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Gagiano , Kurt (K)

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Identity
Person No.
30457
Old ROH no.
485
Service No.
72481989PE
Last Name
First Name
Kurt
Initials
K
Date of Birth
Unknown
Est. Birth Year
Age at Death
21
Death Record
Cause code
KIA 14,779
Killed in action
Cause of Death
Killed in action, during a contact with SWAPO/PLAN insurgents near the Cut-Line
Military Service
Branch
Army
Rank
Lieutenant
Unit
Unknown
Defence Force
SADF 3,828
South African Defence Force
Awards
Pro Patria Medal
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 Mrs. A. J. Gagiano

Research notes

Locality was wrongly set to "Gauteng" -- corrected 28 Aug 2026 (second pass, this time verified against Cemetery rather than AddInfo text, after the first AddInfo-based pass was found to be unreliable and reverted). This person's own Cemetery is unambiguously outside South Africa; several other people at the same cemetery already correctly show a blank Locality. Cleared rather than guessed at a specific region.
25 Sep 2026, Unit2 service-branch sweep: the stored Secondary Unit "Army" was CLEARED as a duplicate. It was not a sub-unit, it was a service-branch word repeating what the Branch column already says. Secondary Unit is for sub-units -- a company, a squadron, a commando -- and this record's branch of service is unchanged at "Army".

Citations
Unknown
External References
Stories 4
on 30 December 2006 · via source
Killed while moving from a ambush site towards sound of terrs using a different footpath ran into ambush. johan
by Regards Christo Giani Christo Giani on 10 September 2008 · via source
Dear John During June 2008, I visited the cemetery at Tsumeb and found the grave of Lt Kurt Gagiano, photo attached. He is listed as person 485 on the ROH website. I have no nothing of this person other than what is available on the grave e.g. age. What I would like to know is why he was buried in Tsumeb. Was he originally from Tsumeb? I do not know much of the Gagiano family other than of a senior officer in the current air force. Please use the photo for the website. If I can be of any further assistance, please feel free to contact me.
on 17 January 2010 · via source
Hi Christo my name is Ruan Kurt Gagiano. My father's name is Enrico Gagiano and Kurt was his brother. They lived in Tsumeb at that time with his other brother and parents. I got my name from Kurt. My dad is still in the army stationed at Kroonstad millitary base. And Carlo Gagiano from the airforce is his cousin. If you want to make contact with me or my dad just send me a email and my dad can tell you something you might want to know. Thank you all for all the stories. my regards Ruan Kurt Gagiano
by Fred van Loggerenberg on 28 September 2012 · via source
I was sad today when browsing on the internet and i came upon this site. Lt Kurt Gagiano was one of the Lt's in Charley Company, 2 SAI Battalion, Walvis Bay, 1975 to 1976 when i did national service. I remember him very well as i served in the same Company as a Rfn and we did Border Duty together. He must have joined 101 Battalion, SWATF when we left to come home in Feb 1976. R.I.P. Lt Kurt Gagiano, i SALUTE you.
Dedications 3
on 30 December 2006 · via source
Kurt you are not forgotten. johan cronje
by Fred van Loggerenberg on 28 September 2012 · via source
Gone but not forgotten. Lt Kurt Gagiano, Old soldiers never die, they just fade away in the mist. R.I.P. I SALUTE you.
by Johan Schoeman on 31 December 2022 · via War in Angola
See Officer killed in Owambo skirmish - Sunday Times 28 December 1977