Alastair Wicks: Congo Mercenary

Captain Alastair Wicks, Col. Mike Hoare's right hand man, and much like Hoare, enlisted and fought in WWII prior to becoming a mercenary. Wicks had received pilot training through the RAF, among other things and was primarily a forward air controller. Once WWII had ended, Alastair emigrated to Southern Rhodesia where he would begin working for Jack Malloch in the Rhodesian Air Services. Wicks didn't start his mercenary work until the start of the Katangese secession in 1961, where he would first meet Mike Hoare. Both Alastair and Mike would lead a platoon from "Compagnie Internationale" mercenary forces fighting in support of the secession. They would both train 2 groups of around 120 mercs primarily from Rhodesia and South Africa.

Eventually Alastair and Mike would form the company 4 Commando, led by Mike and with Alastair as his deputy. After the Katangese secession, Wicks went back to Southern Rhodesia and began working once again with Malloch in the Rhodesian Air Services. Once the Simba Rebellion broke out in the Congo, Alastair once again joined up with Mike Hoare to take on communist rebels wrecking havoc across the Congo. In July 1964, Hoare and Wicks arrived in Léopoldville and began their efforts to recruit mercenary soldiers to fight on behalf of Moïse Tshombe, Prime Minister of the Congo at the time. Wicks would start recruiting men for 5 Commando starting in Johannesburg, South Africa and Salisbury, Rhodesia, signing up more and more men to head to the Congo. In the earlier days, 5 Commando did a lot of cooperation with Belgian forces in the Congo, that didn’t look too highly at the mercenaries, though Alastair Wick’s good manners, charm, and fluency in French made him an invaluable asset when dealing with the Belgians.

Whilst Wicks was part of 5 Commando, he was also a liaison officer to the Congolese Air Force, and ensured 5 Commando could get supplies when and where they were needed. Wicks would serve alongside Col. Hoare throughout his entire time in the Congo, up until Mike’s departure in 1965. 

When the Mercenary Revolt took place, and while still on General Mobutu’s payroll, Wicks kept attempting to recruit more mercenaries to fight alongside Jean Schramme and Bob Denard to overthrow Mobutu and reinstate Tshombe as the Prime Minister of the Congo. Wicks even tried to rope Col. Hoare back in offering him 20,000.00 for 6 months work and ensuring that Mike would still have the rank of Colonel. Mike declined the offer and wouldn’t put on his mercenary beret until the 1980s. In 1967 when the Biafra War broke out, Wicks started recruiting officers to fight for Biafra against Nigeria. 

In a strange twist of fate, former 5 Commando officer and then leader, after Col. Hoare’s departure, John Peters, was recruiting mercenaries and officers to fight for Nigeria against Biafra. Apparently Peters called Wicks and warned him against his recruiting efforts simply saying “I don’t want my boys to fight yours”. Wicks would later fly for Biafra during the course of the war, transporting supplies, weapons, and whatever else was needed at the time, though in late 1967, Wicks was stopped in Togo and arrested with a plane filled with banknotes from Biafra’s central bank. The notes were meant to be exchanged for hard currency on behalf of the Biafran government. Wicks spent over 3 months in jail, and shortly after his release he retired from the mercenary business.