09 January, let us pause to remember these young men from our Generation who answered the Sunset call.
09 Jan 1978: 67354217BT Lance Corporal Stephan Leamy from Regiment Piet Retief was Killed in Action during a contact with SWAPO/PLAN insurgents near Eenhana. He was 26.
09 Jan 1978: 72210792BG Rifleman Donald William Paterson from 1 SAI was killed in a military vehicle accident at Bloemfontein. He was 21.
09 Jan 1979: 75395392BG Rifleman Gideon Johannes Jacobus Joubert from 3 SAI was critically injured on 29 December 1978 in a shooting accident while on duty in the Operational Area and was transferred to the H.F. Verwoerd Hospital in Pretoria where he sadly succumbed to his injuries on 09 January 1979. He was 19.
09 Jan 1979: Two members from 24 Squadron were killed when their Hawker Siddeley Buccaneer S-50, Serial No.424 crashed at Roedtan near Marble Hall during a night training exercise. The Board of Inquiry found that the aircraft had impacted the ground in a near vertical dive after losing the horizontal tail plane at supersonic speed. The Board concluded that the cause of the crash was attributed to pilot disorientation and loss of spatial orientation during a night flight at high altitude. The crew failed to recover from the fatal dive and went in with the aircraft. The aircraft tail plane section was located nearly 2 km away from the actual impact site. The crew were:
69325843PE Captain Kenneth Brian Duncan (Pilot). He was 25.
73272924PE Lieutenant Pierre Paul Wahl (Strike Navigator). He was 21.
09 Jan 1979: 73539611BG Private Daniel Jacobus Keyter from the Administrative Service Corps attached to 16 Maintenance Unit was killed in a private motor vehicle accident at Keetmanshoop. He was 21.
09 Jan 1980: 79880159HX Rifleman Pedro Komengo from 37 Battalion (Later 102 Battalion SWATF) was killed in a military vehicle accident in Northern Owamboland. He was 22.
09 Jan 1992: 81511359PD Corporal Costa Manuel from 32 Battalion Committed was found dead at his home in Pomfret with a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head using his private pistol. He was 30.
09 Jan 1998: 94097862 Rifleman E M Zwane from 21 Battalion was found stabbed to death in Sebokeng. He was 26.
Their names and sacrifices will not be forgotten.