Episode 65 – Ops Meebos where SWAPO AA fire downs a Puma

We’re back in 1982 after a hiatus covering the seaborne operations and an update from the SA Air Force which had had a busy May as you heard in Episode 64. Things on the ground in SWA showed that SWAPO was almost fully recovered from the hammering they took during Operation Protea – their own Operation had killed three farmers and 8 security force personnel. 32 Battalion continued to carry out a number of projects – and in particular the long-term Operation Spiderweb hearts and minds initiative in the Kavango which I spoke about last episode. A number of other ops were planned to take place back to back and code named Operation Meebos which had actually started in March, aimed at the area around Xangona-Humbe-Ongiva. The aim of Operation Meebos was to keep FAPLA out of the two main southern Angolan towns Xangongo and Ongiva which had been seized during Operation Protea– in an area the Angolans called the Fifty Military Region. It’s ironic that the biggest loss in the upcoming op was actually caused by a SWAPO team armed with AA guns.