The South African Air Force (SAAF) commemorated its first aircraft to be involved in a fatal air crash at Irene Farm this week.
The crash happened on a farm in Irene outside Pretoria in 1922, the home base of the young pilot. At the time, the nascent air force was just two years old.
“On that day, Captain Albert Lawrence Montagu van der Byl (29) was piloting an SAAF two-seater trainer Avro 450K biplane – with tail number H9699 – from his base at Robert’s Heights, now called Thaba Tshwane.
“Lawrence had a passenger, Lieutenant Edward Armstrong Stuart of the 1st SA mounted rifles on board, and was heading to the family farm at Irene, where he executed an aerobatic sequence. Sadly, witnesses said the aircraft’s wing broke, causing it to crash near the farmhouse,” the SANDF said in a statement.
Both occupants succumbed to their injuries. Despite an extensive investigation, the exact cause of the accident remained undetermined.
Chief director of air policies and plans, Major General Mbukeli Songqushwa, representing the chief of the air force, noted that the then-fledgling air force was experiencing the very same problem the SAAF is facing today, which was a lack of sufficient funds.
Sogqushwa said funding was diminishing every financial year, but the mandate of the air force had not changed.
He noted today’s SAAF has to ensure its current generation of fighter aircraft is operating efficiently although without sufficient funding, yet the fighter capability has to be maintained and advanced in the face of technologies that are advancing daily.
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“A fully funded air force – and a Department of Defence at large – will lead to a fully functioning and productive defence industry, which we know at present is being challenged,” he stated.
“A productive defence industry will lead to technology advancement in the country, which in turn will lead to other countries buying those technology products from South Africa.”
The ceremony was attended by members of the air force and representatives of the Van der Byl family.
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