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Carlo Gagiano
Lieutenant-General Carlo Gagiano (born 26 March 1951, Bonnievale, Western Cape) was a South African military commander and former Chief of the South African Air Force. He joined the South African Air Force in 1968, and served in the Border War in South West Africa in the 1980s. Early and personal life Carlo Gagiano was born on 26 March 1951, the son of Arnoldus Johannes Kennedy Gagiano and Sophia Christina Maria Gagiano (née Esterhuizen). He completed his secondary school education at Clanwilliam High School in December 1967. Gagiano married Leonie Minnie in 1974. He is an enthusiastic succulent collector and a keen reader of Second World War aviation. Air Force career After completing his basic military training, Carlo Gagiano started his South African Air Force career as a student pilot on the AerMacchi MB-326M in July 1968 at Flying Training School Langebaanweg. [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bonnievale, Western Cape
Bonnievale is a settlement in the Cape Winelands District Municipality in the Western Cape province of South Africa. The town is 64 km southeast of Worcester, in the Breede River Valley Breede River Valley is a region of Western Cape Province, South Africa known for being the largest fruit and wine producing valley in the Western Cape, as well as South Africa's leading race-horse breeding area. It is part of the Cape Winelands, B .... It was founded in 1922, and was named after the railway siding called Vale at its opening in 1902 and Bonnie Vale in 1917. Municipal status was gained in April 1953. Bonnievale is surrounded by the Langeberge and Riversonderend Mountains. Situated on the Cape Wine Route, the area caters to tourists with locally made cheese and wine, along with private game reserves and extensive hiking trails. Gallery File:Bonnievale Station. Founded in 1922. Demolished c.2012. 07.JPG, File:NG Church, Bonnievale, Western Cape. Church Street. c. 1922 03.JPG, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis powers. World War II was a total war that directly involved more than 100 million personnel from more than 30 countries. The major participants in the war threw their entire economic, industrial, and scientific capabilities behind the war effort, blurring the distinction between civilian and military resources. Aircraft played a major role in the conflict, enabling the strategic bombing of population centres and deploying the only two nuclear weapons ever used in war. World War II was by far the deadliest conflict in human history; it resulted in 70 to 85 million fatalities, mostly among civilians. Tens of millions died due to genocides (including the Holocaust), starvation, ma ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
85 Combat Flying School SAAF
85 Combat Flying School is a unit of the South African Air Force (SAAF). It is a jet flight-training and combat operations school, it was first formed in 1982 at AFB Pietersburg (It was known as Advanced Flying School from 1967). History of 85 CFS www.af.mil.za, Retrieved 2013-10-06 It relocated to on 1 January 1993 due to the closure of AFB Pietersburg. The school also has a wartime reserve role, although it has publicly been stated that the school will not be used operationally unless a very urgent need arises. Aircraft used previously : * Mirage II ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dassault Mirage F1
The Dassault Mirage F1 is a French fighter and attack aircraft designed and manufactured by Dassault Aviation. It was developed as a successor to the popular Mirage III family. During the 1960s, Dassault commenced development of what would become the Mirage F1 as a private venture, alongside the larger Mirage F2. Work on the F1 eventually took precedence over the costlier F2, which was cancelled during the late 1960s. The French Air Force (''Armée de l'Air'') took interest in the fledgling fighter to meet its requirement for an all-weather interceptor aircraft. Accordingly, initial production units were equipped with the Thomson-CSF Cyrano IV monopulse radar. During the latter half of 1974, the Mirage F1 entered service in the French Air Force. Shortly thereafter, the type was deployed as the main interceptor of the French Air Force, a capacity which it continued to serve in until the arrival of the Mirage 2000. It later transitioned to an aerial reconnaissance role. In ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pretoria
Pretoria () is South Africa's administrative capital, serving as the seat of the Executive (government), executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassies to South Africa. Pretoria straddles the Apies River and extends eastward into the foothills of the Magaliesberg mountains. It has a reputation as an academic city and center of research, being home to the Tshwane University of Technology (TUT), the University of Pretoria (UP), the University of South Africa (UNISA), the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), and the Human Sciences Research Council. It also hosts the National Research Foundation (South Africa), National Research Foundation and the South African Bureau of Standards. Pretoria was one of the host cities of the 2010 FIFA World Cup. Pretoria is the central part of the City of Tshwane Metropolitan Municipality which was formed by the amalgamation of several former local authorities, including Bronkhorstspruit, Centurion, Gaute ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Air Force Base Waterkloof
Air Force Base Waterkloof is an airbase of the South African Air Force. It is situated on the outskirts of Pretoria, and is the SAAF's busiest airbase. The base's name, ''Waterkloof'', is Afrikaans. It means ''Water Ravine'' in English. Despite the name, this base is not located in Waterkloof, Pretoria, but lies to the south of Pretoria, to the northeast of Centurion, Gauteng and from AFB Swartkop, at an elevation of 1506 metres (4940 ft). The base motto is ''Acquirit Qui Tuetur'' (He Obtains Who Defends). Units currently hosted * 2 Squadron – Fighter, attack, reconnaissance * 21 Squadron – VIP transport * 28 Squadron – Medium transport * 41 Squadron – Light transport * 44 Squadron – Light transport * 60 Squadron – In-flight refuelling, transport, EW/ELINT/AEW * 111 Squadron – Light transport (reserve) * 140 Squadron – Light transport (reserve) * 504 Squadron – Security * 5 Air Servicing Unit – Maintenance support * Central Photographic Institu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
2 Squadron SAAF
2 Squadron is a squadron in the South African Air Force which was formed in 1940. The squadron has a long history, having been involved in every single combat action in which the SAAF has taken part. During the Second World War it made a name for itself in the battles for East Africa, before distinguishing itself in North Africa as part of the Desert Air Force, and later in Italy. World War II The squadron was established on 1 October 1940, when the two flights of 1 Squadron SAAF that were operating in Kenya against the Italians in the East African campaign, were formed into a new squadron. The Kenya-based flights had operated independently from the remainder of 1 Squadron, based in the Sudan for several months, and two shootdowns of Italian aircraft made by the Kenya-based flights were retrospectively credited to the new squadron. Initial equipment of the new squadron was nine Hawker Furys fighters, nine Gloster Gladiators and five Hawker Hurricanes. In November, the Squadron's ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dassault Mirage III
The Dassault Mirage III () is a family of single/dual-seat, single-engine, fighter aircraft developed and manufactured by French aircraft company Dassault Aviation. It was the first Western European combat aircraft to exceed Mach 2 in horizontal flight,"Mirage III." ''Dassault Aviation'', 18 December 2015. a feat which was achieved on 24 October 1958. In 1952, the French government issued its specification, calling for a , all-weather |
North American F-86 Sabre
The North American F-86 Sabre, sometimes called the Sabrejet, is a transonic jet fighter aircraft. Produced by North American Aviation, the Sabre is best known as the United States' first swept-wing fighter that could counter the swept-wing Soviet MiG-15 in high-speed dogfights in the skies of the Korean War (1950–1953), fighting some of the earliest jet-to-jet battles in history. Considered one of the best and most important fighter aircraft in that war, the F-86 is also rated highly in comparison with fighters of other eras. Although it was developed in the late 1940s and was outdated by the end of the 1950s, the Sabre proved versatile and adaptable and continued as a front-line fighter in numerous air forces. Its success led to an extended production run of more than 7,800 aircraft between 1949 and 1956, in the United States, Japan, and Italy. In addition, 738 carrier-modified versions were purchased by the US Navy as FJ-2s and -3s. Variants were built in Canada and Austr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
1 Squadron SAAF
1 Squadron SAAF was an air force squadron of the South African Air Force and was formed at Air Force Station Swartkop in February 1920, equipped with De Havilland DH.9's part of the Imperial Gift donation to South Africa by Britain. On 31 August 1939 the squadron was re-designated as 1 Bomber/Fighter Squadron and this was then changed to 11 (Bomber) Squadron in December 1939. The squadron was resurrected in February 1940 by the renumbering of 6 Squadron, equipped with four Hurricane Mk 1's and six Furies. 1 Squadron saw active service in East Africa in 1940, the Western Desert, Malta, Sicily and ended their war service in Italy in 1945. In 1950 the squadron's Spitfires were replaced with Vampires and these in turn were replaced by Sabre Mk6's in 1956. In 1976 the squadron received Mirage F1AZ attack aircraft and it was disbanded when the F1AZ's were retired on 25 November 1997. History Establishment There had been no official squadron designations in the South African Air For ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jacobus Verster
Lieutenant-General Jacobus Verster (1919–1981) was a South African military commander. He joined the South African Air Force in 1936, and served in World War II. He was Chief of the Air Force from 1967 to 1975. Military career He was educated at al Rodean High School in Swartruggens and later Pretoria University and joined the Air Force in 1936 as a student pilot. He served in RAF Bomber Command at Hendon in World War II. He was shot down in North Africa in 1942 and was taken prisoner. He served as Aide-de-Camp to the Governor General and the State President (19531962) OC SAAF College 1961-1963. He was promoted to brigadier in 1963 and served as Military, Air and Naval Attaché to London from 1963-1966. As a major general he was appointed as GOC Air Defence Group during January to November 1967. Chief of the Air Force from December 1967 until early retirement in 1974. He died in 1981. Awards and decorations * * * * * * , - See also *List of South Africa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
De Havilland Vampire
The de Havilland Vampire is a British jet fighter which was developed and manufactured by the de Havilland, de Havilland Aircraft Company. It was the second jet fighter to be operated by the Royal Air Force, RAF, after the Gloster Meteor, and the first to be powered by a single jet propulsion, jet engine. Development of the Vampire as an experimental aircraft began in 1941 during the Second World War, to exploit the revolutionary innovation of jet propulsion. From the company's design studies, it was decided to use a single-engine, twin-boom aircraft, powered by the de Havilland Goblin, Halford H.1 turbojet (later produced as the Goblin). Aside from its propulsion system and twin-boom configuration, it was a relatively conventional aircraft. In May 1944 it was decided to produce the aircraft as an interceptor aircraft, interceptor for the Royal Air Force (RAF). In 1946 the Vampire entered operational service with the RAF, only months after the war had ended. The Vampire quick ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
