Armoured corps aim to serve

As the military unit of the SA National Defence Force celebrates seventy years of existence…

The two-day SA armoured corps symposium that started in Bloemfontein on Thursday saw top ranking military officers descend on the Free State army base in Tempe to celebrate the 70th birthday of the founding of the armoured corps in the country.

Among them was the deputy SA army chief, Major General Lourie Smith who represented army chief Lieutenant General Lindele Yam, who was absent.

Smith told the army chiefs present during that the symposium is the fourth to be held since the advent of a democratic dispensation in the country and that this particular seminar should build on what has been articulated by the predecessor symposiums in 2005, 2008, 2011 and now 2016.

“The first symposium took place here in Bloemfontein at the School of Amour in 2005 with the theme “Amour in African Peace Support Operations in 2020”, followed by the one in Cape Town which focused on the multi-role deployment of amour in the African battle space,” said Smith.

He said the current symposium is directly preceded by the one 2011 in Pretoria with the theme “the deployment of light and medium amour capabilities in internal and external security operations”.

Smith added that a lot of work has since been done to ensure that the armoured corps is in shape to be able to execute the mandates expected of them by their principals in government.

He added that the armoured corps are currently acquiring equipment that will enable the unit to deliver on medium and heavy armour requirements depending on the applicable battle scenarios.

He said acquisition of equipment is however done with the economic conditions both the country and the army find itself in forever in the mind.

“With economic hardships and limitations abound, we are however resolute and determined to support the armoured corps to attain the level of efficiency which the unit’s commanding officer, Brigadier General Retief so eloquently speaks about and desires,” he said.

He said since the founding of the armoured corps back in 1946, the unit has gradually evolved to become the “decisive” arm in battle that the South African National Defence Force can rely on.

Addressing the same gathering, Brigadier General Andre Retief, the commanding officer of the armoured corps, said serving is what the armoured corps had been doing for the past seventy years, and are still doing today and will be doing in the future.

“It is our firm intent that we will serve and defend our country and its people and that we will comply with all the operational and force preparation requirements and demands from the SA army and that we will excel in compliance thereof,” he said.