Identity
Person No.
33650
Old ROH no.
1530
Service No.
01506492E
Last Name
First Name
Frans Reitz
Initials
F R
Date of Birth
Unknown
Est. Birth Year
Age at Death
29
Death Record
Date of Death
Cause code
AA 1,737
Aircraft accident
Cause of Death
Killed in aircraft accident, collided with Impala 529 near Pietersburg, in Atlas MB326M Impala Mk I #553
Military Service
Branch
Air Force
Rank
Captain
Regiment
Unknown
Secondary Unit
Army
Defence Force
SADF 3,823
South African Defence Force
Location
Country
Locality
Grave Reference
Coordinates
Unit History
Part of
Notes
Husband of Mrs. E. van Zyl. ref. 85 years of SAAF
Research notes
Col (rt) Graham du Toit Last Post 21 Aug 2026: 01506492E Captain (Instructor) Frans Reitz van Zyl, Atlas MB326M Impala Mk I 553, mid-air with Impala 529 near Pietersburg, age 29. FirstName was Frank Rietz — set to Frans Reitz. Graham places van Zyl and Yates in 553; ROH already has van Zyl in #553.
Citations
Unknown
External References
-
Bushwar Books - Lest We Forget
open source ↗
Bushwar Books 21 Aug 2026: confirms Graham's van Zyl F.R. entry, 85 Advanced Flying School collision.
-
Col (rt) Graham du Toit Last Post
Col (rt) Graham du Toit Last Post 21 Aug 2026: 01506492E Capt (Instructor) Frans Reitz van Zyl, Impala 553, mid-air near Pietersburg, age 29. FirstName was Frank Rietz.
- South African War Graves Project open source ↗
-
The War in Angola
open source ↗
War In Angola Roll of Honour (warinangola.com, tabid=1175), page 8 of 143: confirmed, no changes.
Stories 1
He was a Flight Instructor at the Air Force Base in Pietersburg. I believe that it was then called 85 Advanced Flying School. He was killed on 21 August 1973 during a mid-air colission between 2 Impala Mk1's (529 & 553). He was 29 at the time. The other pilots involved was Capt C.L. Smith (called Lemmer) and 2Lt C.
Dedications
No dedications have been added yet.