The South African Army Artillery Formation is the controlling entity of all

South African Army The South African Army is the principal land warfare force of South Africa, a part of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF), along with the South African Air Force, South African Navy and South African Military Health Service. ...

artillery Artillery is a class of heavy military ranged weapons that launch munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during siege ...

units. It draws much of its history from the South African Artillery, established in 1934 but with roots that reach back to 1921. The formation consists of both regular and reserve units. There is a separate South African Army Air Defence Artillery Formation that directs army

anti-aircraft warfare Anti-aircraft warfare, counter-air or air defence forces is the battlespace response to aerial warfare, defined by NATO as "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action".AAP-6 It includes Surface-to-air m ...

units.

History

Origins

The South African Permanent Force, created in 1913 as the Permanent Force and re-designated with effect from 23 February 1923, included the South African Field Artillery (SAFA), and the South African Permanent Garrison Artillery (SAPGA). The SAPGA had begun operations some time before, when the coastal defences of the Cape Peninsula (manned by the

Cape Garrison Artillery A cape is a clothing accessory or a sleeveless outer garment which drapes the wearer's back, arms, and chest, and connects at the neck. History Capes were common in medieval Europe, especially when combined with a hood in the chaperon. Th ...

) had been handed over to South Africa in December 1921. SANDF G5 artillery Lohatla

In Proclamation No. 246 of 1934, the Governor General of the Union of South Africa merged the two organisations with effect from 1 September 1934 and created one Corps titled the South African Artillery (SAA) (see

South African Army corps and branches The South African Army is divided into functional branches, known as corps. Most consist of units, but some, such as the SA Staff Corps, consist only of personnel who are assigned to headquarters and units. The following is a list of corps estab ...

World War 2

Nine field regiments, two medium regiments, and three anti-tank regiments served in North Africa and Italy during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. 1st Medium Regiment SAA (SAHA) was formed briefly from 1 October 1939 - July 1941, when it was broken up in Egypt to provide replacements for the field regiments of the SAA. It was reformed with headquarters at

Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...

from 1 January 1946. It was transferred from

and out of

Cape Command A cape is a clothing accessory or a sleeveless outer garment which drapes the wearer's back, arms, and chest, and connects at the neck. History Capes were common in medieval Europe, especially when combined with a hood in the chaperon. Th ...

Oudtshoorn Oudtshoorn (, ), the "ostrich capital of the world", is a town in the Western Cape province of South Africa, located between the Swartberg mountains to the north and the Outeniqua Mountains to the south. Two ostrich-feather booms, during 1865– ...

from 31 December 1953, but was then disbanded after a Citizen Force reorganisation on 1 March 1960.

Post World War 2

From 1 July 1951 8 Field Regiment SAA was active, but was redesignated the

Johannesburg Regiment The Johannesburg Regiment is an infantry regiment of the South African Army. As a reserve unit, it has a status roughly equivalent to that of a British Army Reserve or United States Army National Guard unit. History Origins as Artillery Joh ...

in 1960.

Bush War period

10 Artillery Brigade South Africa, was active with 4 and 14 Regiments since 1983, and 14 Artillery Regiment disbanded on January 1, 1993.

National Defence Force Reorganisation

The army's reorganisation after the creation of the new South African National Defence Force was lengthy. The SA Army Office was established. The Corps were restructured with Regular and Reserve Regiments under command. The so-called “Type Formations” were established which assumed responsibility for the provisioning of combat-ready forces to be employed under the direction of

Joint Operations Division The Joint Operations Division is a component of the South African National Defence Force tasked with conducting Joint Operations involving the various arms of the SANDF. History The Joint Operations Division was established on 1 August 1997 duri ...

Air Defence Artillery becomes a separate formation

* In 1997 the 7th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, active since the 1960s, was disestablished. * Regiment Overvaal (ROV) which was established on 1 April 1969 as an Anti-Aircraft Regiment based on Vereeniging Military Base in

Vereeniging Vereeniging () is a town located in the south of Gauteng province, South Africa, situated where the Klip River empties into the northern loop of the Vaal River. It is also one of the constituent parts of the Vaal Triangle region and was formerly si ...

. P Battery of Regiment Vaalrivier was transferred on 1 October 1969 to form 8th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment (8LLA). The name changed from 8LLA to ROV on 27 April 1993. The regiment was disestablished in 1997.

The Artillery Formation

The South African Artillery re-organised itself into the South African Army Artillery Formation, directed by the SA Army Artillery Formation Headquarters. The South African Army Artillery Formation HQ was established in April 1999. Vulture Launcher System at Ysterplaat Airshow, Cape Town (2)

Vulture Launcher System at Ysterplaat Airshow, Cape Town (2)

Regional Co-operation

In the annual report for the 2013-14 fiscal year, the SANDF reported the development of artillery cooperation and the establishment of the Namibian Army School of Artillery.SA Army overstretched - DoD, Guy Martin, 6 Nov 2014 The SA Army assisted the

Namibian Defence Force The Namibian Defence Force (NDF) comprises the national military forces of Namibia. It was created when the country, then known as South West Africa, gained independence from South Africa in 1990. Chapter 15 of the Constitution of Namibia establ ...

with the development of courses and ultimately the establishment of the Namibian School of Artillery.

Regular units

* School of Artillery * 4 Artillery Regiment (Composite Regiment) (

Potchefstroom Potchefstroom (, colloquially known as Potch) is an academic city in the North West Province of South Africa. It hosts the Potchefstroom Campus of the North-West University. Potchefstroom is on the Mooi Rivier (Afrikaans for "pretty river" ...

) * Artillery Mobilisation Regiment

Reserve units

Nelson Mandela Artillery Regiment The Nelson Mandela Artillery Regiment (formerly the Cape Field Artillery) is a reserve artillery regiment of the South African Army and part of the South African Army Artillery Formation. History Origins After news of the Indian Rebellion of 18 ...

- equipped with G5 155mm towed howitzers, Cape Town *

General Dan Pienaar Artillery Regiment The General Dan Pienaar Artillery Regiment (formerly the Vrystaatse Artillerie Regiment) is a reserve artillery regiment of the South African Army. History Origin The First Regiment In 1854 the Free-State became an independent Republic. The Brit ...

- equipped with G5 155mm towed howitzers, Kroonstad * King Cetshwayo Artillery Regiment - equipped with G6 155mm self-propelled howitzers, Durban * Sandfontein Artillery Regiment - equipped with G6 155mm self-propelled howitzers, Johannesburg * State Artillery Regiment - equipped with Bateleur 127mm MLRS, Pretoria *

Regiment Potchefstroom Universiteit Regiment Potchefstroom Universiteit (Afrikaans for Potchefstroom University Regiment) is an artillery regiment of the South African Army. As a reserve unit, it has a status roughly equivalent to that of a British Army Reserve or United States A ...

- equipped with Bateleur 127mm MLRS, Potchefstroom * Steve Biko Artillery Regiment - equipped with 120mm mortars, Pretoria (Airborne unit that supports

44 Parachute Regiment 44 Parachute Regiment is the South African Army's chief airborne infantry unit. It was created in 2000 by redesignating 44 Parachute Brigade, and is based at the Tempe military base near Bloemfontein. History Origin The first South Afric ...

)

Equipment

The Formation uses the following equipment, among others: * GV6 155 mm self-propelled

howitzer A howitzer () is a long- ranged weapon, falling between a cannon (also known as an artillery gun in the United States), which fires shells at flat trajectories, and a mortar, which fires at high angles of ascent and descent. Howitzers, like ot ...

(43) * GV5 155 mm howitzer (75) replaced the G4 155 mm gun and the G2 140 mm gun *

Bateleur The bateleur (; ''Terathopius ecaudatus'') is a medium-sized eagle in the family Accipitridae. It is often considered a relative of the snake eagles and, like them, it is classified within the subfamily Circaetinae.Kemp, A. C., G. M. Kirwan, an ...

127 mm 40 tube self-propelled

multiple rocket launcher A multiple rocket launcher (MRL) or multiple launch rocket system (MLRS) is a type of rocket artillery system that contains multiple launchers which are fixed to a single platform, and shoots its rocket ordnance in a fashion similar to a volle ...

(25) * 1 Battery of ATE Vulture Tactical

Unmanned Air Vehicle An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), commonly known as a drone, is an aircraft without any human pilot, crew, or passengers on board. UAVs are a component of an unmanned aircraft system (UAS), which includes adding a ground-based controlle ...

s for daytime reconnaissance and artillery spotting * M5 120mm air deployable mortar To be acquired: * G7 lightweight 105 mm gun still under development by

Denel Land Systems It was formerly Lyttelton Engineering Works (LIW - from af, Lyttelton Ingenieurswerke), a subsidiary part of the commercial network from Armscor. It then became the ''Systems'' division of the ''Land Systems Group'' of Denel. They are responsib ...

Conventional Artillery

Cannon

Multiple Rocket Launcher Systems

References

* Further reading:

External links

Defenceweb fact file

Gunner's Association
{{SA Army Units Artillery units and formations of South Africa