The Battle of Savate: 32 Battalion’s Greatest Operation

The Battle of Savate: 32 Battalion’s Greatest Operation

On 21 May 1980, under the codename Operation Tiro-Tiro, 32 Battalion attacked and routed a FAPLA brigade at Savate, a small Angolan town 75 kilometres north of the border with South West Africa. Fifteen members of 32 Battalion were killed in the action and many more wounded. It was the highest South African casualty rate in a single skirmish since the start of the Border War. Overall, however, Savate was a significant victory for 32 Battalion. FAPLA suffered heavy casualties and the invaders captured a great many vehicles, weapons, ammunition and other equipment.
Operation Tiro-Tiro, or the Battle of Savate as it became known, was the first time the SADF had engaged FAPLA in battle since 1975. And, despite the record number of casualties, it was 32 Battalionâ€™s biggest victory since its formation in March 1976. While the Border War came to an end in 1989 and 32 Battalion was disbanded in March 1993, to this day a remem-brance service and parade is held annually on the Sunday closest to 21 May to commemorate the Battle of Savate and to remember 32 Battalionâ€™s victory and the price they paid.
Drawing from official documents in the Department of Defence Documentation Centre that have only recently been declassified and from testimonies of soldiers on both sides, The Battle of Savate is the definitive account of one of the greatest battles of the Border War, describÂ¬ing in detail the operation, its motivation and planning, its achievements and failures, and vividly recreating the experience of what happened on the ground.
Country USA
Manufacturer Zebra Press
Binding Kindle Edition
ReleaseDate 2015-05-08
Format Kindle eBook

Country	USA
Manufacturer	Zebra Press
Binding	Kindle Edition
ReleaseDate	2015-05-08
Format	Kindle eBook

The Battle of Savate: 32 Battalion’s Greatest Operation

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