Identity
Person No.
32351
Old ROH no.
1075
Service No.
71463350BA
Last Name
First Name
Gideon M F
Initials
G M F
Date of Birth
Unknown
Est. Birth Year
Age at Death
20
Military Service
Death Record
Date of Death
Cause code
KIA 14,310
Killed in action
Cause of Death
Killed in action, during a contact with MPLA forces at a bridge 40 kms North-East of Novo Redondo in Angola. Two armoured cars were ordered forward but were met by a hail of bullets and shells. One Eland broke down and when the machine gun was hit and rendered unusable, Obbes jumped out of the turret and was mortally wounded
Grave Reference
Location
Notes
Son of Mr. W. Obbes, of Bellville.
Citations
Unknown
External References
-
SADF.info Border Roll of Honour
SADF.info Border RoH
- South African War Graves Project
Stories 2
Gideon Obbes died on the 24 November 1975 during a contact with MPLA forces at a bridge 40 kms North-East of Novo Redondo in Angola. Unit was D Squadron attached to 2 SAI BN GP Sam van den Berg (svdb3@iafrica.com) Sam van den Berg
On 24 November 1975 two Eland armoured cars and a Unimog full of paratroopers approached a half-destroyed bridge 40 kilometres north-east of Redondo. The second armoured car came under fire when 150 metres from the bridge and was hit, mortally wounding the commander and bringing the Eland to a halt. Tpr Obbes abandoned the Eland and took cover in some nearby bushes but attempted to return to the Eland soon afterwards, where the other two surviving members of the crew were continuing to engage the enemy. Whilst he was climbing back onto the Eland, an enemy mortar bomb exploded close by, killing him instantly. Information extracted from "Cross of Honour" by Ian Uys. Uys Publishing 1992.
Dedications
No dedications have been added yet.