The Katangese Air Force (French: Force aérienne katangaise, or FAK) or Katangese Military Aviation (French: Aviation militaire Katangaise, or Avikat) was a short lived air force of the State of Katanga, established in 1960 under the command of Jan Zumbach. The force consisted predominantly of Belgian, French, and Britishmercenary pilots, operating a small number of helicopters[1] and smaller number of fixed wing planes, including three attack aircraft delivered by the CIA.[2]
The primary role of the Katangese Air Force was to provide air support for ground troops and air interdiction. Initial aircraft consisted of five de Havilland Doves, eight North American T-6 Texans, a de Havilland Heron, an Aérospatiale Alouette II helicopter, a Piper PA-18 and a single Sikorsky H-19 helicopter, which were left by the Belgian Air Force during the dissolution of the Belgian Congo. Additionally, nine Fouga CM.170 Magisters were purchased from France in 1961, but only three of these Fougas, which were armed with two machine guns and two locally made light bombs, were delivered by the CIA front organization Seven Seas Airlines.[5] Furthermore, at least six German Dornier Do 28As were imported. The first reached Katanga in late August, with four more arriving in October. The Do 28s were subsequently armed and used mostly for air-to-ground attacks.[6] Based at Luano airfield, Kolwezi and several smaller airfields in the hinterland, the FAK supported the Katangese ground troops by raiding ONUC troops and positions on several occasions. For two years, there was sporadic fighting between Katangese and ONUC forces. By 15 January 1963, the UN had finally established full control over Katanga. Remnants of the Katangese Air Force were all but gone, as most aircraft were destroyed or abandoned.[1] Those that remained in the Congo were reintegrated into the Congolese Air Force.[4]
Commanders
It was initially commanded by the Belgian Victor Volant.[7] In September 1961, in the aftermath of Operation Rum Punch, Volant left Katanga and command devolved to the Katangese pilot Jean-Marie Ngosa and his Belgian adviser José Delin.[8] In the aftermath of Operation Unokat in December 1961, command first changed over to the South African Jeremiah Cornelius "Jerry" Puren,[9] then, in early 1962, to Jan Zumbach, who commanded Avikat until the end of the Katangese secession in January 1963.[1]
Dag Hammarskjöld, the United Nations Secretary-General, was killed on 18 September 1961 when his aircraft crashed at Ndola, Northern Rhodesia while en route to negotiations with Tshombe. The causes of the crash have never been definitively established but it is generally considered to have been accidental. Nonetheless, there has been speculation that Hammarskjöld's aircraft may have been shot down by the Katangese Air Force. Hammarskjöld's aircraft had taken a detour to avoid the Katangese frontier after widespread coverage of the use of Fouga aircraft by Katangese forces in skirmishes with United Nations forces. According to Bent Rosio, this had been "blown out of all proportions" by the international press.[10] There had been discussions about whether a fighter escort should be provided by the Imperial Ethiopian Air Force although this did not occur. Numerous accounts have been suggested. Jan Van Risseghem, a former RAF fighter pilot from Belgium, reportedly claimed to have shot down the aircraft personally but has been widely disbelieved.[11] Another Belgian pilot, known only as "de Beukels", was also reported to have claimed separately to have shot down the aircraft by accident during an attempted aerial abduction of Hammarskjöld.[10]
Aircraft
The following fixed wing aircraft and helicopters were in service from 1960 until 1963:
The air force purchased nine Fouga CM.170's similar to this, but only received three.
^N/A, Brookings; N/A, N/A, eds. (1965). Crisis in Congo: A United Nations Force in Action (1st ed.). Washington DC: Brookings Institution. ISBN0-8157-5198-2.
^Othen, Christopher (2015). Katanga 1960-63. Mercenaries, spies and the African nation that waged war on the world. Stroud: The History Press. p. 148. ISBN9780750962889.
^Othen, Christopher (2015). Katanga 1960-63. Mercenaries, spies and the African nation that waged war on the world. Stroud: The History Press. p. 142. ISBN9780750962889.
^Othen, Christopher (2015). Katanga 1960-63. Mercenaries, spies and the African nation that waged war on the world. Stroud: The History Press. p. 178. ISBN9780750962889.
^ abRosio, Bengt (1993). "The Ndola Crash and the Death of Dag Hammarskjold". The Journal of Modern African Studies. 31 (4): 662–3. doi:10.1017/S0022278X00012301. S2CID154998847.
Passemiers, Lazlo (2020). Decolonisation and Regional Geopolitics: South Africa and the 'Congo Crisis', 1960-1965. Abingdon: Routledge. ISBN9780367660581.
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Katanga
