Operation Savannah

October 1975 – March 1976 · Southern and central Angola Theater

October 1975 – March 1976

South Africa launched a secret armoured invasion, Operation Savannah, driving hundreds of miles north from Namibia in support of UNITA to prevent an MPLA victory. The thrust reached to within striking distance of Luanda before a massive Cuban airlift — Operation Carlota — poured in troops that halted and then reversed the advance, and international exposure forced Pretoria to withdraw.

• ●Operation Savannah