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 The Permanent Force was an integral part of both the South African Defence Force and the South West Africa Territorial Force which consisted of all the full-time volunteers, volunteers of Auxiliaries and national servicemen. South Africa The D ...

he served with the Coastal Artillery before moving to the South African Air Force, joining

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 1 ...

. He was part of the squadron that formed the basis of

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 ...

in Kenya, flying Hawker Furies. He scored his first victory on 24 October in a

Hurricane A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system characterized by a low-pressure center, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Depend ...

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 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 th ...

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 1943https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/36015/supplement/2152/data.pdf In April 1944 he returned to South Africa as OC of 11 OTU Squadron SAAF until September 1945 before taking over 7 Wing again at

AFB 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 ...

. He was appointed the first Commandant of the

South African Air Force College The South African Air Force College (SAAF Col) is the South African Air Force institution responsible for a wide range of general air force training to both commissioned and non-commissioned officers. For commissioned officers and cadets, the Coll ...

References

South African World War II flying aces 1917 births 1991 deaths South African military personnel of World War II Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United Kingdom) {{SouthAfrica-mil-bio-stub