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Senekal , Andre Johannes (A J)

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Identity
Person No.
40303
Service No.
4449
Last Name
First Name
Andre Johannes
Initials
A J
Date of Birth
Unknown
Est. Birth Year
Age at Death
26
Death Record
Date of Death
Cause code
AA 1,734
Aircraft accident
Cause of Death
Died in Military Aircraft Accident, in Alouette III #R5879 at Mount Darwin during Operation Hurricane. Attempted a night take-off with no horizon; became disorientated and crashed soon after take-off
Military Service
Rank
Flight Lieutenant
Corps
Rhodesian Air Force
Secondary Unit
Air Force
Defence Force
RSF 2,789
Rhodesian Security Forces
Unit History
Notes

Ref. "Pride of Eagles" - History of the Rhodesian Air Force 1920 - 1980 by B Salt

Research notes

Col (rt) Graham du Toit Last Post 25 Dec 2017: 4449 Flight Lieutenant Andre Johannes Senekal, 7 Squadron Rhodesian Air Force, killed flying Alouette III R5879 after a night take-off at Mount Darwin during Operation Hurricane (no horizon; disorientated; crashed soon after take-off), age 23. ROH/SAWGP/Pride of Eagles date is 1975-12-26 and age 26 (not overwritten). Unit2 was "B" Coy (infantry pollution) — set to Air Force.
5 Sep 2026: Regiment/Unit swapped -- "7 Squadron (RSF)" (the specific squadron) moved to Regiment; "Rhodesian Air Force" (the force-wide designation) moved to Unit, per John's decision.
Mike Sandham's research log ("List 1"), imported 16 Sep 2026, credited to The South Africa War Graves Project unless his entry says otherwise: filled Corps -- each of these was EMPTY on this record and no existing value was changed. Derived fields recomputed inline where applicable.
Mike Sandham's research log ("List 1"), imported 16 Sep 2026, credited to The South Africa War Graves Project unless his entry says otherwise: dates of death differ -- Mike 1979-12-26 this record 1975-12-26. A gap of a few days commonly separates wounding from death, or a burial date from a death date. Flagged, not changed.
Mike Sandham's research log ("List 1"), imported 16 Sep 2026, credited to The South Africa War Graves Project unless his entry says otherwise: gives Age 23 against this record's 26. This record has no date of birth, so there is nothing to adjudicate with. Flagged, not changed.
25 Sep 2026, Rhodesian squadron split: this record was moved from the combined entity "7 Squadron (RSF)" to "7 Squadron, Rhodesian Air Force". That entity held both the Rhodesian Air Force flying squadron and the Rhodesian Corps of Engineers squadron of the same number, which are unrelated units; it was created by a cleanup that split shared squadron names by Force alone, and Force does not separate two Rhodesian squadrons. This record is assigned on the evidence of its own Unit or Regiment column naming the Rhodesian Air Force outright, not on the squadron number.

Citations
Unknown
External References
  • Col (rt) Graham du Toit Last Post
    Col (rt) Graham du Toit Last Post 25 Dec 2017: 4449 Flight Lieutenant Andre Johannes Senekal from 7 Squadron Rhodesian Air Force was killed while flying Alouette III Helicopter R5879 after he attempted a night take-off at Mount Darwin during Operation Hurricane. Having no horizon, it appears that he became disorientated and crashed soon after take-off. He was 23. Conflicts with ROH/SAWGP (Pride of Eagles) DateDeath 1975-12-26 and age 26 — date and age not overwritten. Aircraft R5879 / Mount Darwin already matched.
  • South African War Graves Project open source ↗
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