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The Revival of the Air Force of Zimbabwe

Sanjay Badri-Maharaj
Archive data: Person was Visiting Fellow at IDSA Expertise Latin America and the Caribbean, India’s Nuclear Doctrine, Air Defences, Police and Paramilitary Forces Education PhD in  War Studies, Department of… Continue reading The Revival of the Air Force of Zimbabwe read more
Commentary

The Air Force of Zimbabwe (AFZ) has an enviable combat record among the air forces of Sub-Saharan Africa. It has a strong professional ethos and, until budgetary cuts and sanctions came into effect, was one of the most effective air forces in the region. It has gone through a period of decline and relative stagnation in strength. However, the last two years point to a revival in its fortunes though this is through the restoring of grounded equipment to service.

On 29 April 2022, during a flypast at the Zimbabwe International Trade Fair (ZITF), one  flight of four BAE Hawk jet trainer/ light-strike aircraft of the Air Force of Zimbabwe (AFZ), flew in a diamond formation to the delight of onlookers.1 The appearance of combat aircraft at the ZIFT flypast is nothing new but the sight of BAE Hawks was remarkable as the aircraft had long been thought grounded following the imposition of sanctions on Zimbabwe by the United Kingdom. Indeed, the Hawks became so symbolic of alleged British support for then President Robert Mugabe that the sanctions had widespread support in the British government, opposition and the press.

The flight of four Hawks seemed to be emblematic of a revival in the fortunes of the Air Force of Zimbabwe which had suffered heavily from a combination of sanctions, budgetary neglect and a loss of skilled personnel. Indeed, for some years, it seemed as if the combat assets of the AFZ had been largely grounded, with only a few of its assets being considered flyable, much less operational. However, evidence from 2021, and now 2022, suggests that the AFZ has restored at least some of its combat aircraft to apparently flyable status and has resurrected some of its older platforms.

A Proud History

The AFZ traces its history to the Rhodesian Air Force (RhAF), previously the Royal Rhodesian Air Force before Rhodesia’s Unilateral Declaration of Independence. Initially equipped with ex-RhAF equipment, including such important types as Hawker Hunter fighters, Vampire fighter-bombers, Canberra bombers, Augusta Bell 205 and Alouette III helicopters, SIAI Marchetti SF.260 trainers and Reims Cessna FTB337G Forward Air Control aircraft plus a small number of transport aircraft. Moreover, the AFZ inherited a strong training system and a sound maintenance infrastructure. In addition, two well-equipped air bases at New Sarum and Thornhill were available to the AFZ and the RhAF squadrons based at the two bases were transferred to the new AFZ in 1980. These included:2

No. 1 Squadron – Thornhill (Hawker Hunter FGA.9)

No. 2 Squadron – Thornhill (Vampire FB.9; and Vampire T.55)

No. 3 Squadron – New Sarum (Douglas C-47; Cessna 402; BN-2A Islander; DC-7C;  Baron)

No. 4 Squadron – Thornhill (AL-60F5 Trojan; Reims-Cessna FTB.337G; SF.260W)

No. 5 Squadron – New Sarum (English Electric Canberra B.2; and Canberra T.4)

No. 6 Squadron – Thornhill (Percival Provost T.52; SF.260C)

No. 7 Squadron – New Sarum (Alouette II; Alouette III)

No. 8 Squadron – New Sarum (AB.205)

The RhAF received much assistance from the apartheid regime in South Africa but also developed an impressive level of self-sufficiency in maintaining and overhauling its assets. In addition to its RhAF heritage, the AFZ was helped by the Pakistan Air Force which played an important role in aiding the new air force in maintaining training standards in its establishment.

Expansion and Challenges

After the new state of Zimbabwe came into being, there was a consolidation of the assets of the new AFZ and it was quickly realized that at least some assets were in dire need of replacement. The Vampires of No. 2 squadron, in particular, were obsolete and becoming difficult to keep serviceable as the type had been phased out globally by 1980. A contract for eight BAE Hawk aircraft was duly signed and the aircraft were delivered by July 1982, replacing the Vampires in No. 2 squadron. However, shortly after delivery, a terrorist attack on Thornhill airbase damaged four Hawks, nine of the surviving Hawker Hunters and one of the FTB-337Gs.3 Of the Hawks, one was a complete write-off with three others needing various levels of repair. A contract for five more Hawks was completed by September 1992, bringing the total number of available Hawks to 12. By 1992, however, the AFZ had another challenge as its primary combat aircraft, the Hawker Hunter, was becoming difficult to maintain or sustain and in dire need of replacement, with the aircraft struggling along until 2002 when No. 1 squadron was disbanded.4 In 1986, however, the AFZ obtained 12 Chinese made Chengdu F-7II fighters along with two FT-7BZ trainers to re-equip No. 5 squadron which phased out its few remaining Canberra bombers. The transport and helicopter fleets remained largely unaffected by new acquisitions, though, in time, the AFZ would acquire a few Russian Mi-17 and Mi-24 helicopters.

The Second Congo War

The AFZ and the Zimbabwean army were heavily committed to combat operations in the Second Congo War which took place between 1998 and 2003 in the Democratic Republic of Congo.  Zimbabwe’s main period of action was between 1998 and 2001 with the AFZ sending detachments of Hawks, helicopters, FTB-337Gs and even armed CASA C-212 transports. The Hawks, armed with unguided rockets, 30mm guns and locally made (as well as captured ex-Zaire Air Force) bombs, were to prove themselves extremely effective in supporting ground forces and inflicted heavy damage on hostile forces whenever deployed. The Hawks were also deployed with PL-7 air-to-air missiles to serve as makeshift interceptors, hoping to interdict transport aircraft flying from Rwanda and Burundi to supply DRC rebels as well as Rwandan forces operating in support of these rebels.5 The AFZ suffered losses in the DRC, at least one Hawk was shot down and a number of aircraft were damaged. The Zimbabwe army, however, suffered over 400 dead and not insignificant equipment losses over three years of conflict.6 However, the professionalism, sound training and commitment of the AFZ and the Zimbabwe army were to prove vital to the ultimate success of the pro-government forces in the DRC, alongside, of course, a substantial commitment from Angola.

Neglect and Sanctions

In the year 2000, even as the Second Congo War raged, the European Union imposed an arms embargo on Zimbabwe, in opposition to the Mugabe government. This had the immediate effect of hurting the serviceability of Hawk fleet despite some attempts at sanctions busting.7 Mugabe was unfazed and placed the Hawks in storage in 2011 and replaced them with a total of 12 Chinese made Karakorum K-8 trainer/ light strike aircraft which reequipped No.2 squadron.8 At least two of these aircraft have crashed and one other was damaged thanks to a burst tire in South Africa. The AFZ uses the K-8s as much as combat aircraft as trainers, equipped with rocket pods, bombs and guns and they proved to be a viable replacement for the Hawks.

The AFZ’s more effective combat aircraft – the F-7s – were joined in 2003, by at least two ex-Libyan air force MiG-23MS.9 It is not clear if these aircraft remain in AFZ use as they have not been seen since 2003 and may have been sent on to the DRC to join similar aircraft gifted to that country. The AFZ’s pilots were able to benefit from Pakistani instructors who taught them to exploit their F-7s as effectively as possible. Yet, despite China’s close ties to Zimbabwe and Pakistani support, the collapsing Zimbabwean economy and the migration of many skilled pilots and ground crews, saw the F-7s effectively grounded, with only seven being airworthy, and the AFZ being reduced to a few operational trainers, transports and helicopters and the K-8s.

Revival?

The first signs of revivals emerged in 2020 when video footage emerged of F-7s taking off from Thornhill.10 This continued into 2021 and 2022 when flights of up to four F-7s were seen during ZIFT flypasts in each of those respective years.11 The biggest shock was delivered in 2021, however, when for the first time since 2002, two Hawker Hunters staged a flypast in company with a BAE Hawk.12 Has the AFZ sought to put their old Hunters back into service? That is a question that remains unanswered but what is undeniable is that, from the ZIFT flypast in 2022, at least four Hawks are back in service and these aircraft will provide a significant increase in the combat capability of the AFZ. How these Hawks were restored to service is also a mystery as it could be anything from sanctions busting to indigenisation of parts to sourcing through a third party.13 In any case, the achievement is most impressive.

Conclusion

The AFZ has an enviable combat record among the air forces of Sub-Saharan Africa. It has a strong professional ethos and, until budgetary cuts and sanctions came into effect, was one of the most effective air forces in the region. It has gone through a period of decline and relative stagnation in strength. However, the last two years point to a revival in its fortunes though this is through the restoring of grounded equipment to service.

*Dr. Sanjay Badri Maharaj is an independent defence analyst, security consultant and attorney-at-law based in Trinidad and Tobago.

Keywords: Zimbabwe
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