles and a Bat Hawk were lost in 2020 without loss of life.

In March 2021, following the insurgents’ attack on Palma, DAG deployed three Gazelles, one Alouette III and two AS350s, which extracted civilians from the middle of the combat zone. DAG subsequently departed Cabo Delgado after its contract was not renewed.

From mid-2020, South Africa’s Paramount Group and Dubai-based Burnham Global began providing training, equipment, and advisory services to Mozambique. By March 2021, two SA341s had been delivered by Paramount to the FADM, together with at least two Mi-17-1Vs and two Mi-24s. A further two SA341s were scheduled for delivery as African Aerospace was going to press.

One Mwari aircraft, configured for ISR duties, is reported to have been received by the FADM, which would make Mozambique the first known user of the type.

Paramount has also been training Mozambican aircrews at its facilities in South Africa.

The attack on Palma, which put a halt to a major offshore gas exploitation project conducted by French company, Total, and the general breakdown in security in Cabo Delgado, led to renewed calls for a foreign military intervention, hence the SADC involvement

The deployment of the first troops of the SADC mission in Mozambique (SAMIM) took place in late July when South African special forces were flown to Pemba aboard South African Air Force (SAAF) C-130BZ transports.

Botswana followed suit, airlifting its own troops in Botswana Defence Force (BDF) C-130Bs and an Air Botswana Embraer E-170 airliner.

Angola, which has limited its contribution to a small cadre of special forces personnel and an Ilyushin Il-76 transport, has airlifted cargo for the BDF contingent and has also transported most of the Lesotho Defence Force (LDF) troops committed to SAMIM.

Lesotho first sent an advanced party of 12 to Mozambique on August 8, aboard an LDF Airbus C212-300, which is to be used for strategic communications between Lesotho and Mozambique throughout the duration of the deployment. The remainder of the 125-strong contingent, its equipment, and vehicles were airlifted by the Angola Air Force Il-76 between August 12 and 18, from Maseru to Pemba.

Tanzania has flown its troops to Pemba aboard its Shaanxi Y-8F.

Organic air support for the SAMIM should already include two Denel Oryx helicopters from the SAAF, which were noted in Mozambique in August 2021. Two SAAF AW109LUHs should also be deployed.