THE BULLYTIN Official News Letter of Field Marshal Shellhole

APRIL 2016

SUNSET CALL

Moth Douglas “Dougie” Neilson – Lt.Col (SM,MMM,JCD)

has answered the sunset call and has gone to meet the Higher Command.

It was with great sadness that we all learnt of Dougie’s passing on the 21st of February. I only had the privilege of knowing Dougie for a short while but I shall always remember him as someone who made a “newby” Moth like myself feel right at home. He always had time for a chat and loved to crack a joke, I will never forget one Saturday morning while we were doing a clean-up of the shellhole prior to our meeting the next day. Dougie arrived and said “what can I do” I was quite taken aback by the fact that Dougie a senior and seasoned Moth stood before me and asked what he could do to help. Out of respect there was no way I was going to issue Dougie with a broom or mop so I said, “No Dougie we are just about done here don’t worry” his response was well in that case I’m off to mow my own lawn.

After attending Dougie’s memorial service the 26 th of February and bearing witness to the various eulogies delivered I realized that this man was truly and officer and a gentleman, a man prepared to get his hands dirty and officer that lead from the front a man that earned respect yet never demanded it.

It was clear from his children and grandchildren’s tributes that this was a very well loved man who will be so very sorely missed and whose departure will leave a great void.

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Dougie we shall miss you Sir, but we shall see you again as we all in turn answer the sunset call and arrive to meet the Higher Command. Perhaps you can put in a good word for those of us who are left behind.

“WE WILL REMEMBER DOUGIE”

“ The Bullytin” Special Edition

I hope you all received the Special edition of “The Bullytin” which covered the sinking of the SAS President Kruger. I am very pleased to share with you that we received very good coverage from outside the MOTH order with that specific edition.

The SA legion as well as the Naval Officers Association – Johannesburg Branch have both commended Field Marshal Shellhole on our initiative and have both requested permission to use the material or part thereof in their respective news letter / magazine

Included below is the article as it appeared in the “NOA’S ARK”, Journal of the Naval Officers Association of South Africa – Johannesburg Branch – March 2016

Quote

SAS President Kruger (F150)

Sank on 18 February 1982 with the loss of 16 lives

It is with heartfelt thanks that I acknowledge this article to THE BULLYTIN, official newsletter of the Field Marshall Shellhole in Irene, Pretoria. They featured a Special Edition to commemorate the sinking of the ‘PK’. Your navy shipmates’ offer you a sincere Bravo Zulu.

I don’t have enough space in this issue to give you the whole tragic saga but THE BULLYTIN contains an inspiring, albeit sad, account of the events leading up to that disaster.

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I recall being in Simon’s Town on a course when the official Memorial Service was held on 15 March 1982 in one the large ‘sheds’ at the Submarine Base. I quote from a short piece I had written in The Bosun’s Call some eleven years later when that publication paid tribute to the ‘PK’,

“The place was filled to capacity with hundreds of people and never have I been through such a heart-rending experience. The heavy sadness of the occasion was palpable and touched everyone there. Although I had no direct connection with the ‘PK’ as she was affectionately known, it was impossible to stand aside and not share the pain and anguish of those around me.”

It was the most moving and beautiful ceremony one could ever have wished for. The Navy pulled out all the stops and ensured that the memory of those who were no longer with us would live forever.

The Field Marshall Shellhole is holding a Special Memorial Service on 6 March 2016.

Thank you Field Marshall Shellhole

Unquote

Once I receive the June 2016 edition of “SPRINGBOK” magazine of the SA Legion I shall share that article with you as well.

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Interesting aspects of the South African Bushwar / Border War

While researching this edition of “the Bullytin” I found this piece on interesting aspects of the Border War. I hope you find the facts below as interesting as I did.

1. The SA Bushwar lasted for 23 years, from 1966 till 1989, making it one of Africa's longest conflicts.

2. The Bushwar was fought primarily in Northern Namibia and Southern Angola. However if the total onslaught against the South African nationalist Government is considered, the conflict could be extrapolated to these theatres of conflict and opposing factions and forces:

3. Contrary to popular believe, most SADF soldiers fighting the Bushwar, were non-white volunteers, with as much as 60% by the closing years of the war.

4. The most feared and renowned SADF unit was 32Bn (The Buffalo Battalion) made up from former mostly Angolan FNLA soldiers and white SADF officers. The unit was reputed for its success in counter-insurgency and semi-conventional warfare and took part in most battles of the bushwar.

5. The South African Police had one of the best counter-insurgency units called "Koevoet" (Crowbar), achieving a kill rate of 25:1, much higher than the 11:1 SADF average of the Bushwar. Its members were mostly black Namibians with white SAP officers. Its success can largely be ascribed to the excellent tracking skills of the Ovambo trackers deployed to find and follow the spoor (tracks) of insurgents, and by using the Casspir mine-protected vehicles capable to bundu-bash through most obstacles and keep its occupants safe even during a double anti-tank mine blast. Coin-ops tactics included running on the spoor (track) while flanked by the Casspirs, and leapfrogging a few kilometres ahead to find the spoor, thereby accelerating the pursuit.

6. Other special coin-ops units included 31 Bn (Bushmen Battalion) consisting of Koi-San (Bushmen), a cavalry unit on horseback, and a motorcycle unit on off-road scrambler motorbikes.

7. During the Bushwar the SADF suffered 1791 casualties (combat and all other accidents), while SWAPO lost an estimated 11400 guerrillas in combat. Casualties of the total Bushwar for the other forces mentioned above, and civilians, runs into several hundred thousand.

8. During Operation Savannah in 1975, Task Force Zulu, swept through southern Angola a total distance of 3000km in 33 days!, while fighting the opposing MPLA forces. Ops Savannah was the first of many cross border attacks by the SADF

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into Angola.

9. Operation Reindeer in 1979, was one of the largest Airborne assaults since WW2, with SADF paratroopers attacking the SWAPO/PLAN training camp in Cassinga (Codename Moscow), killing about 600 insurgents, and wounding more than 200. It was estimated that about 3500 insurgents were in the camp on the day of the attack. A Cuban armoured column trying to interfere, was stopped by the anti-tank platoon stoppergroup armed with RPG7's and mortars. Mirage III's and Buccaneer aircraft from the SAAF strafed the armoured column as well. About 150 Cubans were killed, 4 tanks, several APC's and trucks destroyed. Simultaneously the SAAF bombed SWAPO forward bases codenamed "Vietnam" nearer to the SWA border.

10. Other large semi-conventional Operations were Smokeshell (June 1980), Ops Protea 1981, Ops Modular (1987), and Ops Hooper in June 1988. Ops Hooper culminated in one of the largest conventional warfare clashes seen on the African continent, with the FAPLA/CUBAN Brigades no.'s 16, 21, 59, and 47 advancing on the UNITA stronghold at Mavinga, southern Angola. The relatively small SADF intervention force came to the rescue of UNITA by pinning the FAPLA/Cuban force down at Cuito Cuanevale, and virtually wiping out 47th Brigade on the Lomba river.

11. One of the longest "Escape and evade" actions by a SWAPO freedom fighter was recorded by a Koevoet unit, when during June 1986 Zulu-Four-Sierra and Zulu-Four-Echo Koevoet units picked up a spoor (track) of 2 guerillas north of the cutline near Handabo in Angola. They tracked them south over the cutline, where one turned north back into Angola. The other one headed south, putting considerable distance between himself and the Casspirs every day. They chased him for 5 days, calling helicopter gunship support in the afternoons as the trackers could detect from the spoor that he was near. He managed to remain undetected and the trackers found no signs of sleeping places, and it appears he kept going for 5 days without sleep. Abandoned hypodermic syringes frequently found on his tracks suggested he injected himself with benzedrine or something similar to keep awake. Placed were found where he collapsed from exhaustion, dragged himself to a tree, pulling himself up and continuing. Eventualy they lost his spoor on the Chandelier Road and it is suspected he was picked up by a car. The have tracked him for 368 km's, which must make it one of the longest Escape and Evade actions in military history. In early 1987, Zulu-One-Juliet captured an insurgent in the Eenhana area. It emerged that he was the one they chased for 5 days mentioned above. He was the Recce Commander of PLAN's Charlie detachment in the east. Three days later he volunteered to change sides and joined Zulu-One-Juliet. He turned out to be a brilliant tracker and anti-tracker. (Covert War, p 259-260, Peter Stiff).

12. The Bushwar accelerated military technology development in SA, and

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combined with international sanctions against SA, lead to the development of unique and advanced hardware:

- A vast range of Mine Resistant Vehicles such as the Hippo, Swerwer, Buffel, Kwevoel-series, Casspir, were developed and widely regarded as the best of its kind in the world. Some are now used many years later; by coalition forces and security companies in Iraq and Afghanistan.

- Development of the G5 and G6 artillery systems, being the first in the world for a 155mm system to breach the 40km range with consistent accuracy. The latest models are achieving ranges of 70kms!

- The SADF took a decision in the late 1970's to opt for wheeled vehicles instead of tracked vehicles. African conditions of vast distances, thick bush, loose sand, are more suitable to wheeled vehicles. It lead to the development of the Ratel ICV, the world first wheeled ICV -not APC (as opposed to earlier APC's such as the Saracen and others), highly mobile 6x6 wheeled G6 155mm artillery system - another world first. The Rooikat 8x8 light "wheeled tank" or armoured reconnaissance car followed towards the end of the Bushwar and was too late to see action.

- The 2nd Army in the world to introduce frequency hopping radios.

- The world’s first operational helmet slaved Anti-Aircraft missile (V3A, V3B and Kukri), which automatically follow the pilot's line of vision.

- Development of "smartbombs" such as the Raptor1 and Muscow, of which an early prototype destroyed the Cuito Cuanevale bridge in 1988.

- The development of the Rooivalk attack helicopter, now in use by the SANDF, but too late to see service in the Bushwar.

- Development of the camera/imagery pack (Helio) on RPV's such as Seeker I, and now widely used internationally on reconnaissance and traffic helicopters, UAV's, etc. (Round ball shaped gyro-stabilised unit).

- SA developed 7 nuclear bombs by the end of the 1980's as a deterrent should the military situation worsen. After the end of the Bushwar, it voluntarily dismantled the nuclear bombs, and terminated the nuclear arms program. SA still is the only country who ended its nuclear arms capability voluntarily.

13. The Bushwar was fought over vast distances, requiring light and mobile forces to operate with little logistical support. It became a subsequent case study used by the USA and others to model its "light and mobile" forces of the 1990's and beyond. The terrain is mostly covered by featureless and flat bushland, making navigation on ground level very difficult. These were the days before

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GPS, and even compasses were not accurate due to magnetic interference in the soil substrata. The soil is mostly loose and sandy. Thick bush is encountered along rivers and the further North or East one goes into Angola. Some areas have open savannah, while rocky and hilly terrain is predominant along the western part of the Angolan/Namibian border. The environment ranges from the Namib desert in the west, semi desert in the centre of the common border area, to savannah and dense bush towards the Caprivi strip.

14. The Namibian/Angolan front stretched over a distance of 1600kms. It is equal to the distance between London and the Lithuanian-Belarus-Ukraine Border; or London and the Algave in Portugal, or London and the North-African Coast. Long distances, sparse population, water scarcity, flat featureless terrain, loose sand and dust, thick bush, all made warfare very difficult.

15. Cuba was the largest supporter of the Marxist MPLA Government in Angola and supported its FAPLA army with as many as 55000 Cuban soldiers, military advisors, etc. by 1988. More than 350 000 Cubans did military service in Angola during the Bushwar. The Soviet Union, East Germany, North Korea, also provided military support. Most FAPLA and Cuban weapons were supplied directly from the Soviet Union, and included some advanced equipment such as T62 tanks, MIG 23 Fighters, and advanced AA missile and radar systems. Some international defence publications called the AA and Radar system deployed in Southern Angola in 1987-88, the most advanced and comprehensive outside the Easten Block.

Reference: https://sites.google.com/site/sabushwarsite/interesting

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SARIE MARAIS

It seems as if this popular South African song comes with a somewhat chequered history – depending on who was writing it. Most of us understand that it originated during the Boer War – probably the Second Anglo-Boer War of 1900. It is thought the tune comes from an American Civil War song, ‘Sweet Ellie Rhee’, sung by American workers on the Transvaal gold mines of the time.

Susara Margaretha, born April 15, 1869 was the eldest daughter of Jacob Maré and Cornelia Erasmus; Voortrekkers who had settled on the farm Eendracht, Suikerbosrand along the Mooi River near to where Potchefstroom is today.

Sarie (Maré) Marais.

At the tender age of 16 she met and married Jacobus Petrus Toerien, later to become the editor of ‘Die Patriot.’ They had 16 children of which only eight survived.

Toerien had heard the American mine workers singing Sweet Ellie Rhee and translated the words to talk about his wife, Sarie Maré. Over time the surname Maré was misspelt to become Marais.

The song quickly spread due to soldiers coming back from the Boer War.

Sarie was a very religious woman, and tried her best to disassociate herself from the song. When Jacobus died in 1920, she moved her daughters to Bloemfontein. She died on 22 December 1939 at the age of 73.

During the Second World War, there was an army unit called ‘Sarie Marais calling’.

The South African army, as well as the French foreign legion, play this march during parades.

There’s no doubt that Sarie Marais played on the bagpipes is the quintessential South African marching tune.

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It is also the official song of the Girl Guides of Sri Lanka ( Ceylon ) who heard the Boerekrygsgevangenes (Boere prisoners of war) perform it during their incarceration in Ceylon at the beginning of the last century.

Germans cultivated a pink rose called Sarie Maries which is planted at the Armoured School in Tempe, Bloemfontein

The melody was adopted in 1953 as the official march of the UK's Royal Marine Commandos and is played after the Regimental March on ceremonial occasions. The French École Militaire Interarmes also sings the song, in its French translation. It is also the regimental march of Paraguay.

The song has been sung by Jim Reeves and Kenneth McKellar in Afrikaans.

Acknowledgement: The article above featured in Journal of the Naval Officers’ Association of Southern Africa, Johannesburg Branch – March 2016. Authority to use the article was obtained from the Editor Lt Cdr MA Cordes MMM, JCD (Rtd).

South Africa’s greatest fighter ACE – Marmaduke ‘Pat’ Pattle DFC and Bar

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There are great South Africans, and then there are ones who stand on the shoulders of great men, and this man is one of them. Arguably the best Allied fighter ace of WW2, this South African stands heads and shoulders above other Allied fighter aces and this rather unsung hero is indeed one of South Africa’s greatest sons.

Squadron Leader Marmaduke Thomas St. John “Pat” Pattle DFC & Bar (3 July 1914—20 April 1941) was a South African-born Second World War fighter pilot and flying ace— believed to be the most successful Western Allied fighter pilot of the war.

Pat Pattle was born in Butterworth, Cape Province, South Africa, on 3 July 1914, the son of South African-born parents of English descent, Sergeant-Major Cecil William John “Jack” Pattle (b. 5 September 1884) and Edith Brailsford (1881–1962). Marmaduke was named after his maternal grandfather, Captain Thomas Marmaduke Pattle, who resigned his commission in the Royal Horse Artillery and emigrated to South Africa from England in 1875.

Pattle was academically intelligent. He considered a degree and career in Mining engineering before developing an interest in aviation. He travelled to the United Kingdom and joined the RAF in 1936 on a Short Service Commission (SSC). Pattle negotiated the training programs with ease and qualified as a pilot in the spring, 1937.

Assigned to No. 80 Squadron RAF, he was sent to Egypt before the war in 1938. He remained there upon the outbreak of war in September 1939. In June 1940 Italy entered the war on the side of the Axis Powers and he began combat operations against the Regia Aeronautica (Italian Air Force) gaining his first successes during the Italian invasion of Egypt. By November 1940 had gained four aerial victories but had been shot down once himself.

In November 1940 his Squadron was redeployed to Greece after the Italian invasion. Pattle achieved most of his success in the campaign. In subsequent operations he claimed around 20 Italian aircraft shot down. In April 1941 he faced German opposition after their intervention.

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Here is a Messerschmitt Bf 109E of III/JG 77 which crash-landed on the airfield at Larrissa, Greece, possibly one of two claimed shot down by the South African Squadron Leader “Pat” Pattle, the Officer Commanding No. 33 Squadron RAF on 20 April 1941.

During the 14 days of operations against the Luftwaffe (German Air Force) Pattle claimed his 24—50th aerial victories; all but three were German. Pattle claimed five or more aircraft destroyed in one day on three occasions, which qualified him for “Ace in a day” status. Pattle achieved his greatest success on 19 April 1941, claiming six air victories.

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Squadron Leader Marmaduke Thomas St John “Pat” Pattle, Officer Commanding No. 33 Squadron RAF (left) , and the Squadron Adjutant, Flight Lieutenant George Rumsey (right), standing by a Hawker Hurricane at Larissa, Thessaly, Greece.

The very next day, having claimed more aerial victories than any other Western Allied pilot, he took off against orders, and suffering from a high temperature to engage German aircraft near the Greek capital Athens. He was last seen battling Messerschmitt Bf 110 heavy fighters. His fighter crashed into the sea during this dogfight, killing Pattle.

Pattle’s death was equally heroic as he had dived down to rescue a fellow pilot who had a Bf-110 on his tail, Pattle managed to save him but at the loss of his own life, as he was also been attacked by Bf-110’s during the rescue – and he chose to ignore them to save his buddy.

Pattle was a fighter ace with a very high score, and is sometimes noted as being the highest-scoring British and Commonwealth pilot of the war. If all claims made for him were in fact correct, his total could be in excess of 51. It can be stated with confidence that his final total was at least 40 and could exceed this value. Log-books and semi-official records suggest this figure while personnel attached to his Squadron suspect the figure to be closer to 60. A total of 26 of Pattle’s

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victims were Italian; 15 were downed with Gloster Gladiators, the rest with Hawker Hurricanes. He is considered to be the highest-scoring ace on both Gladiator (15 victories) and Hurricane (35 victories) fighters.

Pattle is however regarded as the ‘unofficial’ Highest scoring Western Allied Fighter pilot for WWII. Unfortunately the squadron war dairy and his log books were lost in the retreat from Greece.

Pattle’s medals are on display at the Ditsong National Museum of Military History in Saxonworld Johannesburg.

Pilots of No. 33 Squadron RAF, at Larissa, Greece, with Hawker Hurricane Mark I, V7419, in background. They are (left to right); Pilot

Officer P R W Wickham, Flying Officers D T Moir, and V C “Woody” Woodward, Flight Lieutenant J M “Pop” Littler, Flying Officers E H

“Dixie” Dean, F Holman (k.i.a. 20 April 41), and E F “Timber” Woods (k.i.a. 17 June 1941), Pilot Officer C A C Chetham (k.i.a. 15 April 1941),

Flight Lieutenant A M Young, Squadron Leader M St.J “Pat” Pattle (Squadron Commanding Officer, k.i.a. 20 April 1941), Flying Officer H J

Starrett (died of burns 22 1941); Flight Lieutenant G Rumsey (Squadron Adjutant), Pilot Officers A R Butcher (p.o.w. 22 May 1941), W

Winsland, and R Dunscombe (p.o.w. 22 May 1941).

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Article supplied by Mr Terry Plage accompanied with the following acknowledgments. Thank you to Tinus Le Roux for the use of this rather rare feature photo of Pat Pattle, copyright and use to Tinus Le Roux. Content thanks to Wikipedia and Sandy Evan Hanes.   Insert photographs – copyright Imperial War Museum – THANKS TERRY!

Humour in Uniform

Can anyone remember what this comic strip was called? Please let me know if you remember!

Train Your Brain

Answers to February’s Brain Teasers

1. Using only the letters in MAN to fill in the blanks, make normal, uncapitalized words.

a. AMONG

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b. RANDOMc. MARINAd. EMPANADAe. CINNAMONf. PANORAMAg. MAINLANDh. ARMAMENT

2. Before Mt. Everest was discovered, what was the tallest mountain in the world? Still Mount Everest. Just because it wasn’t discovered didn’t make it any smaller

3. How are these countries ordered?

By kilometers of coastline (according to the CIA World Factbook).

a. Canada – 202,080 km / 125,567 mib. Indonesia – 54,716 km / 33,998 mic. Russia – 37,653 km / 23,396 mid. Philippines – 36,289 km / 22548 mie. Japan – 29,751 km / 18,486 mif. Australia – 25,760 km / 16,006 mig. Norway – 25,148 km / 15,626 mih. United States – 19,924 km / 12,380 mii. New Zealand – 15,134 km / 9403 mij. China – 14,500 km / 9009 mi

Note: Greenland has 44,087 km of coastline but it is not yet a fully independent country.

4. Get from the word FISH to SEAL by changing one letter at a time and forming another English word in each step.

a. FISHb. FISTc. FESTd. FEATe. SEATf. SEAL

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SHE-GOAT, WOLF AND CABBAGE

A farmer returns from the market, where he bought a she-goat, a cabbage and a wolf (what a crazy market :-). On the way home he must cross a river. His boat is small and won't fit more than one of his purchases. He cannot leave the she-goat alone with the cabbage (because the she-goat would eat it), nor he can leave the she-goat alone with the wolf (because the she-goat would be eaten).

How can the farmer get everything on the other side in this river crossing puzzle?

WHO BROKE THE WINDOW?

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ACROSS1. Open, as a bottle6. Outbuilding10. Drill14. Hunt illegally15. Sort16. Anagram of "Seek"17. An Italian woman of rank18. Send forth19. Apprehends20. A formal event22. Type of sword23. Long-haired wild ox24. Quibble26. Imperative30. Relative magnitudes32. Unwind33. Impotent37. Lascivious look38. Vagrant39. French for "State"40. In an incomplete manner42. Parental brother43. Whiskers44. A song of loyalty45. Prostitutes (archaic)47. By means of48. Angel's headwear49. Unmanly56. Winglike

DOWN

1. Style of hairdo2. Newbie (slang)3. Tins4. Skin disease5. Throat6. Cut of meat7. Song of praise8. Sweeping story9. Found10. Charitable

21. Big wine holder25. What we breathe26. Website addresses27. Stink28. Delight29. Bulwarks30. Churns31. Askew33. Twosome34. Carve in stone

41. Knave42. Unassisted44. Ambition45. Anagram of "Basal"46. Exclamation expressive of regret47. Blood vessels48. Stop50. Half of ten

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57. 53 in Roman numerals58. Restaurant59. Deficiency60. Not odd

11. Relative of a giraffe12. Renegade13. Being

35. An exchange involving money36. Flower stalk38. Defrauder

51. Feudal estate52. 1 less than 1053. Initial wager54. Swarm55. Makes a mistake

They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old;Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.At the going down of the sun and in the morning

We will remember them.

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