National Experiences - British Commission for Military History

do C t r i n e, Ca pa C i t i e s, te C H n o l o g y a n d o p e r at i o n a l en v i r o n m e n t o n t H e em p l o y m e n t o f t H e air po w e r ; t H e Ca s e o f guerrilla wa r fa r e 231
the safety of those territories was expected to occur.
Aware of this hypothetical situation, the Undersecretary of State for Aeronautical
Affairs published a Directive in 1957 for the launching of the necessary facilities
to support air operations in Portugal’s overseas territories, in anticipation of local
operation and of air deployment to the three operational theatres.
In 1958 an inspection visit to assess the situation is made by a team headed by the
Air Force Chief of Staff, and in the following year the Himba operational Exercise
took place.
The Himba exercise consisted of a military air transport operation to check routes
and infrastructure, potential stopovers for transit and operation, and a demonstration
of sovereignty, of the presence of a military force in Portu guese Africa; 14 planes
were involved, namely 6 Skymaster, 2 C-47 Dakota, and 6 PV-2 Harpoon that flew
to Angola from the Continental ba ses, using Portuguese scale airfields, along the
oceanic route. In Angola, they flew over Carmona, Santo Antonio do Zaire, Cabinda,
Malange, Henrique de Carvalho and Lobito; a big air show was held in Luanda with
aircrafts and ground troops parading, the launching of paratroopers and real air fire
display, before an enthusiastic crowd, proud of its Air Force. Other parades were
held in Sá da Bandeira and Nova Lisboa. This action was of fundamental importance
from the psychological standpoint with the population, in addition to the operational
test that it consisted of.
The Air Force built fifteen major runways in Angola, nine in Mozambique, five
in Guinea, plus major extensions and improvements to the existing ones in that date
which were too few.
Towards the end of 1956 a decree had been published that created the Portuguese
Air Regions, one covering the mainland, the Azores, Madeira, Cape Verde
and Guinea, another that included Angola and S. Tome and Principe and the other
based in Mozambique, which included, apart from this territory, the Portuguese territories
in India, Macau and Timor. In each of these regions Air Bases would be
formed and other classes of aerodromes to ensure full coverage of the Portuguese
Overseas Territory in terms of airspace jurisdiction. It took relatively some time for
the organization of these new commands and to deploy the necessary means to these
remote regions. However, the legal and physical conditions were created for a quick
implementation in face of developments in the political internati onal and local environments,
when more appropriated.
The onset of war in Angola
In January of 1961 a popular movement of resistance and challenge against the
legitimate authority begins in Angola, in much localized areas in the North. First, in a
small village named Mailundo, then in other towns or vil lages, whose people worked
almost exclusively in the cultivation of cotton, at the service of a large company.
Those people refused to work and to obey the orders of administrative authorities.