Dingo Firestorm
Published on 1. June 2012
Book
Paperback/Softback
308 pages
978-1-77022-428-5 (ISBN)
Description
On 23 November 1977, an armada of helicopters and aeroplanes took off from Rhodesian airbases and crossed the border into Mozambique. Their objective: to attack the headquarters of the Zimbabwe African National Liberation Army, where thousands of enemy forces were concentrated. Codenamed Operation Dingo, the raid was planned to coincide with a meeting of Robert Mugabe and his war council at the targeted HQ. It would be the biggest conflict of the Rhodesian Bush War. In this fascinating account, Ian Pringle describes the political and military backdrop leading up to the operation, and he tells the story of the battle through the eyes of key personalities who planned, led and participated in it. Using his own experience as a jet and helicopter pilot and skydiver, he recreates the battle in detail, explaining the performance of men and machines in the unfolding drama of events. Dingo Firestorm is a fresh, gripping recreation of a major battle in southern African military history.
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
South Africa
Publishing group
Penguin Random House South Africa
Product notice
Paperback (UK-trade)
Dimensions
Height: 230 mm
Width: 150 mm
Weight
403 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-77022-428-5 (9781770224285)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Person
Ian Pringle was born in Port Shepstone and grew up on a gold mine on the East Rand. After national service in the South African Air Force, he migrated to Rhodesia to work as an industrial chemist and flew aircraft as a hobby. He was drafted into the Police Reserve Air Wing as a pilot, and was involved in numerous enemy contacts. Pringle read his MBA in the UK and rose to divisional CEO level with Burmah Castrol, spending much of his career in Asia and Europe. He learned to fly helicopters and later ex-military jets in England. He retired to Cape Town in 2004, bringing two Cold War jets with him, and he teamed up with Thunder City, where he still flies the Hawker Hunter, Buccaneer and aerobatic aircraft.