Identity
Person No.
30882
Old ROH no.
34947
Service No.
76
Last Name
First Name
William Henry
Initials
W H
Date of Birth
Unknown
Est. Birth Year
Age at Death
26
Death Record
Date of Death
Cause code
KIA 14,779
Killed in action
Cause of Death
Killed in action, by groundfire. Bullet entered visor on Whippet tank during unrest at Benoni
Military Service
Location
Country
Locality
Coordinates
Unit History
Part of
South African Air Force (organigram)
category
Notes
Estate file MHG Ref. 49805, dated 1922, in the National Archives, Pretoria: William Henry JOHNS
Research notes
25 Sep 2026, Unit2 service-branch sweep: the stored Secondary Unit "Army" was CLEARED. It was not a sub-unit, it was a service-branch word, and it CONTRADICTED this record's own Branch, "Air Force". Across the roll 787 records carried such a contradiction; judged against Corps and Regiment -- independent of both columns -- the evidence backed Branch 744 times and Unit2 not once. Branch is therefore kept and the contradicting word removed. Nothing is guessed: this man's branch of service is already recorded, and his sub-unit, if any, is simply not known.
Citations
Unknown
External References
Stories 2
Air Corporal William Henry Johns was killed by a bullet which entered through the visor of the tank during the unrest in Benoni on March 13, 1922 Johan Meyer
The tank was a Whippet that was brought back to the Union by the Air Force for fund collection but pressed into emergency service. This tank is still on display at SA Army College.
Dedications
No dedications have been added yet.