The Petrangol refinery was built in 1958 and supplied Angola with petrol, diesel, and jet fuel and managed by Belgium company Petrofina SA .

[1]: Ch8  The survey vessel SAS Protea (A324) would arrive on 24 November at Walvis Bay from Simon's Town and picked up the members of 1 RR attack teams before heading northwards as well.

Two 4RR divers then entered the water and swam to the beach to ensure the landing point's suitability and its security and then called the boats in to drop off the two-man reconnaissance team.

As the dawn approached, the reconnaissance team found themselves in the middle of military transport storage area, but were able to leave and find a safer hideout during daylight hours.

[1]: Ch8  The two strike-craft then set off for their rendezvous with the SAS Protea on the early morning of 28 November for refuelling as well as the final planning and briefings of the forthcoming raid and the transfer of the attack teams.

[1]: Ch8  The two injured were transferred to individual strike-craft for treatment by medical teams and as soon as the boats were loaded, headed out to sea as several more explosions broke out in the refinery.

[1]: Ch8  The two strike-craft left Angolan waters and would arrive back in Langebaan with the 1 & 4 Reconnaissance Regiment teams on 4 December before sailing for Simon's Town later that day to refuel and restock and return to their bases.

[1]: Ch8  Angolan and Western oil officials claimed that if the attack had been successful, the city of Luanda would have taken damage from the explosion and the release of poison chemicals.

[1]: Ch8  Seventeen tanks had been destroyed, but the gas spheres had not exploded even though their contents burnt close the point of the explosion.

[1]: Ch8 Jonas Savimbi, leader of UNITA, initially claimed responsibility for the attack by a small assault team firing RPGs.

[clarification needed][1]: Ch8 By the 1 December, Angolan officials presented evidence to Western diplomats that the attack had been carried out by South African "mercenaries".

[1]: Ch8  It appeared that SADF special forces member, Captain AJP de Kock, was killed instantly when demolition explosives he was laying, prematurely exploded.