Tuskagee pilot shot down SAAF Dakotas?

[Brian]

Hi guys

Is there any truth in posting seen on a website that a Tuskagee pilot shot down two SAAF Dakotas?

Cheers
Brian

[Stig Jarlevik]

Evening Brian

Checking 85 years of SAAF by Winston Brent there is nothing that straight away fits the bill. Since SAAF took delivery of its first true Dak in June 1943 as 6801 and up until the end of WW 2 in Europe none of those up to 6855 were involved in any such incident. However SAAF also operated a number of Daks still with their RAF serial numbers, and the book does not list all of those by far, and a quick look in the Air Britain's booklet KA100 to KZ999 did not locate any except a cryptic missing aircraft KG710 from 44 Sq between Bari and Hassani on 13.12.1944.

In the book Squadrons of the SAAF nothing is mentioned, neither in the 28 Sq nor 44 Sq sections, so it is probably just a myth.

I have never seen anything touched upon SAAF and possible aparheid feelings during the war and since I don't know from which site this is I don't know if it is a war time rumour or why it is mentioned in the first place....

If you want Winston's e-mail to check further ( he has just published a dedicated book about the C-47/Dakota in SAAF) just give me shout OK

Cheers
Stig

[Dan Johnson]

Which website was this posted on? Sounds like someone throwing something out there to see if it will stick

[Laurent Rizzotti]

It seems to me that I read something like that some years ago, the idea behind this "story" being that the black pilot so "avenged" his "fellows" "suffering under South African apartheid".

For me it is just a story. During WWII, apartheid did not exist yet (the law creating it were issued in 1948) and blacks in South Africa were not treated worse than in any British or French colony, or in Southern USA for the matter. Tuskegee airmen had enough opposition from their own white countrymen not to start a private war against SAAF.

So I would say this is a story written by something not knowing well his subject.

I stumbled about this story on the web but quickly forgot where...

[kaki3152]

Actually, I read that a SAAF squadron shot down a P-40 of the 99th FS?

[stefaan]

Tuskagee pilots regularly supported SAAF 60 sqdn Mossies on their recces.
They worked well together.
Stefaan

[mhuxt]

That's what I'd guessed Stefan, thanks for the confirmation.

I thought the late war records for 60 SAAF were missing though?

There's a Tuskeegee chronology here:

http://www.afhso.af.mil/shared/media/document/AFD-101222-041.pdf

[stefaan]

I think the only WD missing is about Sept till Dec '44.
I have spoken with a few pilots and they told me about the escorts.
Interesting is that they say the leader of the escort was in charge of the recce as the P-51's fuel determined the lenght of the recce.
In SA the Zulus call their leaders 'Indunas' , and our pilots then called the leader of the escorts the 'Induna'.

[mhuxt]

Many thanks for that Stefaan, great info.