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McGuinness , Sean James (S J)

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Identity
Person No.
31816
Old ROH no.
931
Service No.
83486357PS
Last Name
McGuinness 1
First Name
Sean James
Initials
S J
Date of Birth
Unknown
Est. Birth Year
1967 (±1 yr) 289
Age at Death
23
Death Record
Date of Death
23 September 1990 96
Cause code
AA 1,734
Aircraft accident
Cause of Death
Died of injuries 578
Grievously burned on 12 September 1990 when his Aermacchi AM-3C Bosbok #925 crashed at Potchefstroom. He survived the crash but succumbed to his injuries in 1 Military Hospital on 23 September 1990
Military Service
Branch
Air Force
Rank
Lieutenant
Regiment
42 Squadron 20
Corps
South African Air Force 3,524
Unit
Unknown
Secondary Unit
25 Field Squadron
Defence Force
SADF 3,836
South African Defence Force
Location
Country
South Africa 23,873
Locality
Western Cape 2,137
Cemetery
CAPE TOWN (MAITLAND) CEMETERY 889
Grave Reference
Cremated and ashes buried in family plot 1
Coordinates
-33.91592, 18.52805 OSM
Unit History
Part of
Disbanded air and training squadrons
Notes

Son of Dennis and Anastasia McGuinness (father deceased 07 May 2012). Brother of Alison McGuinness. Born and schooled in Cape Town. Matriculated 1985. Received his wings 1987 from Dunnotar. Transferred to Potchefstroom. Was about to be transferred to Bloemfontein for helicopter training (1 week after his accident) ref. 85 years of SAAF

Research notes


5 Sep 2026: Unit "42 Squadron" (a squadron, SAAF's regiment-equivalent) promoted to Regiment, per John's decision. Corps (South African Air Force) unchanged.
Col (rt) Graham du Toit Last Post 12 Sep 2026 / Bushwar Books Lest We Forget 12 September (https://www.warbooks.co.za/posts/lest-we-forget-12-september/ named on the 12 Sep Last Post as PIC of Bosbok 925 (Diggle PN 30070 killed in the crash). Succumbed 23 Sep 1990. Stored spelling McGuinness left (Graham/Bushwar McGuiness).
Col (rt) Graham du Toit Last Post 23 Sep 2026: "83486357PS Lieutenant Sean James McGuiness from 42 Squadron was grievously burned on 12 September 1990 when his Aermacchi AM-3C Bosbok, Serial No. 925 crashed at Potchefstroom. He survived the crash but unfortunately succumbed to his injuries in 1 Military Hospital on 23 September 1990. He was 23. His Co-Pilot, Lieutenant Edward Diggle, also from 42 Squadron was killed in the initial crash." Cause of death rewritten with the aircraft type, serial, place and the eleven-day gap between the crash and his death.
- HIS CO-PILOT IS ON THIS ROLL: Lieutenant Edward Diggle (30070), 42 Squadron, killed in the crash itself on 12 September 1990. The two records are now read together. Surname spelling flagged: Graham "McGuiness", this record "McGuinness".
Bushwar Books "Lest We Forget 23 September" (warbooks.co.za/posts/lest-we-forget-23-september/), cross-checked 23 Sep 2026 -- a very partial republish, carrying only 2 of the 10 names in Graham du Toit's post for the day: spells the surname "McGuiness", agreeing with Graham against this record's "McGuinness" -- two sources to one for the single n. Flagged, not changed: both spellings are common and neither source is a service document. Aircraft, serial, place, date of the crash and age all match.

Citations
Unknown
External References
Stories 4
on 06 September 2008 · via source
Lt Mc Guinness when the attempted forced landing went wrong and the aircraft crashed into trees.
on 06 September 2008 · via source
Lt Mc Guinness died in an aircraft accident after a partial engine failure. Unknown
by Graham Du Toit on 23 September 2014 · via source
23 Sep 1990: 83486357PS Lieutenant Sean James McGuiness from 42 Squadron was grievously burned when his Aermacchi AM-3C Bosbok, Serial No. 925 crashed at Potchefstroom on 12 September 1990. He succumbed to his injuries in 1 Military Hospital on 23 September 1990. He was 23. His Co-Pilot, Lieutenant Edward Diggle, also from 42 Squadron was killed in the crash.
on 17 August 2026 · via source
Lt Mc Guinness was accompanied by <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20150312095936/http://www.justdone.co.za/roh/main.php?page=
Dedications

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