A Whisper in the Reeds by Justin Taylor

Author:Justin Taylor
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: HISTORY / Modern / General
ISBN: 9781909982468
Publisher: Helion and Company
Published: 2013-08-19T04:00:00+00:00

Dismantling one of the dreaded 14.5mm anti-aircraft guns.

In a flash we were over and off the end of the runway, barrelling down into the grass and low scrub, accelerating towards the convoy. The five-ton Buffel was going at speed across the open flood plain, bouncing and swaying crazily. The 7.62mm Browning in the Buffel ahead of us opened up and Jim Ross started firing a hand-held mortar pipe. How he managed to get each bomb to go towards the convoy and not straight up and back down on us I will never know. Holding the base of the mortar tube on the rubber seats of the bouncing Buffel, Jim’s number two would drop the bomb down the pipe. With each detonation, the mortar pipe would bounce crazily up off the rubber seat, jumping almost above Jim’s head. The pair of them were like kids, laughing each time Jim tried to control the bounce of the mortar pipe. The Buffels fanned out and all the Brownings were now firing with their characteristic stutter, tracer bullets flicking out towards the convoy … and then, of course, ours jammed! The expletives flew at poor old Ron Gregory as he struggled to clear the gun whilst being smashed around by the careening Buffel. He would manage to clear it, fire a short burst and then it would jam again. He gave up trying after a while and grabbed his rifle instead.

Having taken one look at the three Buffels charging wildly toward them, the FAPLA troops broke amongst their vehicles and ran in every direction. I also think that the mortar rounds fired by Jim Ross gave them the impression that we had a lot more firepower than we actually had. Had they stood their ground and taken us on with a few well-aimed RPG-7 rockets we would have been in serious trouble. Any semblance of co-ordination between the Buffels soon fell apart as we each chased after a batch of the fleeing enemy.

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