Identity
Person No.
32675
Old ROH no.
1207
Service No.
75090423PG
Last Name
First Name
Carlos Alberto Correia Pinto
Initials
C A C P
Date of Birth
Unknown
Est. Birth Year
Age at Death
25
Death Record
Date of Death
Cause code
Unknown
Cause of Death
Missing believed killed, during a contact between Luenge and Coutada du Mucusso about a week before S Sgts Roxo and Soeiro were killed, much further south along the Okavango river. He was driving a Unimog loaded with a tonne or more of explosives when he ran into an ambush while the company he served in was on its way back to Buffalo. He was probably hit by a RPG 7 which meant that the whole truck exploded and his remains could not be recovered. It was because of that incident that Col Breytenbach sent Ribeiro senior home to visit his mother after the second ambush in which Daniel Roxo et al were killed and which led to Robbie Ribeiro also getting killed in that nasty overtaking incident on the Golden highway
Military Service
Branch
Army
Rank
Lance Corporal
Regiment
1 Reconnaissance Regiment 14
Formerly
1 Reconnaissance Commando
(1996)
Unit
Unknown
Defence Force
SADF 3,836
South African Defence Force
Location
Country
Locality
Grave Reference
Coordinates
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.
Awards
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
His brother Jose Correia Pinto Ribeiro also died in service.
Research notes
SASFA In Memoriam (operators): confirmed Special Forces operator. SASFA: Ribeiro CAC MIA 1976. https://www.recce.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/4.1.-Memoriam.pdf 26 Aug 2026: Unit was leftover "AFB Ysterplaat". 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
-
SADF.info Border Roll of Honour
open source ↗
SADF.info Border RoH
- South African War Graves Project open source ↗
-
The War in Angola
open source ↗
War In Angola Roll of Honour (warinangola.com, tabid=1175), pages 114-116 of 143: confirmed, no changes.
-
Unit veterans association
open source ↗
SASFA In Memoriam: Ribeiro CAC MIA 1976 — confirmed Special Forces operator
Stories 2
L Cpl Carlos Alberto Correia Pinto Ribeiro (little Robbie) joined the SADF in 1975. He was a member of 1 Reconnaissance Commando. Little Robbie, as he is fondly remembered by his colleagues, went missing believed killed during a contact between Luenge and Coutada do Mucusso about a week before S Sgts Roxo and Soeiro were killed, much further south along the Okavango river. He was driving a Unimog loaded with a ton or more of explosives when he ran into an ambush while the company he served in was on its way back to Buffalo. He was probably hit by a RPG 7 which meant that the whole truck exploded and his remains could not be recovered. It was because of this incident that Col Breytenbach sent Ribeiro senior home to visit his mother after the second ambush in which Daniel Roxo et al were killed and which led to Robbie Ribeiro also getting killed in that nasty incident on the Golden highway. At the time Carlos Alberto went missing in action he was seconded to B Group in Rundu (32 Bn). What a tragic time for the Ribeiro family, loosing the two brothers in a week. Little Robbie was single. Before joining the SADF, L Cpl Ribeiro was a Paratrooper with the Portuguese Defense Force. L Cpl Carlos Alberto Correia Pinto Ribeiro's name should appear on the ROLL OF HONOUR of the Special Forces and 32 Battalion.
At 05H00 on 19 August 1976, a convoy of six Unimogs and one Bosvark set off from Luenga, Angola, to the south. Due to the bad state of the roads being travelled on, the Unimogs bunched up and the one being driven by L/Cpl Ribeiro took the lead. At 07H30 the convoy ran into a FAPLA ambush, and the lead Unimog received a direct hit from an RPG-7, running over a mine at the same time. L/Cpl Ribeiro was presumed killed in the resultant explosion of his vehicle, his body never being retrieved . Information extracted from "32 Battalion - The Inside Story of South Africa's Elite Fighting Unit" by Piet Nortje.
Dedications 3
C B C pinto ribeiro . Robbie i was fortunate to meet your daughter who is today a wonderfull lady with your attitude. She knows that you are a hero and it has come to pass that she has collected your medals and operators badge. Lest we forget may others remind us. Your daughter approached me for a learners and drivers licence do you know how it made me feel when i could see her face to face after 30 years of cause i did all the training for her free of charge how else do i thank you that aren't here and show my respect. Rest in Peace. Aluta Continua Reuben (butch) Coskey
Your friends will never forget you. Rest in peace Carlos Alberto Manuel Ferreira
Just for info the two brothers died days apart