|
7 Squadron SAAF
7 Squadron was a unit of the South African Air Force which served in the Second World War as well as in South Africa between 1951 and 1992. During the war, the squadron was used as a fighter squadron deployed to the Western Desert as well as in the Aegean, Italy and Sri Lanka, Ceylon. The squadron was inactive from the end of the war until 1951 when it re-activated as a citizen force training squadron, a role it retained during two periods of active service until 1992, when it was disbanded for the last time. History 7 Squadron was formed as a South African Air Force unit on 12 January 1942 at Zwartkop Air Station equipped with Harvard and Mohawk aircraft, with Douglas Loftus as commanding officer. It was re-equipped with Hurricane Mk Is in April 1942 and was then moved to Egypt. By the time the war in Africa had been concluded, the squadron was equipped with Spitfire Mk Vs in July 1943 and was tasked with convoy escort and fighter-interception sorties. On 10 September 1943 six pi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
South African Air Force
The South African Air Force (SAAF) is the air warfare branch of South African National Defence Force, with its headquarters in Pretoria. The South African Air Force was established on 1 February 1920. The Air Force saw service in World War II and the Korean War. From 1966, the SAAF was involved in providing infantry support in the low-intensity South African Border War, Border War in Angola, South-West Africa and Rhodesia. As the war progressed, the intensity of air operations increased, until in the late 1980s when the SAAF were compelled to fly fighter missions against Angolan aircraft in order to maintain tactical air superiority. On conclusion of the Border War in 1990, aircraft numbers were severely reduced due to economic pressures as well as the cessation of hostilities with neighbouring states. History First World War After a visit to observe the 1912 military manoeuvres in Europe, Brig. Gen. Christian Frederick Beyers, C.F. Beyers (who was then Commandant-General of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
7 Squadron SAAF Insignia
7 (seven) is the natural number following 6 and preceding 8. It is the only prime number preceding a cube. As an early prime number in the series of positive integers, the number seven has symbolic associations in religion, mythology, superstition and philosophy. The seven classical planets resulted in seven being the number of days in a week. 7 is often considered lucky in Western culture and is often seen as highly symbolic. Evolution of the Arabic digit For early Brahmi numerals, 7 was written more or less in one stroke as a curve that looks like an uppercase vertically inverted (ᒉ). The western Arab peoples' main contribution was to make the longer line diagonal rather than straight, though they showed some tendencies to making the digit more rectilinear. The eastern Arab peoples developed the digit from a form that looked something like 6 to one that looked like an uppercase V. Both modern Arab forms influenced the European form, a two-stroke form consisting of a ho ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, Indian peninsula by the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait. It shares a maritime border with the Maldives in the southwest and India in the northwest. Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte is the legislative capital of Sri Lanka, while the largest city, Colombo, is the administrative and judicial capital which is the nation's political, financial and cultural centre. Kandy is the second-largest urban area and also the capital of the last native kingdom of Sri Lanka. The most spoken language Sinhala language, Sinhala, is spoken by the majority of the population (approximately 17 million). Tamil language, Tamil is also spoken by approximately five million people, making it the second most-spoken language in Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka has a population of appr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Douglas Loftus
Douglas Haig Loftus (1917-1991) was a South African flying ace of World War II, credited with 4 'kills' and 1 shared. After joining the Permanent Force he served with the Coastal Artillery before moving to the South African Air Force, joining 1 Squadron SAAF. He was part of the squadron that formed the basis of 2 Squadron SAAF in Kenya, flying Hawker Furies. He scored his first victory on 24 October in a Hurricane loaned from 3 Squadron. In May 1941 he led a detachment of the squadron to fly Hurricanes in the Western Desert. In June they converted to Tomahawks and he was appointed Officer Commanding on 21 August. He was awarded the DFC in September 1941 and he returned to South Africa where he formed 7 Squadron SAAF as first Commanding Officer. The squadron flew Hurricane I's in the Western Desert in July 1942. He was promoted Lieutenant Colonel in July and in August appointed Wing Leader of 7 SAAF Wing. He was awarded a DSO in June 1943 In April 1944 he returned to South ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
DC-3 Dakota
The Douglas DC-3 is a propeller-driven airliner manufactured by the Douglas Aircraft Company, which had a lasting effect on the airline industry in the 1930s to 1940s and World War II. It was developed as a larger, improved 14-bed sleeper version of the Douglas DC-2. It is a low-wing metal monoplane with conventional landing gear, powered by two radial piston engines of . Although the DC-3s originally built for civil service had the Wright R-1820 Cyclone, later civilian DC-3s used the Pratt & Whitney R-1830 Twin Wasp engine. The DC-3 has a cruising speed of , a capacity of 21 to 32 passengers or 6,000 lbs (2,700 kg) of cargo, and a range of , and can operate from short runways. The DC-3 had many exceptional qualities compared to previous aircraft. It was fast, had a good range, was more reliable, and carried passengers in greater comfort. Before World War II, it pioneered many air travel routes. It was able to cross the continental United States from New York t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Battle Of Kos (1943)
The Battle of Kos () was a brief battle in World War II between British/Italian and German forces for control of the Greek island of Kos, in the then Italian-held Dodecanese Islands of the Aegean Sea. The battle was precipitated by the Allied Armistice with Italy. German forces with strong air support quickly overwhelmed the Italian garrison and the recent British reinforcements, denying the Allies a base to attack the German presence in the Balkans and leading to the expulsion and death of the island's Jewish population. Background With the capitulation of Italy in September 1943, German forces in the Balkans and the Mediterranean moved to take over the Italian-held areas. At the same time, the Allies, under the instigation of British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, endeavoured to occupy the Dodecanese island chain. The Dodecanese islands, under Italian control since 1912, were strategically located in the southeastern Aegean Sea, and Churchill hoped to use them as a bas ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Supermarine Spitfire
The Supermarine Spitfire is a British single-seat fighter aircraft that was used by the Royal Air Force and other Allies of World War II, Allied countries before, during, and after World War II. It was the only British fighter produced continuously throughout the war. The Spitfire remains popular among enthusiasts. Around List of surviving Supermarine Spitfires, 70 remain airworthy, and many more are static exhibits in aviation museums throughout the world. The Spitfire was a short-range, high-performance interceptor aircraft designed by R. J. Mitchell, chief designer at Supermarine Aviation Works, which operated as a subsidiary of Vickers-Armstrong from 1928. Mitchell modified the Spitfire's distinctive elliptical wing (designed by Beverley Shenstone) with innovative sunken rivets to have the thinnest possible cross-section, achieving a potential top speed greater than that of several contemporary fighter aircraft, including the Hawker Hurricane. Mitchell continued to refine ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Curtiss Mohawk
The Curtiss P-36 Hawk, also known as the Curtiss Hawk Model 75, is an American-designed and built fighter aircraft of the 1930s and 40s. A contemporary of the Hawker Hurricane and Messerschmitt Bf 109, it was one of the first of a new generation of combat aircraft—a sleek monoplane design with a retractable undercarriage making extensive use of metal in its construction. Perhaps best known as the predecessor of the Curtiss P-40 Warhawk, the P-36 saw little combat with the United States Army Air Forces during World War II. It was the fighter used most extensively and successfully by the French Air Force during the Battle of France. The P-36 was also ordered by the governments of the Netherlands and Norway but did not arrive in time to see action before both were occupied by Nazi Germany. The type was also manufactured under license in China, for the Development of Chinese Nationalist air force (1937–1945), Republic of China Air Force, as well as in British India, for the Royal ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
North American Harvard
The North American Aviation T-6 Texan is an American single-engined advanced trainer aircraft, which was used to train pilots of the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF), United States Air Force (USAF), United States Navy, Royal Air Force, Royal Canadian Air Force and other air forces of the Commonwealth of Nations, British Commonwealth during World War II and into the 1970s. Designed by North American Aviation, the T-6 is known by a variety of designations depending on the model and operating air force. The United States Army Air Corps (USAAC) and USAAF designated it as the AT-6, the United States Navy the SNJ, and British Commonwealth Air Training Plan, British Commonwealth air forces the Harvard, the name by which it is best known outside the US. Starting in 1948, the new United States Air Force (USAF) designated it the T-6, with the USN following in 1962. The T-6 Texan remains a popular warbird used for airshow demonstrations and static displays. It has also been used m ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hawker Hurricane
The Hawker Hurricane is a British single-seat fighter aircraft of the 1930s–40s which was designed and predominantly built by Hawker Aircraft Ltd. for service with the Royal Air Force (RAF). It was overshadowed in the public consciousness by the Supermarine Spitfire during the Battle of Britain in 1940, but the Hurricane inflicted 60% of the losses sustained by the ''Luftwaffe'' in the campaign, and fought in all the major theatres of the Second World War. The Hurricane originated from discussions between RAF officials and aircraft designer Sir Sydney Camm about a proposed monoplane derivative of the Hawker Fury biplane in the early 1930s. Despite an institutional preference for biplanes and lack of interest by the Air Ministry, Hawker refined its monoplane proposal, incorporating several innovations which became critical to wartime fighter aircraft, including retractable landing gear and the more powerful Rolls-Royce Merlin engine. The Air Ministry ordered Hawker's ''Interce ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Aermacchi MB-326
The Aermacchi or Macchi MB-326 is a light military jet trainer designed and produced by the Italian aircraft manufacter Aermacchi. It is one of the most commercially successful aircraft of its type, being bought by more than 10 countries and produced under licence in Australia, Brazil and South Africa. The MB-326 was developed during a period when "all-through" jet training was considered by many air forces to be the most cost-effective model for training of military pilots. Accordingly, Aermacchi designed it as a single type of aircraft that could readily perform both elementary and advanced training right through to a near combat-ready standard. After it was proposed during the 1950s, the Italian Air Force (AMI) quickly became interested in the MB-326, and an initial contract to produce three prototypes was issued following a competition. Several design refinements were made prior to the AMI, giving its official approval of the project during 1956. On 10 December 1957, the fir ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
List Of World War II Aces From South Africa
This is a list of fighter aces in World War II from South Africa. See also * List of World War II aces by country * Military history of South Africa during World War II * South African Air Force Notes * * * * * * * *KIA - Killed in action References ;Footnotes ;Citations {{Lists of flying aces Lists of World War II flying aces, South Africa South African World War II flying aces, Lists of South African military personnel, World War II aces ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
