01 June, let us pause for a minute to remember the following young men from our Generation who answered the Sunset call.
01 Jun 1976: 72524143BA Lance Corporal Nolind Trevor Small from 4 SAI was killed just north of Grootfontein after he apparently suffered a seizure and blacked out while behind the wheel of the military Landrover he was driving. The vehicle left the road and collided with a water tower which collapsed on top of the vehicle. He was 19.
01 Jun 1977: 74251612BA Private Johannes Jurgens Lensley from 16 Maintenance Unit was accidentally killed after being struck by a bullet during a shooting incident at Grootfontein. He was 18.
01 Jun 1978: 71358170PE 2/Lieutenant Philip Michael Dietlof Mare’ from 6 Squadron was killed while on a routine training flight out of Air Force Base Port Elizabeth. The canopy hinge of his Atlas MB326M Impala Mk I, Serial No. 465 broke in flight resulting in the locking mechanism impacting his helmet and either rendering him unconscious, or killing him instantly. This incident occurred at approximately 11 000 above ground level and terminated with an almost vertical aircraft impact with the ground between Steytlerville and Uitenhage. He was 22.
01 Jun 1980: 76389527BG Rifleman Petrus Johannes Bonnet from 61 Mechanised Battalion Group died of severe chest and lung injuries sustained when the Buffel Troop Carrier in which he was traveling, overturned outside the 61 Mech Base in Tsumeb. Petrus was an orphan with no family and had been brought up by relatives. He was 19.
01 Jun 1980: Two members from 102 Battalion SWATF were killed when their Buffel Troop Carrier overturned in the Operational Area. They were:
78977618HX Rifleman B. Herunga. He was 22
78976131HX Rifleman J. Matundu. He was 20
01 Jun 1981: 76244718BG Rifleman Gavin John Harvey from “B” Company, 1 Parachute Battalion was severely wounded in the chest and lungs by shrapnel from a Yugoslavian M-60P1HE Pencil STRIM Rifle Grenade during follow-up operations against SWAPO/PLAN insurgents in conjunction with Koevoet Units on 22 May 1981. He was evacuated to the Hospital in Grootfontein where he was stabilised before being evacuated by air to 1 Military Hospital in Pretoria the following day. He unfortunately succumbed to his wounds in 1 Military Hospital on 01 June 1981. He was 21.
01 Jun 1982: 70548300PE Major Eugene Kotze SD, Station Pilot at Air Force Base Ondangwa was Reported Missing when his Atlas MB326KM Impala Mk II, Serial No. 1052 failed to return from close-air support operations after being shot down by anti-aircraft fire near Cuvelai in Southern Angola.. He has no known grave and remains unaccounted for. He was 35. A small granite Memorial Tablet in his memory was placed at the Memorial in Air Force Base Ondangwa. When the Base closed, the granite Memorial Tablet was moved to the SAAF Museum at Swartkop.
01 Jun 1982: 77397560BD Private Robert William Benjamin Ostram from the Air Force Command Post in Windhoek was critically injured on 29 May 1982 when he fell off the back of a moving Samil 50 vehicle in Windhoek. He succumbed to his injuries in the Windhoek State Hospital on 01 June 1982. He was 21.
01 Jun 1988: Two members from 101 Battalion SWATF were Killed in Action during a contact with enemy forces in Southern Angola. They were:
Rifleman G K Semba. He was 24
Rifleman J Savinga. He was 26
Their Names and sacrifice have not been forgotten.