Cmdt Delville Linford was die South African Army’s last liaison officer at Serpa Pinto from April 1973 to July 1974. Because of his knowledge of Angola and its people, he was tasked by Brigadier Constand Viljoen to establish a base in the western Caprivi to accommodate, equip and train these Bushman soldiers so that they could help to protect the South West African border against Swapo. With the help of six national servicemen and 39 black troops, Linford established Camp Alpha. Combat Group Alpha participated in Operation Savannah from October 1975 to January 1976 after which the company was named 31 Battalion and operated in south-east Angola and Zambia. During his service Colonel Linford was awarded the Southern Cross Medal, Military Merit Medal, as well as a Pro Patria with Cunene Clasp and Southern Africa medals. He also received the SADF Good Service Medals in Gold, Silver and Bronze and the Permanent Force Good Service Medal.
Al J. Venter is a specialist military writer and has had 50 books published. He started his career with Geneva’s Interavia Group, then owners of International Defence Review, to cover military developments in the Middle East and Africa. Venter has been writing on these and related issues such as guerrilla warfare, insurgency, the Middle East and conflict in general for half a century. He was involved with Jane’s Information Group for more than 30 years and was a stringer for the BBC, NBC News (New York) as well as London’s Daily Express and Sunday Express. He branched into television work in the early 1980s and produced more than 100 documentaries, many of which were internationally flighted. His one-hour film, 'Africa’s Killing Fields' (on the Ugandan civil war), was shown nationwide in the United States on the PBS network. Other films include an hour-long program on the fifth anniversary of the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, as well as 'AIDS: The African Connection', nominated for China’s Pink Magnolia Award. His last major book was 'Portugal’s Guerrilla Wars in Africa', nominated in 2013 for New York’s Arthur Goodzeit military history book award. It has gone into three editions, including translation into Portuguese.
