Identity
Person No.
30286
Old ROH no.
1735
Service No.
80016520PF
Last Name
First Name
Andrew Jeremy (ande)
Initials
A J
Date of Birth
Unknown
Est. Birth Year
Age at Death
20
Death Record
Date of Death
Cause code
KIA 14,780
Killed in action
Cause of Death
Killed in action, during special operation in support of UNITA at Savate, Angola, in a contact with the enemy. (Operation Tiro a Tiro)
Military Service
Branch
Army
Rank
Lance Corporal
Regiment
32 (Buffalo) Battalion 275
Later renamed
32 Battalion
Unit
Unknown
Defence Force
SADF 3,825
South African Defence Force
Location
Country
Locality
Cemetery
Grave Reference
Memorial
Memorial
Location
Within the Voortrekker Monument heritage precinct, Pretoria
Address
Coordinates
Panel
On the panel
No. 48
Memorial
Memorial
Location
Savate, Cuando Cubango (Cubango) province, Angola
Coordinates
Panel
Not listed against a numbered panel
On the panel
Killed at Savate, 21 May 1980, Operation Tiro a Tiro
Unit History
Attached To
Awards
South Africa
Pro Patria Medal warrant, Government Gazette No. 5171 (25 Jun 1976), Rule 5, as amended by GG No. 5575 (3 Jun 1977); discontinued by GG No. 25213 (25 Jul 2003, Schedule corrected by GG No. 26778, 17 Sep 2004) for service on/after 27 Apr 2003. Gazette extracts: https://rohsa.co.za/award.php?id=24
Notes
Son of Mr. D. H. Falkus. A British citizen who volunteered for the RLI before leaving when Rhodesia became Zimbabwe to join 32 battalion with a number of friends. He was awarded the Pro Patria medal posthumously
Citations
Unknown
External References
-
SADF.info Border Roll of Honour
open source ↗
SADF.info Border RoH
- South African War Graves Project open source ↗
-
The War in Angola
open source ↗
War In Angola Roll of Honour (warinangola.com, tabid=1175), pages 36-41 of 143: confirmed, no changes.
Stories 3
32 bn May 21 1980 Savate Angola cpl Andy falkus cpl engelbrecht capt Erasmus Lt patrick Capt C Muller (I think) This was a spec op in support of UNITA and the actual attack commenced at 09:21 Dean Shelley [dean@phoenix.idiscover.co.uk]
Ande was my brother who had joined the RLI in 1979. He quit to join 32 bn when Rhodesia became Zimbabwe. He had only been serving a short time when he was killed at the battle of Savate in 1980. He was wounded in the chest as far as we know after attempting another attack on an enemy position. He bled to death on the battlefield. He was an Englishman who loved South Africa and gave his life for that country. Unknown
On 21 May, 32 Battalion were tasked to support a UNITA attack on the FAPLA base at Savate, Angola. Unknown to them, the FAPLA strength had been badly underestimated by UNITA and there was over 1000 heavily armed soldiers at Savate, rather than the 300 estimated. However, the assault went in as planned, and after a bloody day of fighting, Savate was captured and FAPLA routed with more than 550 dead and hundreds more wounded. Sadly, the battle cost 32 Battalion dearly, fifteen officers and men being killed in the fighting that day. Lance Corporal Andy Falkus was one of the men who made the supreme sacrifice. Information extracted from 32 Battalion: The Inside Story of South Africa's Elite Fighting Unit ,
Dedications 1
Ande you were always a wild boy who lived by his own set of rules. It is twenty years since you were killed and I still miss you like hell. Love from your brother Jim and the rest of the family. I hope you found what you were looking for.