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Visagie , Pieter Andreas (P A)

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No photograph available — remembrance poppy
Identity
Person No.
33750
Old ROH no.
1609
Service No.
80408578BG
Last Name
Visagie 40
First Name
Pieter Andreas
Initials
P A
Date of Birth
Unknown
Est. Birth Year
1964 (±1 yr) 296
Age at Death
23
Death Record
Date of Death
16 September 1987 111
Cause code
KIA 14,778
Killed in action
Cause of Death
Killed in action 14,654
Killed in action, shot during Operation Modular
Military Service
Branch
Army
Rank
Rifleman
Regiment
61 Mechanised Battalion Group 23
Corps
South African Infantry Corps 10,347
Unit
Unknown
Defence Force
SADF 3,852
South African Defence Force
Location
Country
South Africa 23,872
Locality
Western Cape 2,137
Cemetery
CITRUSDAL (CEDERBERG) CEMETERY 2
Grave Reference
A1 1
Memorial
Memorial
Battle of Cuito Cuanavale Virtual Memorial
Location
Cuito Cuanavale, Cuando Cubango province, Angola
Coordinates
-15.163, 19.173 · OpenStreetMap
Panel
Moduler
On the panel
Operation Moduler
Operation
Operation
Moduler
Dates
1987-08-01 to 1987-11-15
About
Operation launched to support UNITA against a major FAPLA offensive aimed at capturing UNITA's stronghold of Mavinga. Culminated in the Battle of the Lomba River (September-October 1987), where SADF mechanised and artillery forces, fighting alongside UNITA, halted and largely destroyed FAPLA's 47 Brigade attempting to cross the river — the action in which several ROH records on this site (Alves, De Klerk, Kuyler, McCallum, Mananza, Tchipango and others) were killed when their Ratel 90 was destroyed at point-blank range by a T-55 tank.
Unit History
Role at time of death
Mechanised Infantry (combined-arms battalion group)
Status
Regular Force
Part of
South African Defence Force (1957–1994) — I South African Corps (1 SA Corps) — Battlegroups
Formed 1978 as Battle Group Juliet (SWAPO counter-insurgency, Ovamboland); formally named 61 Mechanised Battalion (Group) January 1979; disbanded 2005 at Lohatla. "Battalion Group" reflects its integral combined-arms structure: two Ratel-20-mounted infantry companies, an armoured car/tank squadron (Eland/Ratel-90, later Olifant), an integral G5 howitzer artillery battery, an 81mm mortar platoon, an anti-tank platoon, and an anti-aircraft troop -- not merely units attached for one operation. Fought at the Battle of the Lomba River, 1987. No evidence found that it was ever subordinated to or redesignated as a "61 Mechanised Brigade" -- see the note on that separate OrgEntity record.
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

Son of Mr. and Mrs. J. T. Visagie He was an Apprentice (Turner) under contract at the Naval Dockyard in Simonstown.

Research notes

Colyn Brookes, Mibisa: Volume One – Western Cape (Lulu, 2013, ISBN 9781447682523): Citrusdal (Cederberg) Cemetery Hero’s Acre.
Col (rt) Graham du Toit Last Post 16 Sep 2026: 80408578BG Rifleman Pieter Andreas Visagie, 61 Mechanised Battalion Group, KIA in a contact with enemy forces in Southern Angola during Ops Modular, age 23. AddInfo enriched: he was an Apprentice (Turner) under contract at the Naval Dockyard in Simonstown. SN/date/age/cause already matched.
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
Stories 2
on 06 July 2007 · via source
This person died during Operation Modular. I received 60mm mortar training with him and he was a great person. It was a very sad day for all of us in 61 Mech Bravo company when he was shot. P.Henderson
by Graham Du Toit on 16 September 2014 · via source
16 Sep 1987: 80408578BG Rifleman Pieter Andreas Visagie from 61 Mechanised Battalion Group was Killed in Action during a contact with enemy forces in Southern Angola. He was 23.
Dedications

No dedications have been added yet.

Source: https://rohsa.co.za/person.php?PersonNumber=33750&pdf=1

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South African Roll of Honour — Remembering those who served and fell. Lest We Forget.