The Flechas: Insurgent Hunting in Eastern Angola, 1965–1974

Africa @ War #11

by John P. Cann

In 1961, Portugal found itself fighting a war to retain its colonial possessions and preserve the remnants of its empire. It was almost completely unprepared to do so, and this was particularly evident in its ability to project power and to control the vast colonial spaces in Africa. Following the uprisings of March of 1961 in the north of Angola, Portugal poured troops into the colony as fast as its creaking logistic system would allow; however, these new arrivals were not competent and did not possess the skills needed to fight a counterinsurgency. While counterinsurgency by its nature requires substantial numbers of light infantry, the force must be trained in the craft of fighting a ‘small war’ to be effective. The majority of the arriving troops had no such indoctrination and had been readied at an accelerated pace. Even their uniforms were hastily crafted and not ideally suited to fighting in the bush. In reoccupying the north and addressing the enemy threat, Portugal quickly realized that its most effective forces were those with special qualifications and advanced training. Unfortunately, there were only very small numbers of such elite forces. The maturing experiences of Portuguese and their consequent adjustments to fight a counterinsurgency led to development of specialized, tailored units to close the gaps in skills and knowledge between the insurgents and their forces. The most remarkable such force was the flechas, indigenous Bushmen who lived in eastern Angola with the capacity to live and fight in its difficult terrain aptly named ‘Lands at the End of the Earth’. Founded in 1966, they were active until the end of the war in 1974, and were so successful in their methods that the flecha template was copied in the other theaters of Guiné and Mozambique and later in the South African Border War. The flechas were a force unique to the conflicts of southern Africa. A flecha could smell the enemy and his weapons and read the bush in ways that no others could do. He would sleep with one ear to the ground and the other to the atmosphere and would be awakened by an enemy walking a mile away. He could conceal himself in a minimum of cover and find food and water in impossible places. In short, he was vastly superior to the enemy in the environment of eastern Angola, and at the height of the campaign there (1966–1974) this small force accounted for 60 per cent of all enemy kills. This book is the story of how they came to be formed and organized, their initial teething difficulties, and their unqualified successes.

Genres: Africa, History, Military Fiction, Angola

376 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 15, 2013

Reviews

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Flechas describes the development and employment of the Flechas (Arrows) by the Portuguese military during the counterinsurgency efforts in Angola against liberation movements like the MPLA. The book begins with an overall review of the situation the Portuguese found themselves in in fighting these movements, their dearth of counterinsurgency expertise, and the reasons for raising a locally-recruited unit to act as both a reconnaissance, interdiction, and scouting unit for larger Portuguese formations. It then goes on to discuss the composition, training, operational employment, and peculiarities of the unit, before discussing specific Flecha operations and their general impact on the war in Angola.

The book is well written, though in an academic style that might not be engaging enough for some readers. The book provides some good information, particularly on the peculiarities of the local tribesmen (their prodigious tracking abilities, their capacity to go long periods without food, and their conviction in secrecy/silence when planning/conducting operations). It gives a good account of the overall background in which the unit operated, and the war that they were a part of for the uninitiated, and as with other Africa@War books, the book is lavishly illustrated. Furthermore, it provides a peek into some of the foundations for units like the Rhodesian Selous Scouts, who clearly adopted some of the units' methods (most notably the use of “turned” terrorists, which while certainly not unheard of prior to the Flechas, was also not necessarily a common tactic), but also how it was very different in many aspects.

Unfortunately, as I said above, the book may be too dry for some readers, and while there is some first-hand accounting, most of the book takes a birds-eye view. For those interested in the juicier first person stories, this is not a book for you. If you're looking for an overall look at the unit, however, it is an engaging piece of work on a little known unit. Sadly, the fact that the unit is poorly documented also means that there is a certain amount of filler in the book. Too much time is spent filling in the basics of the war, and those pages could have been better spent giving more information about the Flechas. Perhaps part of the problem was that there was not much additional information available.

Regardless, this book is one of the first English-language accounts of the Flechas in detail. It's interesting for both students of Portuguese colonial conflict, counterinsurgency, African conflicts and similar topics.

[Frédéric · Rating 4 out of 5]

3,5*

An good book on a little known special unit in a little known post WWII colonial conflict.

After a solid overview of the global situation the author goes on the specifics of the Flechas and the Bushmen tribe that mainly composed it. So far so good. Both parts are engaging with many interesting details.

Follows a lengthy list of small scale operations in various parts of Angola. This part is rather dry and drags out for a bit too long for its own good.

I nevertheless recommand this book to anybody interested in the conflict in Angola and/or the special units developed in the context of modern warfare in Africa. It will need further development in other works but is perfectly suited as an introduction on this theme.

[Pedro Plassen Lopes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent quick overview on one of Portuguese special forces during the colonial wars.
Provides an initial geo-political context of the Portuguese stance over his colonies, during a period of disengagement from other colonial powers in Africa, and , then, goes into the process on how these forces were constituted, taking advantage of local tribal dynamics and expertise on the bush environment. The action accounts are bit “dry”, mostly likely derived from reports. Personal accounts would have enriched greatly the book, but I image that would be an impossible task considering the Flecha’s fate after the end of the hostilities.

[Dan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent overview of a little known unit in the Portuguese counter-insurgency wars in Africa. This unit would be the example for the Rhodesian Sealous Scouts. Later they would form 31 Battalion in the South African Defense Forces.

[António Laurel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a good account of the facts that one is touched by the devotion of these men to their cause.

[Ricardo Azevedo · Rating 3 out of 5]

The portuguese avoid talking about some aspects of the Ultramar War. This piece of work covers some of those aspects. It's a solid read, if military history is your cup of tea.