PDF
« Previous

Murphy , John Kendrik (J K)

Next »
Photo of Murphy Photo of Murphy
Identity
Person No.
32114
Old ROH no.
1697
Service No.
79000717PN
Last Name
Murphy 17
First Name
John Kendrik
Initials
J K
Date of Birth
Unknown
Est. Birth Year
1943 (±1 yr) 117
Age at Death
37
Death Record
Date of Death
20 October 1980 249
Cause code
ACC 1,584
Accident
Cause of Death
Died in Freak Accident 255
Died in Freak Accident, parachute accident, in Weston Area
Military Service
Branch
Army
Rank
Major
Regiment
1 Reconnaissance Regiment 14
Formerly 1 Reconnaissance Commando (1996)
Corps
South African Infantry Corps 10,347
Unit
Unknown
Defence Force
SADF 3,834
South African Defence Force
Location
Country
United States of America 13
Locality
Florida 1
Cemetery
PONTE VEDRA VALLEY CEMETERY, Ponte Vedra Beach, St. Johns County 1
Grave Reference
Alternative Commemoration until grave found 1
Memorial
1980 Army (Abel–Ralikwatha). Photograph: South African War Graves Project.
Names on 1980 Army Abel-Ralikwatha
Memorial
SADF Wall of Remembrance
Location
On a koppie at the Voortrekker Monument, overlooking Pretoria
Address
Voortrekker Monument, Eeufees Road, Groenkloof, Pretoria, 0181, South Africa
Coordinates
-25.77639, 28.17583 · OpenStreetMap
Panel
1980 Army Abel-Ralikwatha
On the panel
1980 Army. Right column. 22nd name from the top (Murphy J.K.)
Unit History
Role at time of death
Special Forces (Reconnaissance)
Status
Permanent Force (Regular), some sub-units Citizen Force
The first South African Special Forces unit, established at Oudtshoorn, Cape Province, 1 October 1972. Special Forces operate as their own branch within the SANDF (not part of the Army/Navy). Some Reconnaissance Commandos had Citizen Force (reserve) components alongside the standing Permanent Force structure -- needs further research to determine which applies to a specific record/era.
Notes

Husband of Mrs. S. E. Murphy. Last residence Virginia, SSN 263-64-7730.

Research notes

SADF Wall of Remembrance (Voortrekker Monument): named on photograph "1980 Army (Abel–Ralikwatha). Photograph: South African War Graves Project.". 1980 Army. Right column. 22nd name from the top (Murphy J.K.).
SASFA In Memoriam (operators killed in training): confirmed operator; died in training (SASFA: Operators killed in Training). SASFA: Murphy JK 1980. https://www.recce.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/4.1.-Memoriam.pdf 26 Aug 2026: Unit was leftover "32 (Buffalo) Battalion". SAWGP Regiment 1 Reconnaissance Regiment with no separate unit.
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

No stories have been added yet.

Dedications

No dedications have been added yet.