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Tombo (F)

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Photo of Tombo
Identity
Person No.
33311
Old ROH no.
2105
Service No.
Unknown
Last Name
Tombo 1
First Name
Unknown
Initials
F
Date of Birth
Unknown
Est. Birth Year
1956 (±1 yr) 385
Age at Death
25
Death Record
Date of Death
15 October 1981 147
Cause code
KIA 14,778
Killed in action
Cause of Death
Killed in action 14,654
Killed in action, against terrorists in the operational area. Killed whilst apart of a small Special Forces team carrying out an operation against the Harare-Beira railway near Doeroi, in Mozambique, some 300 miles from the South African border. It would appear there was a premature detonation whilst they were laying their demolition charges, and he and three of his comrades were killed. FRELIMO found their bodies and equipment, but as per SOPs, nothing was being carried which would enable them to identify the men
Military Service
Branch
Army
Rank
Rifleman
Regiment
5 Reconnaissance Regiment 72
Later renamed 5 Special Forces Regiment (1995)
Corps
South African Infantry Corps 10,347
Unit
Unknown
Defence Force
SADF 3,839
South African Defence Force
Location
Country
South Africa 23,872
Locality
Gauteng 9,374
Cemetery
SADF WALL OF REMEMBRANCE, VOORTREKKER MONUMENT, PRETORIA 1,926
Grave Reference
Body not recovered 79
Memorial
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
Not listed against a numbered panel
On the panel
Position on the panel will be added with photographs
Unit History
Role at time of death
Special Forces (reconnaissance)
Status
Regular Force
Each numbered Reconnaissance unit was renamed over time: "X Reconnaissance Commando" -> "X Reconnaissance Regiment" (1981) -> briefly a Parachute Battalion designation (1992/93, under "45 Parachute Brigade", a Special-Forces-only designation distinct from the real 44 Parachute Brigade) -> "X Special Forces Regiment" (1995). The parent formation itself changed name several times before 1995 (Special Forces Headquarters, then Directorate Reconnaissance(Forces)) with disputed exact dates between sources -- 1995 is the one date sources agree on. Corps classified as SAIC (South African Infantry Corps) per this site's own records; no independent source found confirms that for Special Forces units specifically -- treat as owner-asserted pending a better citation.
Awards
Pro Patria Medal
Pro Patria Medal
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

ref. "The Silent War" by Peter Stiff

Research notes

Col (rt) Graham du Toit Last Post 15 Oct 2025: Rifleman F. Tombo, 5 Reconnaissance Regiment, age 25. Graham: Reported Missing on the Harare-Beira railway near Doeroi, Mozambique; premature detonation while laying charges; bodies later found by FRELIMO; no known grave. ROH already records the Doeroi demolition incident. ROH name is Kambala Tombo (F); unit was 32 Battalion (regiment already 5 Recce). Names not overwritten.
SASFA In Memoriam (operators): confirmed Special Forces operator. SASFA: Tombo F KIA 1981. https://www.recce.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/4.1.-Memoriam.pdf SN CORRECTION 25 Aug 2026 (year-prefix method): ServiceNo 78911203SP cleared -- per the documented SA force-number convention (data/SA_SERVICE_NUMBER_NOTES.md), the prefix '78' implies registration circa 1978 (usually age 16), i.e. birth circa 1962. This record's own Age/DateDeath implies birth circa 1956, a mismatch; PersonNumber 33310 (Tomas, implied birth circa 1964) fits instead. Original value: "78911203SP".
5 Sep 2026, FirstName-contamination revisit (folding into the 31 Aug 2026 scan): Graham du Toit's own 15 Oct 2025 citation and SASFA In Memoriam both name him "F. Tombo"/"Tombo F" -- initial only, matching stored Initials "F" exactly; the Graham citation was left "not overwritten" pending confirmation, which this is. Cleared rather than guessed -- correct first name still unknown.
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
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