1 SA Tank Regiment, the heavy metal operators in the SA Army Armour Formation, are proving just as adept at intercepting smugglers and vehicle thieves as they are in manoeuvring their 55 ton plus Olifant main battle tanks (MBTs).
Elements of the Tempe, Bloemfontein-based unit are currently part of Lieutenant General Lawrence Mbatha’s commitment to the ongoing SA National Defence Force (SANDF) border protection tasking Operation Corona.
Patrolling an area of responsibility (AoR) allocated by Joint Tactical Headquarters, Limpopo, the tankers, on foot and in much-travelled Toyota Land Cruisers, notched up significant busts in February and early March.
Acting on intelligence, 1 SA Tank Regiment personnel on the Limpopo/Zimbabwe border, targeted a farm off the R572 last month. Intelligence proved spot-on with a haul of two Ford Rangers and a Toyota Hilux D4D carrying R2.5 million plus worth of illicit cigarettes. The vehicles were valued at R1.1 million. One suspect was apprehended and another managed to flee.
Another 1 SA Tank Regiment stick patrolling south of the Beitbridge port of entry (PoE) added to the unit’s “brag board” when stopping and confiscating a Toyota Fortuner (valued at R250 000) laden with just under half million Rands worth of illicit cigarettes.
On 8 February, 1 SA Tank Regiment members saw a Toyota Land Cruiser attempting to cross the Limpopo River. After seeing the South African soldiers, the occupants fled the scene, leaving the vehicle stuck in the river. It was guarded by soldiers until it could be recovered on 17 February. Upon further investigation, it was discovered to have been stolen from Boksburg on 6 February, Captain Moses Semono reported.
He added that a Fortuner valued at R539 900 was also confiscated at Gumbu on the border of South Africa/Zimbabwe. Both vehicles were handed over to the South African Police Service. At the Beitbridge point of entry, soldiers confiscated an abandoned bag which was found containing a 9 mm Retax-X-Pro pistol.
Over the weekend, 1 SA Tank Regiment continued to notch up successes in Limpopo, recovering a Ford Ranger Raptor valued at around R1 million, which was reported stolen in Springs last year. It was handed over to the South African Police Service at Tshamutumbu Police Station.
A Ranger worth R600 000 was also recovered after being stolen earlier this year. Semono reported that 1 SA Tank Regiment soldiers also recovered nine goats valued at R17 100 that were stolen from Zimbabwe, with one suspect arrested.
Soldiers further confiscated illicit cigarettes worth R 699 264 along the border. Following the recent successes, the Officer Commanding Joint Tactical Headquarters Limpopo, Colonel Dikgabane Herold Tladi, commended the members for the job well done.
Meanwhile, members of 10 SA Infantry (SAI) Battalion, some 700 km south, doing the hard yards along Free State/Lesotho border teamed up with local police based at SA Police Service (SAPS) station, Tseseng, for a sweep in the QwaQwa Area of Responsibility. In addition to netting an unlicensed firearm and arresting people in possession of what Corporal B Mothibi reports as being “dangerous weapons” the sweep saw an SANDF uniform confiscated because the suspect was not authorised to have or wear it.
2026 has been a busy one for soldiers on border patrol. January statistics from Joint Operations indicate that soldiers seized nearly R17 million worth of contraband, apprehended over 1 000 illegal immigrants, detained 80 criminals, seized R2.5 million worth of drugs, and recovered R2.7 million worth of stolen vehicles. Other January successes included seizing R290 000 worth of boats, and R3.5 million worth of livestock.
While the SANDF is short of the 22 companies required for border patrol (it has just 15 at present), last month’s defence budget indicated the South African Army will be getting new vehicles and technology for border safeguarding. These force multipliers are “expected to increase the range of the borderline under protection and help prevent illegal border crossings, smuggling and other activities that could compromise national security.”
