By Jean Fletcher I was speaking to Paul Ouirk (son) last night and he told me Tom died in Sept and Yopie his wife died 3 weeks later in South Africa where they lived, Tom had melanoma he was Squadron Leader Tom Quirk worked in the Stores I think. Tom was 87 and Yopie 89 very sad regards jean Fletcher End Tom attested in the November 5, 1956, into the Equipment Branch, and served beyond 1981. Tom held the rank of Group Captain Ref. Rhodesia, ORAFs.

Jim Ritchie (11 LAR) Rogues Gallery VICKERS VIKING ON THE WEST COAST ROUTE Chris Higginson (Air Rhodesia) Writes:- This picture must have been taken on the ground because the fellow in the front right of the picture is not holding onto his beer bottle, which was necessary in the million or so atmospheric bumps between Salisbury and London. However not all the bad weather was confined to the tropics. Ting Orbell, later Chief Pilot, had a flight across the Mediterranean from Cairo to Rome, and they got sucked into a Cb from just above sea level and got \"spat out\" at 18000 feet. The fuel caps were torn off the wings, the outer wings were bent upwards (a Vickers problem) and the aft toilet bucket finished up in the cockpit. So as I say, it was very necessary to hold onto your beer! (Jeez Chris did the crew wear \"hard hats.\" Eddy Norris) Colleen Bowker (Air Rhodesia) Writes:- That picture of the interior of the plane on the ‘west coast route’, as I told Mitch, when I first bought his book, is of Neville chatting up the air hostess, on one of his numerous business trips.!! Actually, I think she looks like Pauline Reed, who was at that time married to Chris Van der Westerhuizen, who was also a pilot in CAA at that time. Pauline was also from a pioneering family, Worthington Reed from the Gwelo area, and a great school friend. The two men on the left look familiar, maybe from one of the Tobacco Sales Floors. So interesting to see old photos. Maurice Wood. Writes:- I worked alongside Ted on the sub-editors\' desk of the Rhodesia Herald in the 1950s and Peter Winterbach was the paper\'s chief photographer at the time. Great days. Visit. http://rhodesianheritage.blogspot.com/2013/07/vickers-vikings-on-west-coast.html BRITISH ICONS Paul Norris sent in this link:- Visit. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DdjQwTVtt8w Published on 8 Jul 2013 In a challenge between two British icons, the all-new Range Rover Sport takes on the Vickers Supermarine Spitfire in a unique off-road race that will have you on the edge of your seat. Who will be victorious? DEATH OF TOM AND YOPIE QUIRK By Jean Fletcher I was speaking to Paul Ouirk last night and he told me Tom died in Sept and Yopie his wife died 3 weeks later in South Africa where they lived, Tom had melanoma he was Squadron Leader Tom Quirk worked in the Stores I think. Tom was 87 and Yopie 89 very sad regards jean Fletcher (Tom attested in the November 5, 1956, into the Equipment Branch, and served beyond 1981. Tom held the rank of Group Captain. Eddy Norris Visit. http://www.ourstory.com/thread.html?t=1117336 SOUTH AFRICAN LIBRARY FOR THE BLIND Eunice Walls sent in this information:- I want to give you the details of Wendy\'s book, which has become and AUDIO book, obtainable from the SA Library for the Blind in Grahamstown. There must be many ex Rhodies who perhaps are visually impaired and who would love to have the book read to them. It is NOT a commercial disc as it was recorded by the Library but it is easy to contact them and make arrangements to receive discs. There is NO cost involved but people must prove that they are handicapped......doctors letter etc. So the details are: LIGHT ON A DARK CANVAS by WENDY BROWN Read by Anne Eales duration 6 hours 51 minutes. SA Library for the Blind Box 115 Grahamstown 6140 Phone: 046 622 7226 email: ria.greaves@salb.org.za If you will spread around these details, I\'m sure many people will be thrilled. RHODESIA SONGS AND MEMORIES Gordon hall (Air Rhodesia) sent this link- A fantastic page with links to many Rhodesian songs and memories Visit. http://www.thenewrbc.com/pages/music.html ROGUES GALLERY JULY 07,2013 Ron Jarman (RhAF) Writes:- Not that I would ever dare question your knowledge or resources but I must take issue with the identity of this weeks Rogue. In late 1962 my first posting from No 1 GETS was to No 3 Squadron as A/c Plunk sparkly and hanger floor sweeper under the watchful eye of Chiefy Jim Badger Flt Sgt Tony Whittal and Corporal Neville Roberts. And the number of times he had me change and rechange Dakota and Canadair Batteries making me carry the batteries between the battery room and the Aircraft I don\'t think I\'ll ever forget him and therefore I question your identification of this weeks\" Rogue\" (Ron - this photo came to me a the Christmas and End of Service from Electricians in December 1963. That is the name I got but please as you have seen in the past weeks many chaps have different names or is names with different faces. In actual fact I have put a halt on asking for names, I will be soon sending out photos with no names or details 0- everyone has got a different story.) With Salaams & Regards as always. Eddy Norris) MEIKLES HOTEL Saillie Hammond (Writes) My last memory of that beautiful elegant hotel in Harare was in 1998. I returned to Zimbabwe to attend the 80th birthday of my stepmother. A dinner had been arranged at the Meikles Hotel by her sons. I visited the Ladies Room before the dinner. The room was pristine and immaculate. There were vases of fresh flowers on the glass counters , as well as fragrant hand soap, hand lotions, tissues, and hand towels. Everything was perfect. Later in the evening I returned to the Ladies Room. It looked like a war zone. All the toilets had been ripped out of the floor. There was water gushing everywhere. Various drunken ladies from another party were busy trashing the place. The mirrors were broken, there was glass everywhere. They were laughing and throwing toilet rolls at each other. My horrified expression as I beat a hasty retreat made their day! I was reassured by one of the guests that Meikles Hotel had insurance coverage for vandalism. Charges were never laid against the offending parties---- the costs were always absorbed by the hotel. (I doubt if this was the first or last raid of the toilets. Eddy Norris) THE SPOOK HOUSE Jenny Taylor (nee Brooks) Writes:- In answer to John Mussel’s query, the Neville Brooks mentioned in the article The Spook House is indeed the same of whom he writes: my dad. SOLLY JOUBERT DETAILS I have come across the name of my mother\'s cousin (but was actually more of a brother), Solly Joubert, and who died in active service in Rhodesia in 1971. I noticed that Solly\'s son, Salomon, posted on here asking for people who knew his father to contact him, and found an additional photograph and comment featuring him on your google-groups. A response was sent to the story link (posted in 2007, I think) but there has been no response, which leads me to believe that perhaps the email no longer works; the more recent story with the photograph was posted last year. So I was wondering if you are in a position perhaps to either pass on my email address to him, if you have an updated address for him, or else perhaps to post in one of your newsletters that, if he is still interested, to contact me; I would be his second cousin. My email address is marcelle.olivier@gmail.com Thanks very much for the time. Dr Marcelle Olivier If anyone can assist please contact the Doctor direct. Eddy Norris SMILE A WHILE There comes a time when a woman just has to trust her husband. For example ... A wife comes home early from a trip late at night, and quietly opens the door to her bedroom. From under the blanket she sees four legs instead of two. She reaches for a baseball bat and starts hitting the blanket as hard as she can. Leaving the covered bodies groaning, she goes to the kitchen to have a drink. As she enters, she sees her husband there, reading a magazine. \"Hi Darling\", he says, \"Your parents have come to visit us, so l let them stay in our bedroom. Did you say \'hello\'?\" \"A sign on the lawn at a drug rehab center said: \'Keep off the Grass.\" End of Newsletter Comments are always welcome - send them to Eddy Norris at orafs11@gmail.com Ref. Rhodesia, ORAFs

W. Milne (103 VR)) Rogues Gallery VICKERS VIKING ON THE WEST COAST ROUTE Nev Mare (RhAF) Writes:- I was talking to my old schoolmate, Tony Wawn, ex Cranborne Boys High the one article on Rhodesian Heritage about the Vickers Viking VP-YJA the photo was 1B c/h 168. It was the crew did a repair, main spar I think the second person going from left to right in the photo could well be Andy Wawn,Tony dad he has that black arm guard on this right arm. Tall man with glass on Tony is 90% sure it’s his dad OK young Eddy almost forgot Rory Hilton is well on the way to full recovery, spoke to him a few weeks ago, he will contact us when he comes down to Durban. Kwawn left this comment on the blog entry:- My brothers and I believe that our late dad, Andrew Newby Wawn, is the man with the hat on, second from the left. We have never seen this photo before now, so it comes as a pleasant surprise! He served with 44 Squadron during WW2, as a Flight Sgt., and then worked for CAA, Air Rhodesia, Air Zimbabwe and Affretair. Regards, Keith Wawn. Above: Spar change VP-YJA with Gordon Campbell, Andy Wawn, Bob Garrett, Charlie Wallace, Roy Downes, – Joe Jennesen, – . Alan Bradnick (RhAF) Writes:- I have only been on a Viking once, and that was when we sent 8 pilots and 8 technicians to collect 8 Provosts. We left in December 1955, and arrived in London 4 days later having night stopped in Nairobi, Wadi Halfa, and Malta. The Air Force had chartered this Viking, and as such it was not available to the public. However, there was a special request for one old lady to be put on, and this was granted. The Captain of the aircraft, his name escapes me for the moment, was advised that this old dear was absolutely terrified of flying, could he somehow put her at ease. She was put in the very front seat facing the crew door. We took off, and as I watched this old dear I thought that she was going to be a good candidate for a heart attack. She gripped the armrests so violently that I thought the veins in her hands must rupture. We were just passing over the Zambezi, when the crew door opened, and out came the Captain , walking backwards, holding 2 pieces of string. He stopped abeam of the front row of seats, looked around, and then very kindly asked this old dear if she would do him a favour as he had to go to the gents. Would she fly the plane and he would be back in a few minutes, and before she could gather herself to speak, the Captain gave her the 2 pieces of string. He was as good as his word and he was back, in fact in a flash, thanked the old dear most sincerely, saying she had been a great help, took the pieces of string from her, and with great concentration opened the crew door and disappeared into the cabin. The relief on this lady\'s face as she realised that it was a piece of cake to fly an aeroplane. After that she was completely relaxed. This, however, could have had a very negative effect, but in this case it worked. It took us 10 days to ferry these aircraft home, the only unserviceability was to the shepherding Dak which had gene problem, I think it was in Tunis, which caused us to stay there for a day. We arrived back in Salisbury on Christmas day. Dave Vermaak (Air Rhodesia) Writes:-Correction to the notification on the Vickers Vikings on the West Coast Route Far be it from me to create any dissention in the ranks or cause doubts about my old colleagues recollection abilities but my identity of folks in the picture is; a. the photo was posed for Stuart Dark in the a/c whilst on terra firma. b. the gent being served is Vernon Ginns. c. the gent in front of him is Mike Steadman d. the gent in the window seat behind the ladies reading Post is Bill Denyer. If I go through my old material I\'ll no doubt be able to identify the chap Bill is talking to as well as the two ladies! Subject open for debate!! (Dave - thank you. The more comments the better, it only serves to give a realistic view of what happened. Critics is also welcome as long as it does not get personal. Eddy Norris) Visit. http://rhodesianheritage.blogspot.com/2013/07/vickers-vikings-on-west-coast.html JANN KNOBEL UPDATE Jann will be going some eye surgery so we wish her well CHERYL GROVER UPDATE ORAFs advises the Cheryl, from The Servicemen, is not well at present, nothing serious and should be back to normal shortly. RORY HILTON UPDATE Neville Mare (RhAF) Writes:- Rory Hilton is well on the way to full recovery, spoke to him a few weeks ago, he will contact us when he comes down to Durban RHODESIAN COPPER WARE Alan Smith Writes:- We are getting long in the tooth and have no children and am wanting to sell a selection of unused Rhodesian Copper Beer mugs, Goblets ,Wine .Champagne and Liqueur (all copperware )they have been in our display cabinet, plus other items , books etc; where would you suggest I place an advertisement ,please ? Not ebay . Thank you in advance. I forgot to mention a mans gold signet ring shaped map of Rhodesia plus a Cape yellow flawless .99ct diamond ring ,thank you Alan . Replies direct to Alan on tigerfish79@yahoo.com OUR NEW ZEALANDER FRIENDS sorry to hear about the recent earth quakes - hope is all well with you. I know Doug Pasea is in a hot spot for the earthquakes sp here\'s hoping none of his beers were lost. FINN MARCUSSEN UPDATE Ann and John (Tubby) Andersen) Write:- Last week I was totally amazed to receive a call from Finn Marcussen. He sounded terrific, he is now using a walker to get around, his speech is great and comes across a strength 9. Having been through the health mill myself over the past years I have an understanding of what this man has been subjected to during the past year. This great recovery is due to one obstinate Norwegian and the strength and courage of Fran and the family who provided their loving support through what must have been a terrible time. Finn welcome back! Leave the fried potatoes and if you can’t, half portions! RHODESIAN NAVY PUTS TO SEA Bob Jones (RhArmy) Writes: I served in HMS Mashona in Salisbury and was fortunate enough to be selected along with 10 other guys from around the country to go on a 2 week cruise on HMS Bermuda. Beira - Madagascar - LM. We were all asked what Branch we wanted to be in and I opted for Quartermaster (not like the Army Quartermaster - the Navy one is a helmsman etc) Two of us opted for it and we were given an exam at the end and awarded a silver Bosuns\' Call. What a wonderful time. I had the good fortune to meet an ex matelot from HMS Bermuda who had been on the ship at the same time and we had a very nice chat and reminisce about it all. Refer. http://rhodesianheritage.blogspot.com/2011/03/rhodesian-navy-puts-to-sea.html CESSNA 0-2S TO VIETNAM Vic Wightman ( RhAF) Writes:- Nice story from Darryl Burlin, Not much different from the tale of our Lynxes from Reims to Salisbury, identical aircraft even RHODESIAN SPORTING PROFILES - SIMON HOBDAY The following comment was placed against the article on the blog. What is Simon up to these days is he still playing ? Replies to robin@wearableimaging.com Refer. http://rhodesiansportprofiles.blogspot.com/2012/11/simon-hobday.html DEATH OF 9225 JOHN MORRISON SCOTT - BSAP Gomo Hill (6017 BSAP) Writes:- Cecily Scott, John\'s youngest daughter, advises that her father No 9225 John Morrison SCOTT passed away on Friday 12 July after suffering a heart attack. In her email she said ...\" .... he hasn\'t been well for a long time but still a shock as I thought the old man was going to last forever.\" He served from 15 August 1974 until 29 February 1976 when he transferred to RhAF The funeral is on Wednesday at 1pm at Dunmurray Non-Subscribing church. Sympathy and condolences to his wife Linda and her family. (ORAFs has only one record of a John Scott, he was suspended from 30 PTC, who started training in March 1976.) ALEXANDRA RUGBY FOOTBALL PHOTOGRAPHS Terry Craven (RhAF) Writes:- We have been house sitting our daughter Louise & Stu house in Kinross the past week and on return to our son Paul & Claire house decided to catch up on emails. It was very exciting to see the photo from Chuck - Alex Sports Club Rugby XV 1932, my dad is also in the team photo, W J Craven back row next to C Green. Chuck and I were both in the Air Electrical trade in the Air Force. The second photo of the 1st XV 1936, the vice captain M Payne is my uncle, thru marriage his wife Jessie is my moms sister. This is the first time I have seen this particular photo. I never knew that my uncle Mikey even played rugby. My dad went on to play Hockey for Alex and was Captain and Vice Captain. So thanks to ORAFs and Chuck for placing the photo on Email. Refer. http://rhodesianheritage.blogspot.com/2013/07/alexandra-rugby-clubs-2nd-xv-winners-of.html and http://rhodesianheritage.blogspot.com/2013/07/alexandra-rugby-football-club-1st-xv.html RUSSIAN LADY PILOTS Frank Fynn ()RhArmy) Writes:- Thanks for that article Eddy, what an amazing bunch! Glad she lived to a grand age, she and the others deserve it! Regards, Frank. Jean Fletcher (RhAF) Writes:- How interesting never new about soviet woman air force, The Witches great story jean Fletcher BOOK - DON\'T LET\'S GO TO THE DOGS TONIGHT Mike Hamence (RhAF) Writes:- My Dear Friend Ruth, from my Byo days 50 yrs ago, nowadays living in San Jose, CA, has sent me a wondrous book: \'Don\'t Let\'s Go To The Dogs Tonight\'...by Alexandra Fuller. ISBN 978-0-375-75899-7. If you haven\'t read it you must. SMILE A WHILE A distraught senior citizen phoned her doctor\'s office. \"Is it true,\" she wanted to know, \"that the medication you prescribed has to be taken for the rest of my life?\" \"\'Yes, I\'m afraid so,\"\' the doctor told her. There was a moment of silence before the senior lady replied, \"I\'m wondering, then, just how serious is my condition because this prescription is marked \'NO REPEATS.\" \"We are all part of the ultimate statistic -- ten out of ten die..\" End of Newsletter Comments are always welcome - send them to Eddy Norris at orafs11@gmail.com Ref. Rhodesia, orafs

By John Britton (JB) Writes:- Herewith photographs from us in Gwelo days \'The White Knights\' sky diving club at Moffat airfield. Aircraft was a Tri-pacer a major job to get in and out, pilot was a Minister and was convinced one day we would be used in a rescue roll. Mike De La Rue and Mike Upton will remember this well, I think they both did freefalls The instructor was Tony Chucher, (sp) (I think was a teacher at Chaplin school) who was also a glider pilot, I went up with him one Sunday gliding but the thermals were not good cost me 10/- but well worth it. End Many thanks to JB for sharing his photographs and memories with ORAFs. Comments are welcome - please send them to Eddy Norris at orafs11@gmail.com Ref. Rhodesia, ORAFS

The Air Force has benefitted by the acquisition of a new trophy, presented by the technical graduates of No. 1 Ground Training School. The Sid Watson Memorial Trophy has been designed and presented in tribute to the man who for a period of eight years was a popular and well-known Engine lecturer at the School. Before that appointment he had served for many years as an NCO in the Force. Following his death in March of this year. GTS Staff and members of 36 LAR proposed the idea of a memorial trophy, and arranged for donations from ex-pupils of Mr. Watson\'s. Their generosity, and the ingenuity of WO Becson\'s design, has resulted in the very unusual and attractive trophy depicted here. The piston and turbine stage are symbolic of the two main branches of the trade, whilst the spanner and pliers represent the tools of the technician. In the materials used, aluminium, steel, brass and copper, are represented the metals commonly used in engines. The trophy will first be awarded to the best all-round engine apprentice of 35 LAR, and it is intended that Mrs. Watson will be asked to make the presentation in her late husband\'s memory. End Source \"The Bateleur dated September 1978 which was made available by Hylton Garriock. Thanks Hylton. Extracted and recompiled by Eddy Norris for ORAFS Suggested further reading. Refer http://www.ourstory.com/thread.html?t=334049#393537 September 28, 1978

Les Friggens (17 LAR Rogues Gallery VICKERS VIKING ON THE WEST COAST ROUTE Chris Higginson (Air Rhodesia) Writes:- Yup, it was \"Ron Mackie\", the Iron Man. Never flew around thunderstorms! He reckoned they were just \"flack\", and when you are a Pathfinder, you don\'t fly around flack.... just through it! Visit. http://rhodesianheritage.blogspot.com/2013/07/vickers-vikings-on-west-coast.html WW2 RHODESIAN ROLL OF HONOUR. Thanks to John and Jill Russell, ORAFs has now updated a Roll of Honour for our chaps in WW2. OUR NEW ZEALAND FRIENDS I have been forced to remove all our New Zealand subscribers. Not one, replied to my question, as to how they got on with the recent earth quakes. DIESEL ELECTRIC LOCOMOTIVE Nick Baalbergen (Intaf) Writes:- Writes:-Another fascinating \'sanctions busting\' story that the man in the street knew little about at the time. Brian Oliver (RhArmy) Writes:- Although I was working in the Cabinet Office from 1965 to 1972, and then from 1976 to 1978, I was totally unaware of this remarkable operation. And though Peter Sacchi was my brother-in-law (his wife, Lucy, was my first wife\'s sister), I didn\'t even know he was back in Rhodesia from RSA to which he emigrated in about 1958. After surprises like this, I would much appreciate joining ORAFS, despite having no Air Force connections. I served in three armies, British Army (Royal Engineers) 1942 - 44, Indian Army (Madras Regt.) 1944 - 1947, and Rhodesian Army (Rhod. Intelligence Corps) 1972 - 1980. Refer. http://rhodesianheritage.blogspot.com/2013/07/diesel-electric-locomotives.html MIDLANDS GLIDING CLUB AMD SALISBURY GC ACCIDENTS Mike Hamence (RhAF) Writes- JB\'s mention of Tony Churcher takes me back to the 1970s and the gliding accidents & fatalities suffered by Midlands Gliding Club (MGC) & Salisbury Gliding (SGC). In fact at one point, \'The Rhodesia Herald\' questioned the safety of the sport. I think it was the late Harvey Quail, The \'Grand Old Man\' of Rhodesian Gliding, (more than 5000 hours), who reacted strongly in a letter to \'The Herald\'. (Should Neville Weir read this, perhaps he will comment further.) Tony Churcher was killed, either gliding or skydiving. As far as the RhAF was concerned, Harvey, & possibly P-B, battled for ages to no avail to get gliding recognized as an \'Official Sport\'. AHQ\'s refusal no doubt reflected back to the mid-\'60s when two air force pilots (\'No names, no pack drill\') \'pranged\' a Slingsby Seghburg T31 trainer on final approach to Moffat. There were many accidents & fatalities but I can\'t recall exactly the details, dates etc . Rad Sutcliffe wrote off his V-tailed sail plane near Connemara Mine (Gwelo). He was later killed when the \'Cobra\' T-tailed sail plane he was testing after rebuild \'deep stalled\' on take-off at MGC. \'Buster\' Bradnick died in hospital after the Blanik two seater in which he was giving a passenger a \'joy-ride\' crashed on take off at MGC. The passenger, a very large woman who was also a private pilot, grabbed the front control column when the launch cable broke and \'Buster\' in the back seat tried to get the Blanik\'s nose down. He lost control. The passenger was killed outright. Peter Oatley, Gwelo Manager of an insurance company, and his passenger were killed when their MGC \'Bergfalk\' broke up in a thunder storm. Tony Bradshaw (BSAP) wrote off his newly-rebuilt Schleicher S19 when he force landed in a mealy field near Hunters Road. An \'S19\' incidentally featured in the movie about Spitfire designer R Mitchell. At MGC Karl Hall died instantly when his V-tailed sail plane flicked inverted on take-off. There were two fatal accidents involving SGC Piper Super Cub tugs. Peter(?) (Worked for Farmers Co-op in Salisbury), stalled and spun in on final approach. A Salisbury dental surgeon was flying a tug, circling in a thermal above the Club strip. A young pilot flew up into the same thermal and one of his plane\'s wings snagged the towing cable and broke off. The tug nosed straight into the ground. The young pilot parachuted to safety. A young woman flying an SGC \'K6B\' looped into cloud over Mabelreign Drive In. The wings came off when she pulled out of the loop. She apparently did not try to bale out. (That sail plane had belonged previously to Clive Booth and me.) Karla(?) a T/F Air Force Doctor was badly cut about her face when she force landed a Blanik and it hit a barbed-wire fence. Lastly, an elderly pilot had a miraculous escape when he was caught in a thunder storm over the Salisbury industrial estates. He managed to get down in an empty space in a scrap yard. His plane disintegrated but he walked free! Refer. http://www.ourstory.com/thread.html?t=1117491#comments John Hepple (RhAF) Writes:- Tony Churcher was a woodwork teacher at Chaplin and was a hostel master in Duthie House from about 1962 to 1972. He also was a glider pilot and held several endurance records. His wife Lynne had a bad accident in a glider and her legs were smashed confining her to a wheel chair. Tony also broke his one leg and walked with a limp, as a result to a hard sky diving landing. Tony died of cancer on the early `70s and the Safety Equipment section at Thornhill bought an industrial sewing machine from the estate. Over weekends Tony would take several of the hostel boys to Moffat to help with moving the gliders around and driving the winch to launch the gliders etc. In return Tony would take us up for a flip. On the odd occasion we also helper repair damaged bits from the gliders. A great chap who was popular with the kids. PRETORIA COPPER GANGS Sadly I must report that the Tsotsi\'s have been busy in our neighbourhood and taken a liking to our copper wire that carries our electricity. The normal operation is they strike somewhere on Sunday night and you wake to no power! It takes rill Monday evening between 19h00 and 20h00 to sort it out, hence the delay in ORAFs being circulated. SMILE A WHILE I woke up this morning at 8.00 and could smell something was wrong. I got downstairs and found the wife face down on the kitchen floor, not breathing! I panicked. I didn’t know what to do. Then I remembered MacDonald\'s serve breakfast until 11.30 \"A bank is a place that will lend you money, if you can prove that you don’t need it..\" End of Newsletter Comments are always welcome - send them to Eddy Norris at orafs11@gmail.com Ref. Rhodesia, ORAFs

I am the bearer of sad news, Mick Brophy passed away yesterday 31/07/2013. He had been ill for some time and was in hospital in Gauteng Regards, Steve Russell End 5036 W.O. 1 Mick Brophy was a direct entry Motor Transport Fitter having attested during the Federal Days. Sadly, ORAFs has no photograph of Mick so if you can help, please send a scanned coy to orafs11@gmail.com Thanks to Steve for sharing this information with ORAFs. Thanks Steve. Ref. Rhodesia, ORAFs

Fred Eatough (Direct Entry) Rogues Gallery VICKERS VIKING ON THE WEST COAST ROUTE Nigel Fotheringham (RhAF) Writes:- A very good article by Mitch Sterling once again. I remember Ralph Ward well. He was doing his PPL the at the same time as I was in 1976, at Charles Prince Airport (Mt Hampden Airport). Not sure if it has been mentioned, but Ralph is the father of Clive Ward, pilot RhAF. etc. Mike Saunders (RhAF) Writes:- I was on the same ferry flight as described by Alan Bradnick when we went to collect another 8 Provs. The pilot was Frank Flote incidentally The main spar of a Viking – it was based on the Wellington wing – went through the cabin just aft of the cockpit access door. This left two sets of 4 club seats forward of the spar and thus the flight attendant had to step over the spar to serve pax in these seats. It was the days of the early nylon shirts and it was possible to generate a massive static electrical charge by wriggling around in one’s seat. As the long suffering hostess was leaning over the spar while handing a tray into the club seat area she presented her well rounded tail to a tech – I think Jock Howie - who was seated aft of the spar and who had amused himself by building up a really good charge His index finger got to within about three inches of her tail when the massive voltage let go with a loud crack – she let out a shriek, jumped into the air and dropped the entire tray of drinks. Boredom is a real hazard on long flights. Mike Saunders Refer. http://rhodesianheritage.blogspot.com/2013/07/vickers-vikings-on-west-coast.html OUR NEW ZEALAND FRIENDS John Pringle (RhAF) Writes:- Hello Eddy, The reason why nobody responded: We are all so used to living in the Shaky Isles that the odd rattle is no longer of much consequence.... Unless, of course, a brewery or winery should fall down. Due to superior earthquake engineering however, this has not happened. Seriously, however, the latest shakes have been in the Wellington area and the only ORAFs member on my books from there is Derek Worsely in Upper Hutt. I emailed him but have had no response yet. This is not unusual, he spends a lot of time overseas. No news is good news – we are all well. Danny Hartman (RhArmy) Never saw your mail on this but here in Hamilton did not feel anything although some folks say they felt slight shaking. Think it was probably them staggering home!! Hamilton (Home of the Chiefs)!!!! is meant to be one of the most stable areas in NZ and long may it be so!! Derek Worsely (RhAF) Writes:- Sorry I missed the comment about our earthquakes in the previous newsletter. We live some 30km north of Wellington, and certainly felt both the big ones. The amount of movement was incredible; all our hanging pots and pans were banging against each other, wind chime was tinkling for ages, and I had to rush to hold the flat screen TV to stop it toppling over. No damage at all where we are but more and more reports are rolling in of building damage in Wellington itself. Still hundreds of aftershocks going on but we feel very few where we are. Hopefully that is it for many more years in this area, but we got off very lightly in comparison with Christchurch. ZEEDERBERG COACHES Gerda Pieters Left this comment:- I found your blog whilst searching for information on Zeederberg Coaches. I am doing a presentation at our local Zululand History Society about the trip JJ Vosloo undertook on behalf of Cecil John Rhodes in 1891 to test the fertility and suitability of Mashonaland for various types of farming and animal husbandry. In this presentation I want to pay particular attention to the modes of transport used by the party en route to Mashonaland and back. In paragraph two of JJ Vosloo\'s diary he mentions using Zeederberg Coaches from Pretoria to Fort Tuli. My request to you is therefore whether you will mind if I use one or two photographs in my short talk Using due acknowledgement of course. JJ Vosloo was my late husband\'s great grandfather. (I have given Gerda permission to use these photographs.) Eddy I am awaiting your reply in anticipation Regards Gerda Pieterse Richards Bay Replies to Gerda on gerda.pieterse@gmail.com VIDEOS WORTH WATCHING Louis D Hartley (RhArmy) This is a great review history and development of the superb all round capable Hawker Hunter Jet fighter -early 50\'s thru the 90\'s ...excellent footage of the highly manuoverable combat ground attack fighter! The Hawker Hunter jet http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3MGPLhzj3cE&feature=youtu.be Always felt relatively safe when these guys were around to provide us brown jobs with air to ground support ! From Mitch Stirling The Start of an Air Force: Israel . Fascinating and inspiring... A GOOD STORY NOT KNOWN BY MANY http://vimeo.com/54400569 BOOK- DON\'T GO THE DOGS TONIGHT Adrienne (formerly Roughead) Elliott Long time no hear from me!! My life as a retiree seems to be very busy between caring for an aged parent, tackling the “bucket list” and having fun with my 3 grandchildren!! However I do continue to read all your posts, and commend you for all the effort. Last summer we drove from Vancouver to Fairbanks, Alaska, and all places in between, a journey of some 9000 kms, and yes, Darrell and I are still talking to each other!! Accommodation was supplied by our off road tent trailer, and we had a wonderful trip. Unplanned colour was added to our trip by the celebration of the 70th Anniversary of the building of the Alaska Highway. http://www.dawsoncreekdailynews.ca/article/20110521/DAWSONCREEK0101/305219996/-1/DAWSONCREEK/military-convoy-preparing-for-70th-alaska-hwy-celebration In Watson Lake in the Yukon we chanced upon the convoy for the first time, and thence forward ran into it along the road for the next three weeks of our journey. The most interesting part of our chance encounters occurred on the Top of the World Highway (not a highway, but a dirt road between Dawson City in the Yukon and a place called Chicken (yes, Chicken because the early gold rush participants wanted to call it ptarmigan, but didn’t know how to spell it!). We ferried across the Yukon River early in the morning thinking we had beaten the convoy, but were disappointed to find them mustered a few kms on the other side. We then had a new found jubilation at leaving them behind in the mustering spot! About 15 minutes later we began to realize that the mustered vehicles were in fact the rear guard, and we spent a lot of time over the next few hours trying to pass over a hundred WW2 vehicles on a very dusty road. Sort of took us back to olden times in Rhodesia!! (The Top of the World Highway is a very beautiful drive running along a high ridge and is part of the Yukon Quest Dog Sled race, in the winter, a race which is longer and more strenuous than the more famous Idtarod) Now to the reason why I started writing! I agree that Alexandra Fuller’s “Don’t Let’s go the Dog’s Tonight” is a great book. I also would highly recommend her two subsequent books, “Scribbling the Cat” and “Cocktail Hour Under the Tree of Forgetfulness”. Her memory for the details of the lives we once all had is incredible- mind you she is younger than my generation, so perhaps that’s the reason! Take care of yourself, and know that you are the glue which keeps us together. Any chance of another visit to Denise? GTS GETS NEW TROPHY Hal Bowker (RhAF) Writes:- Thanks for this article, I well remember contributing towards this but never saw it or had any idea how it turned out. Sid Watson was a character of note, a bit on the serious and grumpy side in class sometimes but I think this was needed by us little, mostly over exuberant teenagers, it helped us settle down and get serious about learning a serious job! I think we all remember his immense strength in his arms which impressed us no end. When learning the 4 stroke engine principals he would turn away from his scribblings on the chalk board, lean over and pick up the old cut away 350 Matchless bike engine by the rocker cover with one hand, lift it up with almost an outstretched arm and put it down carefully on his desk! I think he must have loved seeing our eyes pop out every time! Then he would turn the crankshaft with one hand and at the same time, with the other hand, point out the moving parts and explain the principle! It remains in my memory as, probably one of the finest teaching demonstrations ever! Just what naughty boys love and need. Then during a lull in class he would walk over to the window, staring outside, and cuss about this and that with his hands in his pockets, which was always a bit of light relief for us as his sense of humour was very subtly blended into those remarks, we enjoyed trying to mimic him at tea time and in the pub. When he was out the class we would try to pick up that engine and put it on the desk but no one I know managed it with one hand. Also, no one turned it with one hand for half a turn, or one stroke of the piston. When we gathered around the Alvis Leonides 9 cylinder radial engine to learn about mag timing, only one person managed to make humour for us to struggle not to laugh at while Sid lectured, that was Beaver Shaw, who would quietly manoeuvre himself just behind Sid and put on his very funny act of \"filming\" the lecture with his imaginary ancient, hand crank powered cine camera over his shoulder, with his tongue sticking out sideways in concentration! That was very funny and quite a daring act for a bunch of young boys straight out of school. Sid always sensed the mood and would survey our faces but Beaver would always stop in the Nic of time and put on the face of pure innocence and hold it! Sid was no fool though and he had style, when he finished what he was saying, he would pick up the ATD and PPI, give them to Beaver and tell him to give us a demo on how to time the engine! Those were wonderful times, so much energy and humour from lessons! That is how school should be! Thanks Sid! I will always remember you! And thank you Eddy for bringing us the history and the news. Refer. http://www.ourstory.com/thread.html?t=1117509&comments=1 RUGBY IN RHODESIA Have been looking for some Rugby history on my uncle Allen Poole of Rhodesia but have found nothing. Also had two Aunts - Sally( Marcella) Poole (Longbottom) who played hockey and softball for Rhodesia in Australian Olympics Her sister Nonie (Winona) Streak (Longbottom) (Played Hockey for Rhodesia was married to Harry Streak (played cricket for Rhodesia). His son Denis Streak (my cousin) has a son Heath Streak who plays cricket too. Have not been able to find any information on them. Would guess this was about 1942 +++ Dr. Mem Seaman Replies direct to memseaman@yahoo.com ROGUES GALLERY ORAFs is short of photographs of the chaps from the Machine Shop at New Sarum. Can you help? WW2 FLYING BOATS Dick Randall (RhAF) Writes:- Could you please put out the following question / query. This was asked by a friend in the Tourism Industry. Quote: ‘Does anyone know which amphibious/flying boats were operated by the RAF/SAAF on the SA coast during the second world war?’ The only reference I have is that there was a flying boat base near Hermanus at what is known as Fisherhaven today, on the Botriviervlei (Bot River Lagoon). Replies direct to Dick on dick@nautilustours.co.za DIESEL ELECTRIC LOCOMOTIVE Refer. http://rhodesianheritage.blogspot.com/2013/07/diesel-electric-locomotives.html MIDLANDS GLIDING CLUB AMD SALISBURY GC ACCIDENTS Mike McGeorge (Air Rhodesia) Writes:- Hi Eddy, some more bits and pieces re glider prangs at MGC and SGC clubs, My twin brother John and I joined the SGC in 56, when the club had just moved from Mt Hampden to Thorn Park on the Mazoe Rd. There we met Doug Elliot who was the current CFI, and learned that he survived an incident when he couldn\'t recover from a spin in a baby Grunau, breaking both his legs, which were sorted out by Mr. Nangle The next incident was Merle Finnis who undershot the runway in a Sligsby Tutor, damaging the aircraft, but not herself The next one, which we witnessed was Bill Gant in a Kirby Kite turning finals, clipped his port wing tip on the roof of a \'52 Hudson mv owned by Syd Waddell, which was parked by the club house at the beginning of the runway, consequently. crashing and breaking his ankles as a consequence Bill was quite high up in the Electricity Supply Commission. He always walked with a limp thereafter Henry Faber, brother of CAA pilot Chris Faber, came short landing in a field not far from the runway, breaking the back of a 12 metre wingspan Hutter with a glide angle of about 1 in 18 He was unhurt. This glider was subsequently restored by Basil Rushforth Alf Thompson who had joined the club about the same time as myself, had a share in a newly revamped Slingsby Tutor, that my brother and I shared with three other members. Alf had a propensity to misjudge his landings, soon this emerged when he made a steep descent on finals and wrote off the glider, which so lovingly had been worked on for quite a few months, he survived with a broken toe, only to do the same thing in a newly imported Baby Grunau from Sweden a couple of months later, also escaping injury Alf became an instructor, but managed to take upon himself to check out a new tug pilot, John Wright, an insurance bod. This was in our under powered Piper Cruiser WAH, when he allowed Wright to drift off the centre line of the runway consequently hitting the top off a 30ft bushy top tree, landing with little forward speed, with the wings collapsed like a lame duck, once again no injuries, but the a/c a write off. All this happened after we had moved from Thorn Park to Warren Hills. We now move on to Warren Hills, where the club operated from for the next thirty years This was in 1960. Our first fatality there was John Cooper, a compositor at the Herald, who hailed from New Zealand. In the late 60s he went on a silver C badge trip towards Mazoe and return. This was in a Slingsby Swallow, 15 metres w/s, glide angle about 1 in 24. About 1 pm he found himself over the Salvation Army\'s Howard Institute farm in the Mazoe area. at low altitude, looking for a place to land, not very experienced stalled and hit the dirt road, killed instantly, the a/c a complete write off. By this time we enjoyed the use of two Super Cubs, which made a big difference in our tow efficiency. These alas were to be unfortunately involved in two tug pilot fatalities. The First one as mentioned by Hamence was that of Jannie van Oldenburgh when a glider collided with his tow rope whilst towing a Blanik two seater, with John Colban in charge and his pax .John managed to release and landed safely, whilst Jannie dived straight in to the ground from about 1100 feet. Janine\'s wife, Margaret subsequently married Frank Roscoe, who had an auction business, and who I knew when buying tobacco on the auction floors where Frank was getting experience being an auctioneer in 1951. The second write off of the remaining cub was the accident of Peter Carlsson, as mentioned by Hamence. Peter had his own electrical business in Msasa, I witnessed this incident, turning low and slow on finals, straight into an incipient. So slow the a/c didn\'t cartwheel, just stuck vertical on its nose, rupturing the fuel tank which caught fire, and Peter had no chance. Gail his wife was a backbone of the social side of the club, subsequently re married Griffiths, a pilot with Air Rhodesia, they moved to S Africa, opening a pub in the Eastern cape. Di Fowler was the girl killed when attempting a loop in a Schleicher Ka 6, pulling back too quickly on the stick and overloading the wings which both sheared off, she had no chance to use her chute, this was over Mabelreign, with part of one wing falling onto the roof of a house. Next was an engineer from Gwelo, who brought his Austria glider for an aero tow after working on it and wanted a test flight. On take off he lost control, as his ailerons were in effective having omitted to tape them to close the gap between them and the wing, had to release and dived straight in to the ground, we tried to resuscitate him but was beyond help. First name Carl. Alf Thompson was the tow pilot. The elderly pilot who landed in the industrial sites after exiting a storm cloud at low altitude in his Finnish Vasama, was Doug Linnington, excellent pilot ex Coastal Command Wellington, his brother was in medical practice in Sinoia. Doug was a land surveyor, his wife was a teacher at Bothashof Junior School. Godfrey Brown was the pilot who unwittingly pulled his release at 300 ft whilst the beginning of a tow, in a Spaatz, tried to get back to the runway doing a 180 degree turn and stalled in, breaking his ankles, and writing off the glider. He was in the legal business My syndicate Ka 6 also suffered the same fate, with the pilot, whose name I can\'t remember doing the same thing, injuring himself the same way, and as we all thought writing off the glider. Fortunately there was a very good aircraft carpenter, Vic Ginns, who said he could rebuild the and modify the glider for 900 pounds. Vic worked at the London Gliding Club in UK and during the war worked on Mosquitoes Took him two years, put on a fibre glass cockpit, and in which my brother and I obtained our two diamonds each. The other syndicate member who shared the expense of the rebuild was Bill Bell, who flew for Affritair. His wife Caroline got an annual Aero Club trophy for her record gain of height in Colarado flying in wave to over 22,000 feet. They are in Australia now. The last bit. Derek Ebden, P1, and Liz Elliot were in a Blanik flying in the Warren Hills area, when a violent thunderstorm appeared, a warning on the radio was telling everyone to land as quickly as possible, They had inadvertently switched to another frequency so never received the message, and when the storm arrived they had no alternative to keep in front of the storm which was now taking them towards Mazoe. Very rough, big clouds of dust with violent down draughts, they managed to find a ploughed field, and approached for a landing, about 15 feet above the ground the starboard wing hit a telegraph pole slicing off the wing about 5 feet from the fuselage, fortunately after coming to a stop after a heavy landing were so relieved they weren\'t injured, as the fuselage took quite a hammering. This glider was sent to Gwelo where they had a spare wing, and the glider was airworthy again. Unfortunately shortly after Peter Oakley a 50 year old instructor was taking a pax for a ride, got into difficulties off a winch launch a crashed, killing the pax, a Mr. Seuilherade, with Peter dying in hospital later. As a postcript, John Cooper\'s parents came out from New Zealand and stayed with my wife and I for a month showing them around the country that their son had made a home. I kept in touch with them for many years. His mother, Josie, had her own children\'s radio show for nearly 60 years in Dunedin. I will try and send you some photos of the above incidents, will ask my friend Nigel Launder to see what he can do. All these incidents were over a period of many years, for in between we had the joy of reaching for the skies, without having an engine roaring away! Mike McGeorge. John Hepple (RhAF) Writes:- Tony Churcher was a woodwork teacher at Chaplin and was a hostel master in Duthie House from about 1962 to 1972. He also was a glider pilot and held several endurance records. His wife Lynne had a bad accident in a glider and her legs were smashed confining her to a wheel chair. Tony also broke his one leg and walked with a limp, as a result to a hard sky diving landing. Tony died of cancer on the early `70s and the Safety Equipment section at Thornhill bought an industrial sewing machine from the estate. Over weekends Tony would take several of the hostel boys to Moffat to help with moving the gliders around and driving the winch to launch the gliders etc. In return Tony would take us up for a flip. On the odd occasion we also helper repair damaged bits from the gliders. A great chap who was popular with the kids. Barrie Taylor (RhAF) Writes:- I would like to respond to Mikes write up in the latest newsletter regarding accidents at Moffat airfield. I knew all the people he refers to well and am familiar with all the aircraft he mentions. As you know I have been a glider pilot for the last 52 years, (ouch am I really that old?), and have over 3000 hours not counting my pure power plane flying hours and my motor glider hours all of which takes me to over 5000 hours in all. I flew all these aircraft at Moffat at one time or another and that Mike refers to. One could be forgiven for jumping to the conclusion that the Gwelo Gliding Club was not very safety conscious when reading this list of accidents. However, Harvey, who was our chairman for the whole time I was stationed in Gwelo on three separate occasions, was very safety conscious. I think the problem was with sanctions we could not get decent aircraft and our fleet was very old in the tooth indeed. I mean vintage type old but for a Skylark which at that time was reasonably modern by comparison being of glass fibre construction. I had a very close encounter myself in the Swallow when my rudder cable broke and while you can still fly a plane with no rudder it did make landing a little difficult for me. I made an emergency landing but not on the runway due to a severe cross wind where my rudder would have been required. Where I put the swallow down there was long grass about 6 feet tall and huge ant hills even taller plus some trees. The ant hill were scattered everywhere and as hard as concrete. By some miracle I missed all the ant hills and the only damage to the Swallow was a few scratches and a small dent in the leading edge of the wing from hitting a small sapling tree. Gliding must in fact be one of the safest sports on earth and arguably one of the safest forms of flying. At least if you do prang there is no chance of bursting into flames like in those smelly things. You could possibly draw a comparison with the main spar failure of our Canberra bomber fleet. Everyone knew it could happen but it was either use them or leave them to gather dust on the ground as there was no chance of obtaining a replacement main spar from English Electric even if they still had such a thing. Our planes at Moffat were also very old and while they were frequently checked for possible structural failures there was always that chance something could break. In my case shiny new paint coved a part that had rusted where the rudder cable was fixed to the rudder. To the unsuspecting eye it looked perfect. Had I given it a good hard tug during my morning DI it would have come adrift then. So at the end of the day I guess I was to blame for this incident. I ended up as Chairman of the Eastern Province sailplane club when I came to South Africa and also instructed there for 13 years before being transferred to Johannesburg by my company General Motors. The gliding club I flew with when I arrived in Johannesburg over 20 years ago was the Magaliesburg Gliding Club with over 120 planes in the fleet. On a very good hot summer day 90% or more of these gliders could take to the air, the vast majority of which were very modern and many valued at well over R1,000,000 even a couple at R2,000,000. We could end up in a thermal stacked literally one above the other a few feet apart and three to a circle at the same altitude with sometimes as many as 50 gliders in the stack. The only way out of such a situation is when you get to the top of the thermal as the packing was so tight you could not level your wings without risking hitting the glider only a few feet above you. Now that was hair raising stuff but as far as I know never caused an accident possibly due to the concentration level required and experience of all the guys there. Those with not enough experience would not join that particular thermal but settle for something less. To get back to Gwelo I was never aware that they actually did skydiving at Moffat until reading JB’s write up in ORAFS about the White Knights. Roger Cowling (RhAF) Writes:- The article on gliding in the Midlands and Mashonaland was fascinating reading! I had the pleasure of working with Rad Sutcliffe in the accounts department of Bata after I left Rhodaf, circa 1970. He was a talented glider pilot and, as I remember, a bright, aspiring accountant. I was unaware he had been killed. Keep up the wonderful stories. I know we don\'t always comment, but I for one, appreciate the lengths you go to in collating your material. Regards, old Jamstealer! WHEREABOUTS OF ALAN BRACKLEY Frans Meyer is wishing to contact Alan (Equipment Branch) can any one help, information direct to Frans on femeyer@mweb.co.za SMILE A WHILE Paddy got a letter in the post this morning. It landed on the floor, says on the envelope \'DO NOT BEND\'. He’s still wondering how to pick it up! \"Two silk worms had a race. They ended up in a tie.\" Ref. Rhodesia. oRAFs

Bruce Snelgar (1RLI) (Big Red) Rogues Gallery GTS GETS NEW TROPHY I really enjoyed reading Hal Bowker’s article on Sid Watson and GTS. It is not often that one reads an article that describes an event or a person exactly as you remember it (or them). I don’t know Hal at all but we were 35 LAR which is a few years later and his description is 100% accurate, the only thing I can add is that at lunch times we often found Sid lying flat on his back on his desk in the class seeking some relief from the pain that he was in towards the end. As the first (if not only) recipient of the Sid Watson Trophy I can only say that it remains a great honour to have received an award dedicated to such a great man and great institution such as our beloved Rhodesian Air Force. Refer. http://www.ourstory.com/thread.html?t=1117509&comments=1 DIESEL ELECTRICAL LOCOMOTIVES Lyna Shaklee left this comment:- Lots of good information here. I learn something totally new from here. I have bookmarked your spot for prospect suggestions. Electrical maintenance Services Refer: http://rhodesianheritage.blogspot.com/2013/07/diesel-electric-locomotives.html NEWSLETTER-AUGUST 04 2013 Dr. Memory Hughes Seaman Writes:- Thank you so much for publishing my request. I have had some wonderful responses from several people and I have thanked them directly. The world gets smaller. May I pass on a message to Mike McGeorge whose brother I knew well. He has no email appended to his write-up I believe that my husband David Seaman may have been in the same gliding club. Thank you, Mem Seaman Dr. Memory Hughes Seaman Paso Robles, CA 93446 email: memseaman@yahoo.com JANE FEW UPDATE Jane (RhAF) Writes: It is always good to receive your mails and thanks for doing such a great job. I am away in Europe for August and September and would appreciate if you could remove me from your listing meantime I will re-enlist on my return. Many thanks Kind regards Jane PS the quakes in Wellington were not felt by us in Auckland!!! Thanks for your concern. Wellington is a days trip away from us here. MONTMORENCY Eunice Walls (RhArmy) Writes:- What a great story. Rob Rix (RhAF) Writes:- Many thanks for the additional info. on my great uncle, Raymond de Montmorency, it adds that little bit extra to our family history. PASSING OF RON HARRISON Mike Mays (BSAP) Writes:- Re the Father of the late Ron Harrison, herewith our Nominal Role entry for him. Please feel free to pass onto Podge together with our deepest sympathy on the passing of Ron. Regards Mike Mays BSAP Force Number 2323 Surname HARRISON First Names Frederick William Joined 06.07.1920 Discharged On pension Left 31.01.1951 Rank Achieved Lt. Col. Comments Awarded O.B.E. A small bit of history re FW Harrison taken from the book Blue and Old Gold refers:. “1950 saw the retirement of a few senior officers of the BSAP. One other notable retirement during that year was Lieutenant Colonel F.W. Harrison OBE, the Officer Commanding the CID since 1945. ‘Fred’, as he was universally known, had a very human touch about him and he had shown not only the willingness, but a fine ability , to foster co-operation between the CID and all other branches of the Police. This was not as easy as it may sound. It is an established pattern in most uniformed services that one part or branch of the organisation becomes confrontational with another. This is generally just good natured rivalry and nothing more. Certainly all ranks would unite against a common foe if any form of external pressure was to be exerted. Harrison was succeeded by Lieutenant Colonel B.J. Price”. THE WHITE KNIGHTS Cocky Benecke (RhAF Writes) Reference ZS-BLA. My father Benny Benecke operated ZS-BLA from Serondela which is in Chobe in the very early 1950s. It was probably the first aircraft that myself and my two brothers PETE and ZOOIE ever flew in and most probably ignited our passion for flying. I don\'t know if my father owned it or just leased it. He unfortunately passed away about twenty years ago so that part of history is gone. Refer. http://www.ourstory.com/thread.html?t=1117491&comments=1 TIME WARP http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rtkdo7bOmJc SMILE A WHILE Ole won a fishing boat in a raffle drawing in a small upstate Minnesota town near Ashby. He brought it home and Lena looks at him and says, \"Vot da heckyou gonna do vit dat. Dere ain\'t no water deep enough ta float aboat widin 50 miles uv here.\" Ole says, \"I vun it and I\'ma gonna keep it.\" Sven came over to visit several days later. He sees Lena and asks where Ole is. She says, \"He\'s out dere in his fishin boat,\" pointing to thefield behind the house. Sven heads out behind the house and sees his brother sitting in afishing boat with a fishing rod in his hand down in the middle ofa big field. He yells out to him, \"Vot da hell are you doing out dere?\" Ole replies, \"I\'ma fishin\'. Vot da hell duz it look like I\'madoing?\" Sven yells back, \"It\'sa people lika you that give people fromNorvay a bad name; make everybody tink we are stoopid. If I cudsvim, I\'d come out dere and kick yor butt.\" \"I had a terrible education. I attended a school for emotionally disturbed teachers..\" End of Newsletter Comments are always welcome - send them to Eddy Norris at orafs11@gmail.com Ref. Rhodesia, ORAFs

By John (JP) Pringle (RhAF) I’m not sure if you have had this news, but we recently heard from Jenny Phipps that her husband Guy (Pole) Phipps passed away on the 6th of June in the UK following a battle with bowel cancer. Pole was 12 LAR, Radio, and spent time in Pretoria with us on OP Sand.

From Craig Fourie Found in the Llewellin Barracks scrap book. Covering Note by the RRAF Date on page before this was August 1964. Image 1 Covering Note) Image - Message from the RRAF Thanks to Craig for sharing this with ORAFs.

It is with regrets I must inform you that Alec Mann passed Away last night (August 19, 2013) in Flame Lily Park in Queensbrough near Durban in South Africa A memorial service will be held at Flame Lily Park in Friday the 23rd August at 11am.This service is being held in conjunction with the Moths of which Alec was a member. A wake to send him on his way will be held after the service at the Moths in Flame Lily Village. The village is at 565 Stella RD Malvern, Queensbrough. It would be appreciated if a good turnout of Ex Members would attend. I will be present with my wife. Many thanks Yours aye Charlie Buchan End Alec (LAF) Mann MFC (Non Op) entered the RhAF as a Dog Master and attained the rank of WO1. Rest in Peace Alec Thanks to Charlie for sharing this information with ORAFs, special thanks to also for all you visits to Alec over the years to check up on his welfare. Thanks Charie Can you assist with a photograph of Alec, if so, please send it to Eddy Norris at orafs11@gmail.com

J.M. Ward (103 VR) Sqdn Rogues Gallery ASSISTANCE SOUGHT BY STRETCH MERRINGTON Stretch (RhAF) Writes:- As you know, I completed a book a few years back called ‘African Night Witch – Legends, Myths and Tales of Southern Africa’. I am presently busy compiling a 2nd edition and adding more articles to the book. One of the new sections is about famous travel spots that are/were virtually legends for the Rhodesia traveller. I obviously have such places as the old Gwaai River Hotel, the old Victoria Falls Hotel and so on. The article tells of the history of the various landmarks and I provide as much detail and pictures as possible. With regards to the Lion & Elephant, I am battling a bit. I have made contact with the present owners and got the historical facts, but other than new recent photos, they don’t have any of the ‘old’ place before it got its facelift. Do any of our members have old photos of the Lion & Elephant motel? I would be most grateful for any assistance and comments or stories that I may be able to use. Replies direct to Stretch on stretch.michele@clintmerrington.com GTS GETS NEW TROPHY Correction to Pat Galleymore\'s tribute, I really enjoyed reading Hal Bowker’s article on Sid Watson and GTS. It is not often that one reads an article that describes an event or a person exactly as you remember it (or them). I don’t know Hal at all but we were 35 LAR which is a few years later and his description is 100% accurate, the only thing I can add is that at lunch times we often found Sid lying flat on his back on his desk in the class seeking some relief from the pain that he was in towards the end. As the first (if not only) recipient of the Sid Watson Trophy I can only say that it remains a great honour to have received an award dedicated to such a great man and great institution such as our beloved Rhodesian Air Force. (Sorry Pat - Eddy Norris_ Refer. http://www.ourstory.com/thread.html?t=1117509&comments=1 ALDERMAN R.L. PHILLIPS - MAYOR OF SALISBURY Mike McGeorge Writes:- Interesting to read about Salisbury Mayor, R. Phillips, and to read he was at one time the Manager of the Inderama G.M. Co operating the Butterfly Mine in Hartley. My brother John McGeorge, and Bob Palmer-Owen put up a three stamp mill and james table on the site of the Butterfly whilst doing clean ups, in 1957, when gold was 12 pounds an oz! Also I took the wedding photos of Clifford du Pont and Armanell shortly after the RF won their election. I do recollect that Armanell was an air hostess with BOAC, Capt Alan McAfee of CAA remembered her from his previous job. Perhaps someone could confirm this? Just some small anecdotes, have old cine of the stamp mill on the mine, also some cine of John Senior\'s plane being pulled out of the umfuli river after he lost his life lowflying near the old Senior mine, Chip Kay\'s sister was also killed. My brother and I had a bachelor mess renting from Mrs. Senior, on Cul na Green on the Widdecombe Rd, on the left just past that Garage at the top of the road before Parkmeadowlands. Not far from the old Cranborne Hostel, where most immigrants found themselves as accommodation was very short. Please note I wasn\'t Air Rhodesia as you mention after my name, but my association with the CAA pilots, I was assistant secretary to the Pilots Association of Central Africa, PACA, for 15 years, Alan McAfee was the editor of the PACA magazine, The pilots used to have their monthly meetings as my brother John and I had a photographic studio in Dalmatia House, next to Bradlows, cnr 2nd St and Speke, where we had a spare room for their deliberations. Consequently knew just about all the pilots, especially on the council, during CAA days. Refer.http://www.ourstory.com/thread.html?t=583883&comments=1 and http://rhodesianheritage.blogspot.com/2013/08/alderman-rl-phillips-mayor-salisbury.html TOUGH LUCK Jeez - I thought Trisha and I had a hard time when my attack happened recently - check this poor bugger out. http://us.cnn.com/2013/08/20/us/detroit-paramedic-heart-attack/index.html?hpt=hp_t3 THE LEGEND OF THE MORRIS OXFORD Rex Taylor (RhAF) Writes:- Thanks, Eddy and Joe, Those were the days! I wonder if any \"modern\" family of four would even think of a trip like that? (Whilst recompiling Joe\'s article, I saw it all, Land Rovers, GPS, back up Hummer vehicles - the whole shooting tottie Rex.) Yikes - all forgot, CNN, BBC and Sky would also be there telling everyone how it should be done! Eddy Norris Visit http://rhodesianheritage.blogspot.com/2013/08/those-were-days.html to read the complete article UNKNOWN ALOUETTE Thank you to all of you that replied, all we proved was that the Technician was the late Don Annandale. EVELINE HIGH SCHOOL Lewis Walter (Intaf) Writes:- Thanks for printing the Eveline School photograph. In the late 1940s/early 50s we lived at 69 Baden Powell Rd., North End, Bulawayo. Miss Powell and her mother lived next door at No. 67, and we became good friends. She had an ancient Ford with a Dickie-seat (Model T ?) in which she set off each morning to school in clouds of smoke, noise and evil fumes. She was greatly liked, and I believe the girls used to gather to cheer her safe arrival at Eveline ! I was at Milton then, and we shared some classes with the Eveline girls - what lovely young ladies. Her brother Dick Powell was a Native Commissioner, and recruited me to the Native Dept (later INTAF) for which I am eternally grateful. Dick later became Secretary for Internal Affairs. Visit http://rhodesianheritage.blogspot.com/2013/08/eveline-high-school-1961-headmistress.html to read the article on line. THE LATE ALEC MANN Brian McKelvin has advised that Alec was an author - details can be found at http://www.ourstory.com/thread.html?t=1118262#comments SEARCH RESULTS - BRITISH PATH Erik Eilersten (RhSigs) Writes:- You may want to put this link up for some nostalgia – not all of it wonderful when we see PM Wilson in Rhodesia in 1965.....but still some amazing news clips from federal days right up into the 70s and maybe more because I have not scanned through all of it. Visit. http://www.britishpathe.com/search/query/rhodesia RHODESIA WANKIE NATIONAL PARK James R Peters has left a new comment on the post \"Rhodesia\'s Wankie National Park\": Spent many an enjoyable day with our family in Wankie National Park, then some most interesting times when building the border road between Point 222 and Pandamatenka with an airstrip at Cement Pan. So many interesting and dangerous encounters with elephant during those war years when based in Tjolotjo. Hamish Peters Post a comment. MEMORIAL SERVICE - ALEC MANN Charles Buchan (RhAF) Writes:- I attended the service for Alec on Friday at Flame Lilly Park. A very moving service was held and also a Service of Passing by a large contingent of Moths from the Local Flame Lilly Shell Hole. Afterwards a few drinks and snacks were consumed with his Family at the shell Hole. I can\'t confirm if any Natal ORAFs were present as no one came forward to Talk, Just one gentleman named Alexander. Unfortunately he left just after the Service before we good talk some more. Alec was however sent on his way in an excellent manner as only the Moth\'\'s can do. Many Thanks from me and the family for your efforts in the newsletter. ROGUES GALLERY Can I please call on our TF members to send me mugshots of themselves for our Rogues Gallery from your Service Days. Thank you all. Send to orafs11@gmail.com APOLOGY Eddy Norris (ORAFs) writes:0 Sorry there was no newsletter last week, please put it down to me recovering from my \'shocking\' experience. Almost back to normal now. SMILE A WHILE Ole won a fishing boat in a raffle drawing in a small upstate Minnesota town near Ashby. He brought it home and Lena looks at him and says, \"Vot da heckyou gonna do vit dat. Dere ain\'t no water deep enough ta float aboat widin 50 miles uv here.\" Ole says, \"I vun it and I\'ma gonna keep it.\" Sven came over to visit several days later. He sees Lena and asks where Ole is. She says, \"He\'s out dere in his fishin boat,\" pointing to the field behind the house. Sven heads out behind the house and sees his brother sitting in afishing boat with a fishing rod in his hand down in the middle ofa big field. He yells out to him, \"Vot da hell are you doing out dere?\" Ole replies, \"I\'ma fishin\'. Vot da hell duz it look like I\'madoing?\" Sven yells back, \"It\'sa people lika you that give people fromNorvay a bad name; make everybody tink we are stoopid. If I cudsvim, I\'d come out dere and kick yor butt.\" \"I had a terrible education. I attended a school for emotionally disturbed teachers..\" End of Newsletter Comments are always welcome - send them to Eddy Norris at orafs11@gmail.com

I\'ve found your email address from the Rhodesian Heritage blogspot. I hope that you can help. For nearly 30 years I\'ve owned a prototype Mini Moke made by the Austin Motor Company in Birmingham, England in 1959. During the time of my ownership I have continued to research the early history of the Mini Moke. One of the photos that I have had for many years, and I don\'t know how I came by it, is of an Alouette (502) lifting a short wheelbase Moke at what looks like an agricultural show. I believe that it was taken at or near Umtali which would make sense as BMC, of which Austin were a part, had a factory at Umtali in the 1960s. I\'ve attached the photo to this email and wonder if you are able to give me any more information on it having seen it? The Moke appears to have the registration RUA 5672 (or maybe 5072). I\'ve also spotted that just to the left of the Moke and at the rear in very pixelated writing it says \'Rhodes Society Tea Rooms.\' If the Alouettes arrived in Rhodesia in 1962 I guess that the photo was taken in 1963 or 1964. However I am hoping that you can work out the exact year! Is this a photo you have seen before? If so are there any others taken at the same time? I hope that you find the above of interest and I look forward to hearing from you. With regards Graham Robinson Itabuna Bahia Brazil Subscribers will recall the photograph, made available of Peter Huson (BSAP) of a Dakota off loading a Moke. To view the relevant story and subsequent comments please visit tjhe link below. Visir http://www.ourstory.com/thread.html?t=364725&comments=1 You are invited to send any information/help you may have direct to Graham on Moke59Prototype@aol.com The photograph by Graham is certainly Umtali showground\'s - our farm Devonshire\" was only a few clicks away from the showground\'s, looking at the mountains, just to your left is Queen Victoria Mountain. Ref. Rhodesiaa, ORAFs

Keith Frankham (RIP) Rogues Gallery UNKNOWN ALOUETTE Marcus Main Baillie (RhAF) Writes:- Regarding Ian Harvey and the above article, Harves only started his Alo conversion in April 1965. So he was not the pilot (sorry Graham). Source- Ian\'s flying log book, held by Marcus. (A special appeal to Rex Taylor - please clarify if it was you or not. Eddy Norris) The helicopter also visited Umtali High School on a recruitment drive. Please see the link below. Visit http://www.ourstory.com/thread.html?t=529304#652761 Peter McCabe (RhAF) Writes:- I remember trials with the Alo III lifting the Moke and also the Haflinger Steyr Puch, to see which vehicle was suitable for a FAF Radio vehicle. The Steyr Puch was the obvious choice as there were 4 pairs of Steyr Puch FAF radio vehicles that could be transported by Dakota or individual lifts with the Alo III. Hope this helps. Paul Dubois Writes:- I can now confirm that it was September 1962! I\'m a bit busy at the moment but in due course I\'ll send you a picture of a newspaper cutting. Regarding the difficulty of lifting the Mini Moke, they had great difficulties lifting the Steyr-Puch which was done with just the pilot and a MAUW 4328lbs, with just 230lbs of fuel. Graham Robinson Writes:- Hello Marcus Yes, I agree, I now don\'t think it was Ian Harvey in that he didn\'t join the squadron until 1965 and that photo was taken in 1962. It was Rex Taylor as Sandy Steel has suggested and Sandy is pretty certain that he himself is the winch man in the photo! Something else I spotted last night to do with all of this is that the photo on the website of the Alouette lifting the Steyr-Puch Haflinger is the same one (502) lifting the Moke. Much as I love the Moke the Haflinger was streets ahead in terms of it being a cross country vehicle and it\'s understandable why the Moke never really made it as a military vehicle. The idea of simply using parts straight out of the Mini saloon parts bin was a good one but in designing the Moke they should have given more thought to its ground clearance if they wanted it to be a successful off-road military vehicle. It was only by the time that they started work c. 1963/64 on the Austin Ant a true 4 x 4 did this start to dawn on them. As I write this another email has just come in from Paul Dubois in which he says that they had great difficulty getting the Haflinger off the ground too. I was aware that the Moke lift was a problem but not that the Haflinger was too. Of course nowadays. Graham Robinson Writes:- Hello Sandy (Steel) Many thanks for your email and to discover that you are the very man feeding that cable! From the replies I have now received I am pleased to say that I have been able to establish the following about the photograph. It was taken in August 1962 at the Umtali Showground. The helicopter was one of the Alouettes that had arrived in Rhodesia in April 1962. Its number was 5072 although only 502 was shown on the side of the fuselage. Its serial number was 1017. As far as the pilot is concerned I\'m not now sure in the light of what you say in your email. I had been told that it was Fl. Lt. Ian Harvey (ex Umtali High School too) and who went on to become Air Vice Marshall. He passed away about 4 years ago. Apparently he put in more hours flying Alouettes than anyone else. I was also told that he had difficulty getting the Moke off the ground as it was on the limit of the maximum lift of the helicopter. Only by reducing the fuel load of the helicopter was he able to do it! However you think that the pilot was Rex Taylor so I am now not sure who was at the controls. Any thoughts? For example did you always work together as a team with the same pilot or was it with different pilots depending on what the mission was? Thank you again for your email. I look forward to hearing from you again. Hello Sandy (Steel) Many thanks for your email and to discover that you are the very man feeding that cable! From the replies I have now received I am pleased to say that I have been able to establish the following about the photograph. It was taken in August 1962 at the Umtali Showground. The helicopter was one of the Alouettes that had arrived in Rhodesia in April 1962. Its number was 5072 although only 502 was shown on the side of the fuselage. Its serial number was 1017. As far as the pilot is concerned I\'m not now sure in the light of what you say in your email. I had been told that it was Fl. Lt. Ian Harvey (ex Umtali High School too) and who went on to become Air Vice Marshall. He passed away about 4 years ago. Apparently he put in more hours flying Alouettes than anyone else. I was also told that he had difficulty getting the Moke off the ground as it was on the limit of the maximum lift of the helicopter. Only by reducing the fuel load of the helicopter was he able to do it! However you think that the pilot was Rex Taylor so I am now not sure who was at the controls. Any thoughts? For example did you always work together as a team with the same pilot or was it with different pilots depending on what the mission was? Thank you again for your email. I look forward to hearing from you again. Refer> http://www.ourstory.com/thread.html?t=1118572&comments=1 AFA (GAUTENG) Remember the AFA Braai and Prayer meeting at the Dickie Fritz MOTH Hall n September 7th 2013 Contact Cheryl on cheryl@theservicemen.co.za with any of your questions or concerns. SEEKING OLD FRIENDS Barry Lombard (RhAF) Writes:- You might not remember me from RRAF. It’s been some years. In fact my date of attestation for service was on 05 / 08 / 1962. I resigned on 01 / 06 / 1967 that makes it 51 years ago!!!! My course consisted of : Roy Stewart we all were of No 10 engine course. I would very much like to be Included with ORAFS. What is the protocol? Robert MackieVic Miles Clive Scott Pat Spires Des my brother lives in Sedgefield in the Cape Province and recently I paid him a visit. I have made contact with David Stone, John Green, Mike Mathews, Reg Lambie, and Norman Ely over the years. But it would be good to ‘catch up’ on some news of many others. So I am looking forward to hearing from you. Barry - have you a 10LAR group photo - if so please consider scanning it and sending it to ORAFs. Replies to Barry on lombard@saol.com SEEKING OLD FRIENDS Skatie Fourie (RhArmy) Writes:- an old Nkana Mine friend Ernie Sinclair who spent his school days in Umtali, is trying to locate old school mates one being Neville du Randt who farmed out in Tengwa Block, also the whereabouts of Jeffery Auburn (spelling) and Rosemary Godfrey in Salisbury. He resides in England now, can be reached on e-mail:- Replies to Ernest and May Sinclair zambesiernie369@hotmail.com GLIDING INCIDENTS IN RHODESIA Hal Bowker (RhAF) Writes:- Just a quick note, I was busy writing about these gliding accidents as I knew a lot of these chaps and flew with the Gwelo mob. I don\'t know what happened to all that I wrote which was very incomplete and only half of it. It might have disappeared into cyberspace or ended up in your inbox If you find it please delete it, I would like to Finnish it on my computer instead of this silly cell phone! Julie Robins (UGHS) Writes:- If you give me some time I will be able to put together a few facts for you about the Gliding activities at Grand Reef Aerodrome where my father - Ben Prescott - was an enthusiastic but often solo participant. He built his own glider at one point - a Baby Grunau I believe - and had more than one crash, once with my brother Frank on board (I think he was about 3 at the time). On that occasion I believe Dad fractured his spine - my mother was furious with him for taking Frank up, but men will be men!! Harvey Quail who is in one of your photos was involved at one point but interest dwindled and Dad had to train a young African to drive the winch and a local kid to run with the wings when he was being launched. Karl Wolff (sp?) eventually joined him out there but I think the demands of his farm eventually meant he had to give it up. I remember some nice Sundays out at Grand Reef around 1967 or so - it\'s where I learned to drive and I have a very strong memory of dad \'beating up\' the runway when Mum and I were practicing in the car - he thought it was very funny, but I did not! I\'ll get back to you soon, although no doubt your article will generate lots of responses. Pete (Robey) is very heavily into gliding and I have forwarded your article to him - I\'m sure it will be circulated around his gliding club in Lasham where they have a very large and enthusiastic Vintage Gliding section. Best wishes (Judy - when you are ready then start writing - you must be in tune with the subject to write about it. Eddy Norris Mike Daly (Air Rhodesia) Writes:- Nr 2: Remains of Schleicher Ka 6 cr, Glider No 40, involved in towing accident when the tug, a Super Cruiser, hit a tree on takeoff, causing pilot Derek Ebden, to release tow rope, stalled trying to return to the airstrip. Pilot broken ankles. survived. Derek Ebden worked at Air Rhodesia as a “radio basher” during my time there. Really nice guy. Refer. http://rhodesianheritage.blogspot.com/2013/08/rhodesian-gliding-incidents.html SMILE A WHILE Can\'t help but laugh......!!! What\'s the definition of the bravest man in the world The man who comes home drunk, covered in lipstick and smelling of perfume, then slaps his wife on the backside and says: \"You\'re next, fatty.\" \"I can hear music coming out of my printer. I think the paper\'s jammin\' again.\" End of Newsletter Comments are always welcome - send them to Eddy Norris at orafs11@gmail.com

By Gerry Cleveland (PRAW) in a email to John Mussell (RhAF) I have to do some serious brain prodding about a navigation exercise for PRAW (Police Reserve Air Wing) that was laid on by RHODAF (Rhodesian Air Force) at Thornhill in the late 70\'s The reason for this sadza stirring is to remember the low level route and turning points that you guys (RhAF) laid on for us. I remember that I was driving a Cessna 206 ZS-IYN and that Paul Chappe was the eyeballs in the sky. Somehow we won the Police Trophy for the best results. I am a non flying member of the Muskoka Flying Club and somehow the chairman got to hear that I used to fly in PRAW and cross country nav was a hot item. They are looking for ideas to do something similar here in Muskoka and want me to chat to them about the life of a PRAW pilot. I remember your friend Tol Janeke chewing my head off because I landed after dark at FRFV when a bunch of Brown job red hats dragged out a morale boost visit the troops in the field. Although I had an IF rating, Tol, quite rightly, considered it not much good if I needed to put down somewhere other than FRCZ or FRFV. Do you know anyone who might be able to send me a few photos of the event. In the Hunter Group photo you will see a bunch of intrepid aviators loafing at attention in front of one of your hot ships. Keith Corrans is standing on the right and that\'s me squatting on the left. The other photographs are from Tony Eldridge who was a member of PATU and was in charge of the Radio Relay stations. This photo is on Lima Alpha located near Dombashawa on a brick called Ngomakurira (UR135575 from my 1:250). The Choppers had popped in for Tea during a break in SF activities. In the second photo you can see the camp tent which had a fully blown kitchen with gas stove/oven and fridge. All they needed was an Air Traffic Controller. Thanks to Gerry for sharing his photographs and memories with ORAFs, thanks also to Tony Eldridge for his photographs. We request that both Gerry and Tony consider digging in the boxes for further photographs and memories. Thanks to John Mussell for routing the initial mail to ORAFs. End Ref. Rhodesian Air Force, ORAFs

By Vic Fenton Having just read that Frank had passed on I thought ORAFs might want to have a photo of him. I am not sure what this photo was in aid of but I think it was done for a display at some show, perhaps even the RhAMC stand at the Salisbury Show around about the late 60’s. The other medic was me . No idea who the “casualty” was. End Thanks to Vic for sharing his photograph and memories with ORAFs, Both Vic and Frank served, on attachment, in the Rhodesian Air Force. Sadly Frank entered into rest in Pretoria, South Africa, in September 2013. Ref. Rhodesian Air Fore, ORAFs

Alf Wild (GDP) 23 PTC Rogues Gallery CHIMBO Frank Fynn (RhArmy) Writes:- They were men of men and their fathers were men before them! Great pics! Refer. http://rhodesianheritage.blogspot.com/2013/09/chimbo.html MISSING PERSONS Peter Maunder (RhArmy) is wishing to contact Johnny Johnson of the BSAP in Victoria Falls in 1969 who I believe is now living in Bulawayo with his family. Replies direct to Peter on pfgm@absamail.co.za RON DE KOCK Tony Viegas (RhAF) Writes:- I have been advised by a colleague, that Ron de Kock passed away on Sunday 1st September,2013 after a long battle with illness. I met Ron some months ago, and found out that he was a recipient of the ORAFs articles. Unfortunately, we were not able to spend much time discussing the \"good old days\". I do not know whether he was a member of the RhAF. Perhaps you will be able to establish his affiliation. [ I do not have a Ron de Kock on the ORAFs mailing nor on the nominal roll that I administer, can anyone identify the name. Eddy Norris ] JOHN BRITTON NEWS JB is away and enjoying a bit of R and R at Gough Island. We hope he has a wonderful time. RHODESIAN GLIDING INCIDENT Gomo (BSAP 6017) Hill Writes:- I was member i/c Concession when the glider crashed at Howard. I had to fetch the body and do the sudden death docket. It could well have been me taking the photo or in the group of 3 just behind the landrover. The SDD will have long ago been destroyed. However Doug Seccomb of BSAP was also at the scene – cannot remember if he was Mazoe/Mtoroshanga/Umvukwes at the time. Doug was last heard of as the Methodist Minister at Newcastle some years ago. He was a renown chronicler and might have some info. Refer: http://rhodesianheritage.blogspot.com/2013/08/rhodesian-gliding-incidents.html ARCHIE WATT UPDATE Archie has been released from hospital and is recovering at home, in Cape Town, from his recent bypass. GAVIN HOPKINS UPDATE Gavin (RhAF) Writes:- After my Stents x 2 inserting in my Triple Bypass 7 weeks ago, my Ticker performing reasonable, will have to go in again in November for another check up and more than likely have the Third Stent inserted, they could not do all three Stents together initially. THANK YOU FROM DAVE Dave Hann (RhAF) Writes:- Just a quick note to say thank you for advertising the old RRAF film. I have received responses from all over the place including one from the USA. I have corresponded with every person who has shown interest, but a public thank you I would appreciate if that is at all possible. ZIMBABWE - FARE THEE WELL \'CHICKEN KING\' From Don Munroe (RhAF) Refer to http://allafrica.com/stories/201309050457.html regarding the death of William Mitchie Irvine the poultry king in Rhodesia and former M.P. PRAW Eddy Norris (ORAFs) Writes:- Can I please appeal to all PRAW members to please scan and forward any photos from your wing. ORAFs would like to try and start collecting mugshots for the Rogues Gallery. Please, it is of great assistance to me to have a scan done at about 300 DPI and please remember to give me names. NIAGARA FALLS From Tom Krummell At first I thought the title was \"Niagara Falls View from a Mini Cooper.\" This is much more interesting. Amazing that NORAD didn\'t scramble for an unauthorized aircraft crossing over from American airspace into Canada and back. Visit. DJI Phantom ~ Niagara Falls [Very different to the usual filming of this wonderful falls. Eddy Norris] SMILE A WHILE SCOTTISH WEDDING At the Scottish wedding reception the D.J. yelled... \"Would all married men please stand next to the one person who has made your life worth living.\" The bartender was almost crushed to death. \"I just got back from a pleasure trip. I took my mother-in-law to the airport.\" End of Newsletter Comments are always welcome - send them to Eddy Norris at orafs11@gmail.com Ref. Rhodesian Air Force, ORAFs

Margaret McAuley entered into rest in Durban, South Africa from Bronchial Pneumonia. Margaret served in the Pay and records Office (Paro/Admin) Air Headquarters and was later commissioned. Apologies in respect of the poor quality of the photograph. Deepest sympathy to Butch and Kath plus the McAuley family Ref. Rhodesia, ORAFs

Dave Curwen entered into rest in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa from cancer. Dave was a direct entry Technician to the Rhodesian Air Force and served on 7 and 8 Squadrons, End Source - Paul Curwen (son) who also served for three years at New Sarum Can anyone assist ORAFs with a photograph of Dave - if you can please send it to orafs11@gmail.com Ref. ORAFs