Formation and early days The
Rhodesian Air Force (RhAF; previously known as the Royal Rhodesian Air Force), was reconstituted into the
Air Force of Zimbabwe in 1980. The RhAF's mixed collection of aircraft were joined by other aircraft from 1981 onwards, supplied by Kenya, Britain, China and elsewhere. Support also came from the
Pakistan Air Force who trained most of the Zimbabwean pilots in the initial days, assisted in the re-construction of
Thornhill Air Base, and provided
Air Marshal Azim Daudpota to Zimbabwe as the Chief of Air Staff (1983–1986). In 1981, the Air Force of Zimbabwe ordered 8
Hawk MK60s, which were delivered in July 1982. On the night of 25 July 1982, a sabotage attack on
Thornhill Airbase damaged four Hawks, nine Hunters and a single FTB-337G. One Hawk was written off, another was repaired on site and the other two were returned to BAE for a rebuild. A follow-up order for five additional Hawks was completed in September 1992. The first supersonic interceptor operated by the air force was the Chinese-built
Chengdu J-7/F7 Airguard, 12 of the II and IIN variants were delivered in 1986. Two
Eurocopter AS532 Cougar helicopters were reported to be in use for VIP duties in 1997, delivered in April 1995 and September 1996. In April 2021, a newer (refurbished)
Eurocopter EC225 Super Puma was added to the fleet.
Second Congo War 1998–2003 The
Second Congo War, also known as "Coltan War" and the Great War of Africa, began in August 1998 in the
Democratic Republic of the Congo (formerly called Zaire), and officially ended in July 2003 when the Transitional Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo took power; although hostilities are currently ongoing. Zimbabwe's well-trained military entered the war as the best-equipped side. In mid-August 1998, the AFZ deployed six or seven F-7s, most of the C.212s, at least four Cessna 337G Lynxs, and a dozen or more helicopters, including Alouettes, Bell 412s and Mi-35s, to Congo. All aircraft were flown by Zimbabwean pilots. After receiving an urgent shipment of spare Hawks, the AFZ apparently deployed some of them as well. At the start of the war, the Hawks had been reported to be in unflyable condition. Due to these circumstances the AFZ contingent in the Congo in August and September 1998 consisted of flights from No.3, No.4, No.5, No.7 and No.8 Squadrons, while a flight from No.2 Squadron was to follow later. The No.2 AFZ
Squadron deployed 12
BAe Hawk T.Mk.60/60As, which were used as strike-fighters and equipped with
AIM-9B Sidewinder AAMs,
Mk.82-series bombs, and
Hunting BL.755 cluster-bomber units (CBUs), as well as launchers for unguided rockets. Only six or seven F-7s From No.5 squadron were fully mission-capable. Prior to the war in Congo, Zimbabwe was in the middle of negotiations with China for 12 additional F-7s. For transport, the AFZ had the No.3 Squadron, flying 12
CASA C-212 Aviocar and six
Britten-Norman BN-2A Islander light transports which had already seen heavy service, and were to see even more of this in Congo. Transport and liaison were also duties of the No.7 Squadron, equipped with
Aérospatiale SA 316B Alouette IIIs (including ex-Portuguese Air Force – and Romanian IAR-built examples), as well as of the No.8 Squadron, equipped with
Agusta-Bell 412SPs which were later armed with rocket launchers for this war. However, the latter unit would soon play a significant role in the war in DRC, as it was only recently equipped with the newest addition to the AFZ: six Mi-35 helicopters (including two Mi-35Ps). The first AFZ Mi-35-crews were trained at
Thornhill AB, in Gweru, by Russian instructors. CO of this unit was Sqn. Ldr. Mukotekwa. The
first noted AFZ operation took place on 26 August 1998, where they destroyed a 5 km armoured column of rebels as they were approaching
Kinshasa. After defeating the invaders in Kinshasa, the Zimbabweans, in the belief that Kabila's government was already safe, suggested that there was no need to continue the war, and peace should be negotiated. This resulted in the reinforcement of rebel efforts as well as the Rwandans and Ugandans rushing better-equipped units into the battle. The garrisons in eastern Congo that remained loyal to Kabila fell to rebel attacks. The Ndigili airport, in Kibanseke Province, as well as Kitona, both held by Zimbabwean troops, were attacked simultaneously. In both cases, the AFZ responded with fierce air strikes. Rebels claimed that up to 100 civilians were killed by their bombs. A series of fierce battles were fought between 4 and 13 September 1998, during which the Angolan mechanised forces were finally able to deploy their full firepower. The
Chadian contingent was meanwhile deployed in NE Congo, where it participated in re-capture of Lubutu. The AFZ and FAC were active in this area for several days, flying a number of strikes during which cluster-bomb units (CBUs) were used. According to government reports, 45 rebels were killed and 19 captured in this battle. On 13 September, when the Angolans attacked towards Kamina, the Zimbabweans found themselves under fierce attacks by thousands of rebels in the Manono area. It was in this area that the AFZ suffered its first documented loss of this war: on 4 September the
Aermacchi SF.260 flown by wing commander Sharaunga crashed in bad weather, killing the pilot. Nine days later an Alouette III helicopter carrying several high-ranking officers, including Col. Kufa and Sqn. Ldr. Vundla, was shot down by rebels in eastern central Congo. Kufa and Vundla were killed, while Flt. Sgt. Sande was captured by
RCD. In late October 1998, the Zimbabweans launched an offensive in SE Congo. The offensive was made possible owing to the deployment of additional foreign troops in Congo, including some 2,000 Namibians. This began with a series of air strikes, partially flown by BAe Hawk T.Mk.60s of the No.2 Squadron, newly deployed in Congo, and by F-7s of the No.5 Squadron. These units first targeted airfields in Gbadolite, Dongo and Gmena, and then rebel and Rwandan communications and depots in the
Kisangani area, on 21 November. On the following day the No.2 Squadron launched a strike package of six aircraft, armed with Mk.82 bombs and
Matra 155 rocket launchers for unguided rockets calibre 68mm, which reached out far over central Congo. They deployed over
Lake Tanganyika and attacked ferries used to transport
Burundi troops and supplies into the war in Congo. According to Zimbabwean reports their strike came as a complete surprise. With machine-guns and light infantry weapons as the only means of air defense, six ferries were sunk and 600
Burundi and
Rwandan troops killed. In a similar attack, on 7 December 1998, Zimbabwean planes or helicopters sank two rebel boats on Lake Tanganyika some 40 km north of Moba. In November 1998, it was reported that a $54 million shipment of helicopters, fighters, and spotter aircraft had arrived in Zimbabwe to assist in the Democratic Republic of Congo. It is unclear who received the delivered weapons. There were very few reports about the fighting in the following days, likely because the Congolese, Zimbabwean, and Angolan governments faced intense pressure from Western powers due to this offensive. The limited reports released from sources close to the rebels indicated that Zimbabwean and Congolese forces were attacking Nuyuzu, Kasinge, and advancing toward Manono, supported by
T-62 tanks and heavy artillery. According to Zimbabwean reports, the Hawks and F-7s continued their operations, launching additional attacks against Kalemi on November 24, followed by a new round of strikes against various airfields in eastern Congo two days later. After these attacks, the pilots of No.5 Squadron claimed the destruction of an unidentified
An-12 transport on the ground. When Congolese President
Laurent Kabila was assassinated in early 2001, the Zimbabwean Air Force deployed five
Chengdu J-7/F7 Airguard to
Kinshasa to participate in a fly-past at the state funeral. One of the five fighter planes crashed en route to the event and while four subsequently made the fly-past, two of the remaining aircraft also crashed during the return flight home. The crashes were blamed on low flying hours for pilots in the air force and insufficient training time. ==Current organizational structure==