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Van Deventer , Albertus Louis (A L)

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Photo of Van Deventer
Identity
Person No.
33498
Service No.
75414136PE
Last Name
Van Deventer 26
First Name
Albertus Louis
Initials
A L
Date of Birth
Unknown
Est. Birth Year
1959 (±1 yr) 442
Age at Death
22
Death Record
Date of Death
03 October 1981 107
Cause code
MVA 2,635
Motor vehicle accident
Cause of Death
Died in Motorcycle Accident 30
Died in Motorcycle Accident, on Botha's Pass, in the Langersdrift district
Military Service
Branch
Army
Rank
Lieutenant
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
THABA TSHWANE (NEW) MILITARY CEMETERY 592
Grave Reference
Grave 1140 1
Coordinates
-25.78214, 28.12179 OSM
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.
Notes

Son of Dr. A. L. van Deventer, of Pretoria.

Research notes

SASFA In Memoriam (natural / other causes): confirmed operator; SASFA lists Operators deceased through natural / other causes (died while still serving on this roll). SASFA: Van Deventer Rip 1981. https://www.recce.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/4.1.-Memoriam.pdf SASFA Van Deventer Rip 1981. This 5 Recce motorcycle death (Albertus Louis) is the named Recce record; PN 33502 is a Rip nickname stub. 26 Aug 2026: Unit was leftover "4 Field Regiment". SAWGP Regiment 5 Reconnaissance Regiment with no separate unit. 26 Aug 2026: Unit2 leftover formed-unit text cleared (not an arm-of-service or company/squadron qualifier).
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".
3 Oct 2026: ServiceNo suffix PE added (was 75414136, no suffix), per Col (rt) Graham du Toit Last Post, 3 Oct 2026.

Citations
Unknown
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