 's main headquarters and training base under the name " Freedom Camp " . ZIPRA presumed that Rhodesia would never dare to attack a site so close to Lusaka . About 4 @,@ 000 guerrillas underwent training at Freedom Camp , with senior ZIPRA staff also on site . The Rhodesian operation 's other targets were Chikumbi , 19 kilometres ( 12 miles ) north of Lusaka , and Mkushi Camp ; all three were to be attacked more or less simultaneously in a coordinated sweep across Zambia . Assaulting targets deep inside Zambia was a first for the Rhodesian forces ; previously only guerrillas near the border had been attacked .   Led by Squadron Leader Chris Dixon , who identified himself to Lusaka Airport tower as " Green Leader " , a Rhodesian Air Force group flew into Zambia at very low altitudes ( thereby avoiding Zambian radar ) and took control of the country 's airspace for about a quarter of an hour during the initial assault on Westlands Farm , informing Lusaka tower that the attack was against " Rhodesian dissidents , and not against Zambia " , and that Rhodesian Hawker Hunters were circling the Zambian airfields under orders to shoot down any fighter that attempted to take off . The Zambians obeyed all of Green Leader 's instructions , made no attempt to resist and temporarily halted civil air traffic . Using Rufunsa airstrip in eastern Zambia as a forward base , the Rhodesian military suffered only minor casualties during the three @-@ day operation , and afterwards claimed to have killed over 1 @,@ 500 ZIPRA personnel , as well as some Cuban instructors .   Historians Paul Moorcraft and Peter McLaughlin write that this exaggerated considerably the actual number of guerrillas killed , as most of Nkomo 's army , then numbering about 10 @,@ 000 fighters , had not been touched . On the other hand , unarmed refugees often camped in or around insurgent positions , and hundreds of these had been killed in the Rhodesian raid . Moorcraft and McLaughlin comment that for the Rhodesian airmen , it would have been " impossible to distinguish innocent refugees from young ZIPRA recruits . " Sibanda describes Freedom Camp as " a refugee camp for boys " , and says " 351 boys and girls " were killed . He claims that the Red Cross and the UN Refugee Agency " confirmed ZAPU 's claim that Smith 's forces struck at defenseless , civilian trainees " .   = = Aftermath = =   The Rhodesian attacks on ZANLA and ZIPRA bases did much to restore white morale following the Viscount incident , though they had not actually made much impact on the respective guerrilla campaigns . Nkomo and the Zambian President Kenneth Kaunda all the same requested further military aid and better weapons from the Soviets and the British respectively . Martial law was quickly extended across Rhodesia 's rural areas , and covered three @-@ quarters of the country by the end of 1978 . Air Rhodesia , meanwhile , began developing anti @-@ Strela shielding for its Viscounts . Before this work was completed , ZIPRA shot down a second Viscount , Air Rhodesia Flight 827 , on 12 February 1979 . This time there were no survivors .   Following the second shootdown , Air Rhodesia created a system whereby the underside of the Viscounts would be coated with low @-@ radiation paint , with the exhaust pipes concurrently shrouded . According to tests conducted by the Air Force , a Viscount so treated could not be detected by the Strela 's targeting system once it was over 2 @,@ 000 feet ( 610 m ) . There were no further Viscount shootdowns in Rhodesia .   In the elections held the following year under the Internal Settlement terms , boycotted by ZANU and ZAPU , Muzorewa won a majority , and became the first Prime Minister of the reconstituted , majority @-@ ruled state of Zimbabwe Rhodesia on 1 June 1979 . This new order failed to win international acceptance , however , and in December 1979 the Lancaster House Agreement was agreed in London by Zimbabwe Rhodesia , the UK government and the Patriotic Front , returning the country to its former colonial status . The UK government suspended the constitution and took direct control for an interim period . Fresh elections were won by Mugabe , who took power in April 1980 , concurrently with the country 's recognised independence as Zimbabwe .   = = Legacy and memorial = =   In modern Zimbabwe , it is not the Viscount shootdowns but rather the retributory Rhodesian strikes against nationalist guerrilla camps that endure predominantly in the cultural memory . State media in Zimbabwe , prominently the Herald newspaper , often claim that Rhodesian forces indiscriminately and deliberately slaughtered thousands of helpless refugees during such operations . ZIPRA 's downing of civilian planes is meanwhile portrayed as a legitimate act of war on the grounds that the guerrillas might have believed
Ġ' s Ġmain Ġheadquarters Ġand Ġtraining Ġbase Ġunder Ġthe Ġname Ġ" ĠFreedom ĠCamp Ġ" Ġ. ĠZIP RA Ġpresumed Ġthat ĠRhodes ia Ġwould Ġnever Ġdare Ġto Ġattack Ġa Ġsite Ġso Ġclose Ġto ĠL us aka Ġ. ĠAbout Ġ4 Ġ@ , @ Ġ000 Ġgu err illas Ġunderwent Ġtraining Ġat ĠFreedom ĠCamp Ġ, Ġwith Ġsenior ĠZIP RA Ġstaff Ġalso Ġon Ġsite Ġ. ĠThe ĠRhodes ian Ġoperation Ġ' s Ġother Ġtargets Ġwere ĠCh ik umb i Ġ, Ġ19 Ġkilometres Ġ( Ġ12 Ġmiles Ġ) Ġnorth Ġof ĠL us aka Ġ, Ġand ĠMk ushi ĠCamp Ġ; Ġall Ġthree Ġwere Ġto Ġbe Ġattacked Ġmore Ġor Ġless Ġsimultaneously Ġin Ġa Ġcoordinated Ġsweep Ġacross ĠZamb ia Ġ. ĠAssault ing Ġtargets Ġdeep Ġinside ĠZamb ia Ġwas Ġa Ġfirst Ġfor Ġthe ĠRhodes ian Ġforces Ġ; Ġpreviously Ġonly Ġgu err illas Ġnear Ġthe Ġborder Ġhad Ġbeen Ġattacked Ġ. Ġ Ġ ĠLed Ġby ĠSquadron ĠLeader ĠChris ĠDixon Ġ, Ġwho Ġidentified Ġhimself Ġto ĠL us aka ĠAirport Ġtower Ġas Ġ" ĠGreen ĠLeader Ġ" Ġ, Ġa ĠRhodes ian ĠAir ĠForce Ġgroup Ġflew Ġinto ĠZamb ia Ġat Ġvery Ġlow Ġalt itudes Ġ( Ġthereby Ġavoiding ĠZamb ian Ġradar Ġ) Ġand Ġtook Ġcontrol Ġof Ġthe Ġcountry Ġ' s Ġairspace Ġfor Ġabout Ġa Ġquarter Ġof Ġan Ġhour Ġduring Ġthe Ġinitial Ġassault Ġon ĠWest lands ĠFarm Ġ, Ġinforming ĠL us aka Ġtower Ġthat Ġthe Ġattack Ġwas Ġagainst Ġ" ĠRhodes ian Ġdissidents Ġ, Ġand Ġnot Ġagainst ĠZamb ia Ġ" Ġ, Ġand Ġthat ĠRhodes ian ĠHaw ker ĠHunters Ġwere Ġcircling Ġthe ĠZamb ian Ġair fields Ġunder Ġorders Ġto Ġshoot Ġdown Ġany Ġfighter Ġthat Ġattempted Ġto Ġtake Ġoff Ġ. ĠThe ĠZamb ians Ġob eyed Ġall Ġof ĠGreen ĠLeader Ġ' s Ġinstructions Ġ, Ġmade Ġno Ġattempt Ġto Ġresist Ġand Ġtemporarily Ġhalted Ġcivil Ġair Ġtraffic Ġ. ĠUsing ĠR uf un sa Ġairst rip Ġin Ġeastern ĠZamb ia Ġas Ġa Ġforward Ġbase Ġ, Ġthe ĠRhodes ian Ġmilitary Ġsuffered Ġonly Ġminor Ġcasualties Ġduring Ġthe Ġthree Ġ@ - @ Ġday Ġoperation Ġ, Ġand Ġafterwards Ġclaimed Ġto Ġhave Ġkilled Ġover Ġ1 Ġ@ , @ Ġ500 ĠZIP RA Ġpersonnel Ġ, Ġas Ġwell Ġas Ġsome ĠCuban Ġinstructors Ġ. Ġ Ġ ĠHist orians ĠPaul ĠMoor craft Ġand ĠPeter ĠMcL aughlin Ġwrite Ġthat Ġthis Ġexaggerated Ġconsiderably Ġthe Ġactual Ġnumber Ġof Ġgu err illas Ġkilled Ġ, Ġas Ġmost Ġof ĠN k omo Ġ' s Ġarmy Ġ, Ġthen Ġnumbering Ġabout Ġ10 Ġ@ , @ Ġ000 Ġfighters Ġ, Ġhad Ġnot Ġbeen Ġtouched Ġ. ĠOn Ġthe Ġother Ġhand Ġ, Ġunarmed Ġrefugees Ġoften Ġcamp ed Ġin Ġor Ġaround Ġinsurgent Ġpositions Ġ, Ġand Ġhundreds Ġof Ġthese Ġhad Ġbeen Ġkilled Ġin Ġthe ĠRhodes ian Ġraid Ġ. ĠMoor craft Ġand ĠMcL aughlin Ġcomment Ġthat Ġfor Ġthe ĠRhodes ian Ġair men Ġ, Ġit Ġwould Ġhave Ġbeen Ġ" Ġimpossible Ġto Ġdistinguish Ġinnocent Ġrefugees Ġfrom Ġyoung ĠZIP RA Ġrecruits Ġ. Ġ" ĠS ib anda Ġdescribes ĠFreedom ĠCamp Ġas Ġ" Ġa Ġrefugee Ġcamp Ġfor Ġboys Ġ" Ġ, Ġand Ġsays Ġ" Ġ351 Ġboys Ġand Ġgirls Ġ" Ġwere Ġkilled Ġ. ĠHe Ġclaims Ġthat Ġthe ĠRed ĠCross Ġand Ġthe ĠUN ĠRefugee ĠAgency Ġ" Ġconfirmed ĠZ AP U Ġ' s Ġclaim Ġthat ĠSmith Ġ' s Ġforces Ġstruck Ġat Ġdef en seless Ġ, Ġcivilian Ġtrain ees Ġ" Ġ. Ġ Ġ Ġ= Ġ= ĠAfter math Ġ= Ġ= Ġ Ġ ĠThe ĠRhodes ian Ġattacks Ġon ĠZ AN LA Ġand ĠZIP RA Ġbases Ġdid Ġmuch Ġto Ġrestore Ġwhite Ġmorale Ġfollowing Ġthe ĠV isc ount Ġincident Ġ, Ġthough Ġthey Ġhad Ġnot Ġactually Ġmade Ġmuch Ġimpact Ġon Ġthe Ġrespective Ġguerrilla Ġcampaigns Ġ. ĠN k omo Ġand Ġthe ĠZamb ian ĠPresident ĠKenneth ĠK aund a Ġall Ġthe Ġsame Ġrequested Ġfurther Ġmilitary Ġaid Ġand Ġbetter Ġweapons Ġfrom Ġthe ĠSoviets Ġand Ġthe ĠBritish Ġrespectively Ġ. ĠMartial Ġlaw Ġwas Ġquickly Ġextended Ġacross ĠRhodes ia Ġ' s Ġrural Ġareas Ġ, Ġand Ġcovered Ġthree Ġ@ - @ Ġquarters Ġof Ġthe Ġcountry Ġby Ġthe Ġend Ġof Ġ1978 Ġ. ĠAir ĠRhodes ia Ġ, Ġmeanwhile Ġ, Ġbegan Ġdeveloping Ġanti Ġ@ - @ ĠSt rel a Ġshielding Ġfor Ġits ĠV isc ount s Ġ. ĠBefore Ġthis Ġwork Ġwas Ġcompleted Ġ, ĠZIP RA Ġshot Ġdown Ġa Ġsecond ĠV isc ount Ġ, ĠAir ĠRhodes ia ĠFlight Ġ8 27 Ġ, Ġon Ġ12 ĠFebruary Ġ1979 Ġ. ĠThis Ġtime Ġthere Ġwere Ġno Ġsurvivors Ġ. Ġ Ġ ĠFollowing Ġthe Ġsecond Ġshoot down Ġ, ĠAir ĠRhodes ia Ġcreated Ġa Ġsystem Ġwhereby Ġthe Ġunderside Ġof Ġthe ĠV isc ount s Ġwould Ġbe Ġcoated Ġwith Ġlow Ġ@ - @ Ġradiation Ġpaint Ġ, Ġwith Ġthe Ġexhaust Ġpipes Ġconcurrently Ġshrouded Ġ. ĠAccording Ġto Ġtests Ġconducted Ġby Ġthe ĠAir ĠForce Ġ, Ġa ĠV isc ount Ġso Ġtreated Ġcould Ġnot Ġbe Ġdetected Ġby Ġthe ĠSt rel a Ġ' s Ġtargeting Ġsystem Ġonce Ġit Ġwas Ġover Ġ2 Ġ@ , @ Ġ000 Ġfeet Ġ( Ġ610 Ġm Ġ) Ġ. ĠThere Ġwere Ġno Ġfurther ĠV isc ount Ġshoot downs Ġin ĠRhodes ia Ġ. Ġ Ġ ĠIn Ġthe Ġelections Ġheld Ġthe Ġfollowing Ġyear Ġunder Ġthe ĠInternal ĠSettlement Ġterms Ġ, Ġboy c otted Ġby ĠZ AN U Ġand ĠZ AP U Ġ, ĠMu z ore wa Ġwon Ġa Ġmajority Ġ, Ġand Ġbecame Ġthe Ġfirst ĠPrime ĠMinister Ġof Ġthe Ġrecon st it uted Ġ, Ġmajority Ġ@ - @ Ġruled Ġstate Ġof ĠZimbabwe ĠRhodes ia Ġon Ġ1 ĠJune Ġ1979 Ġ. ĠThis Ġnew Ġorder Ġfailed Ġto Ġwin Ġinternational Ġacceptance Ġ, Ġhowever Ġ, Ġand Ġin ĠDecember Ġ1979 Ġthe ĠLancaster ĠHouse ĠAgreement Ġwas Ġagreed Ġin ĠLondon Ġby ĠZimbabwe ĠRhodes ia Ġ, Ġthe ĠUK Ġgovernment Ġand Ġthe ĠPatri otic ĠFront Ġ, Ġreturning Ġthe Ġcountry Ġto Ġits Ġformer Ġcolonial Ġstatus Ġ. ĠThe ĠUK Ġgovernment Ġsuspended Ġthe Ġconstitution Ġand Ġtook Ġdirect Ġcontrol Ġfor Ġan Ġinterim Ġperiod Ġ. ĠFresh Ġelections Ġwere Ġwon Ġby ĠMug abe Ġ, Ġwho Ġtook Ġpower Ġin ĠApril Ġ1980 Ġ, Ġconcurrently Ġwith Ġthe Ġcountry Ġ' s Ġrecognised Ġindependence Ġas ĠZimbabwe Ġ. Ġ Ġ Ġ= Ġ= ĠLegacy Ġand Ġmemorial Ġ= Ġ= Ġ Ġ ĠIn Ġmodern ĠZimbabwe Ġ, Ġit Ġis Ġnot Ġthe ĠV isc ount Ġshoot downs Ġbut Ġrather Ġthe Ġret ribut ory ĠRhodes ian Ġstrikes Ġagainst Ġnationalist Ġguerrilla Ġcamps Ġthat Ġendure Ġpredominantly Ġin Ġthe Ġcultural Ġmemory Ġ. ĠState Ġmedia Ġin ĠZimbabwe Ġ, Ġprominently Ġthe ĠHerald Ġnewspaper Ġ, Ġoften Ġclaim Ġthat ĠRhodes ian Ġforces Ġindiscrim inately Ġand Ġdeliberately Ġslaughtered Ġthousands Ġof Ġhelpless Ġrefugees Ġduring Ġsuch Ġoperations Ġ. ĠZIP RA Ġ' s Ġdown ing Ġof Ġcivilian Ġplanes Ġis Ġmeanwhile Ġportrayed Ġas Ġa Ġlegitimate Ġact Ġof Ġwar Ġon Ġthe Ġgrounds Ġthat Ġthe Ġgu err illas Ġmight Ġhave Ġbelieved