Operation Bøllebank
| date | April 29, 1994 |
|---|---|
| place | near Tuzla , Bosnia and Herzegovina |
| output | Victory of the Danish Armed Forces |
| Parties to the conflict | |
|---|---|
| Commander | |
|
Lt. Col. Lars R. Møller |
unknown |
| Troop strength | |
| 7 Leopard 1 A5 3 Leopard 1A5 as reserve 1 Pansarbandvagn 302 |
3 T-55 , artillery , anti-tank guns , anti-tank missiles |
| losses | |
|
1 vehicle damaged |
9 soldiers (Serbian source) |
Operation Bøllebank was a firefight between the Danish Armed Forces of the United Nations Protection Force and the Army of the Republika Srpska during the Bosnian War . The name Bøllebank was given after the fighting and is the Danish word for hooligan brawl.
background
The Danish military has been involved in the UN mission since 1991. In response to the attacks on civilians and UN workers in the UN protection zones , the Danish government sent a tank company to Bosnia in autumn 1993 . After a long dispute over the UN system of aid and overcoming the bureaucratic hurdles, the company was assigned to Nordic Battalion 2 (NORDBAT 2) in February 1994. The operational area was Tuzla and the surrounding area. The situation was tense because of NATO's air strikes ( Operation Deny Flight ) and several UN operations .
The company, known as DANSQN (Danish Tank Squadron) and equipped with the Leopard 1 A5, was firmly planned to protect the airport about 10 km to the south (Bøllebank operational plan), the population in the operational area and allied troops.
April 29, 1994
April 29, 1994 was a day full of routine, according to the UN armed forces. At around 10:00 p.m., an emergency call was received from the Swedish observation post Tango 2 . The outpost manned by seven soldiers near the municipality of Kalesija was shelled. The seven Leopard 1s and a Swedish armored personnel carrier Pansarbandvagn 302 , which were then dispatched, came under fire 10 km from the target in the village of Sarači, but did not respond. Shortly before reaching Tango 2 , the tanks were fired at with a 40mm anti-tank cannon and anti-tank missiles . Commander Lars R. Møller called it an ugly ambush - an ugly ambush.
After refusing the requested air support, Møller decided to return fire. Several ammunition depots and artillery positions were hit in the two-hour firefight. The Leopard 1 fired a total of 72 rounds. According to Serbian reports, the losses on the Serbian side amounted to nine people, but unofficial sources gave 150 dead and more wounded. According to Møller, the three T-55s present from the Serbian military were spared by the Danish military during the battle because the infrared observation of the (cold) tank cannons showed that they had activated their target devices, but not directly participated in the fighting. According to the strict UN mandate rules, fire may only be returned against firing units.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Milhist.dk Operation "Hooligan-bashing": The Danes themselves suffered no casualties, although Møller got himself a "long-distance-shave" by a fragment, and one of the vehicles was actually hit. ( Memento of the original from February 21, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ a b In Bosnia, UN Troops Finally Go to War , Washington Post article of May 5, 1994, accessed October 26, 2018
