THE SAVIAC PARACHUTE STORY BY JOHN PIERSON AND ROD MURPHY

A foreword to John's story of the SAVIAC by Derek de Kock

 Time has dimmed my memory but in approximately 1974 soon after we had started to train the
Selous Scouts in HALO parachuting, it became very evident that the Safety Equipment Section could not cope with the limited number of parachutes available for the increased training and operational needs. I made all sorts of noise to Air Force H.Q. and one day a civilian came into the PTS Hangar and asked me how many parachutes we needed and what type we would like. At the time we had tried out some SAVIAC Mk2 parachutes which appeared to be very similar to the British Tactical Assault parachutes we had tested. The British T.A. originally had a deployment fault which we had rectified with #18 thread some time back, as mentioned in a previous chapter. We had also tried out PT 10 American parachutes and were using them on a daily basis. However, due to their rip stop type material, repairs were becoming a problem for the very hard pressed Safety Equipment Workers. The SAVIAC static line parachute was the answer to our problems. I seem to remember the order placed with the gentleman who visited me that day was for 400 SAVIAC Mk2 Free Fall parachutes with the proviso that each one had a KAP 3 automatic opener. I also seem to remember that 3600 SAVIAC static line parachutes with 360 reserves would keep us out of trouble. I have no idea exactly how many parachutes we actually received but we were always able to draw enough to keep us going in PTS. for training and later on Fire Force. Derek de Kock

The above photograph is of myself coming in to land in the pit close to the mark during a competition against the South African Military. The parachute I am using is the SAVIAV Mk2 and the block construction of the canopy can be seen clearly.

This photograph from John Pierson clearly shows the block construction of theSAVIAC Mk1 parachute canopy. This particular canopy has been modified into what appears to be a TU modification or possibly a double L which would give the parachute a forward speed of approx 8km per hour. During the Rhodesian war on terror we had a number of T10 and SAVIAC Mk1 parachutes modified for use by HALO parachuting on moonless nights. On some of those occasions the parachutes were abandonded.

This photograph of a T10 parachute clearly shows the bias construction of the canopy. The X type parachute canopy was also manufactured using the bias construction method. This method supposedly made the parachute stronger in fact so strong the human body was unable to break it. 

THE STORY OF THE SAVIAC PARACHUTE 

WRITTEN BY JOHN PIERSON, ASSISTED BY ROD MURPHY

The Saviac is unique in that it was designed and initially manufactured by a person with no formal qualifications in parachute engineering.

J.R. (Rod) Murphy is an lrishman who did his first parachute descent in the UK Territorial Army at RAF Abingdon in 1961and his first civilian freefall from a Tiger Moth in Dublin in 1962. 

He obtained and studied official US military parachute rigger's manuals and civilian manuals, and started importing surplus US military 'chutes and modiifying them for sport use becoming a knowledgeable rigger and machinist. During this period he attended a number of courses at the official  School Of Parachuring in Chalon, France, enhancing his parachuting and rigging knowledge. 

In 1964 while competing for the lrish team in the World Parachuting Championships at Leutkirch, Germany, he learned that Pioneer a major US company were intending setting up Parachuting lndustries of South Africa (PISA). He applied for a post and was accepted. His position was Quality Control Manager.

In the process of getting immigration security clearance his papers attracted the attention of Col W. Louw the founder of the SA Parachute Battalion. He was called to an interview in London and it was Col Louw who interviewed him. He was asked to volunteer to train the 'Parabats' in freefall and said yes. His air ticket was taken care of. He arrived in SA in 1965. 

He ran military freefall courses and worked at PISA for a few years. Sanctions were biting and PISA was struggling to get raw materials. PISA was forced to buy the materiel to manufacture military  parachuting equipment from Israel at grossly inflated prices. He conceived the SAVIAC made from local materials and offered it to PISA who turned it down. He left PISA to set up his own business SA Aviation Centre/Skysports, involved in aviation, skydiving and the importation of sports parachute equipment in partnership with Robin Kerr. He started work on developing the SAVIAC.

However the fabric for the canopy proved elusive. One day he put his hand in his jacket pocket and the familiar feel of the lining rang a bell. He sourced the fabric to a manufacturer Gelvenor in Natal. They were able to weave the correct fabric for a parachute once they had learned to 'calendar' it, a heat and pressure process that decreases porosity. 

Once that had been achieved things started to fall into place. Braitex in Springs which manufactured seat belts and venetian blind cords could. manufacture the webbing, parachute rigging lines and reinforcing tapes. A Swiss company Hauser Scientific in Johannesburg had the necessary skills to manufacture the quick-release box. Finally the high quality hardware , metal D rings, hooks buckles and clips, which require a horrendously expensive manufacturing process were sourced via friendships Rod had made with major manufacturers and equipment providers in the US. Lowell Bachmann and Ted Strong acquired surplus and used military hardware, quality tested it, refurbished it and exported it to SA.

The canopy then used by the Army, the T10 was a good canopy but had minor flaws and was complex, and very difficult to manufacture and consequently expensive. The panels are cut on the bias, each panel consisting of many diamond-shaped sections sewn together. The rigging lines run from a lift web to the periphery of the canopy then through a tunnel sewn at the point where two panels meet through the apex and down a similar  tunnel on the opposite side to a lift web on that side. All of this makes it extremely difficult to assemble whilst simultaneously machining it. It is also a flat canopy with each panel a simple elongated triangle.

Rod mentally envisaged a much simpler canopy of similar dimensions. It was block constructed each panel consisting of a number of tapering horizontal blocks. The lines were simply attached by stitching to reinforcing tapes on the periphery, and finally the lower portion was parabolic or curved slightly like the underside of a pumpkin. All of these were known techniques making construction much simpler and descents more stable.

Murphy constructed one at SA Aviation  Centre, with help from Peter Barnard, and tested it with concrete blocks. He then tested it jumping himself and made many adjustments.

1 Parachute Battalion agreed to test them and  7 were constructed and each did 100 test jumps with the Parabats. It received Defence Force and Armscor approval. An initial order of 300 was issued which was beyond the capacity of SA Aviation Centre.

Murphy was considering purchasing PISA which was for sale but lacked the finance. He was approached by Richard Charter, a local skydiver of independent means who suggested they form a partnership to buy PISA. A legal agreement was signed between the two before Murphy discovered that Charter had  purchased PISA behind his back.

Fait Accompli, Murphy had no option but to licence PISA to manufacture the SAVIAC in return for  monthly royalty payments of a percentage of the revenue PISA received. Charter paid for two months and stopped. Murphy tried to take the matter to court but the original agreement document had mysteriously disappeared along with the librarian of the lawyer, David Starfield, who had drafted and witnessed it.

Legally there was nothing Murphy could do about it. PISA sold thousands of SAVIAC Systems to Rhodesia, South Africa, the Philipines and other countries.

Charter died in a boating accident many years ago. Murphy lives in Randburg and runs a successful business handling administration for various airlines.

Postscript : Ironically the current US military Parachute the C6A is virtually identical to later Mk's of the  SAVIAC . 

CHAPTER 21 THE R.L.I. AND THE R.A.R. PARACHUTING FIRE FORCES

Until the advent of the Parachuting Fire Force, the standard Fire Force consisted of four Alouette III helicopters. Three were called G cars, and carried four soldiers each to the contact area. Other soldiers and helicopter fuel would be sent towards the contact area by road in order to reduce the distance needed should extra troops or fuel be required. These were called the land tail.

The G cars were armed with twin 303 Browning machine guns fired by the Technician/Crew Chief.  The remaining Alouette III helicopter was the gunship, or K car. It was armed with a 20mm Matra MG 151 Cannon, also fired by the helicopter Technician/Crew Chief. It also carried the ground forces commander and provided him with an aerial view of the battle, which he could direct from above. The ground forces were supported by a light ground attack aircraft such as the Lynx; a Reims-Cessna FTB 337G armed with two .303 Browning machine guns, rocket pods and frantan napalm bombs. Also available to the Fire Forces were Hunter FGA 9 jet fighters, Canberra Bombers and, at a push, Vampire jet fighters. The air element of the Fire Force was controlled by the K car pilot, who was the senior pilot of the Fire Force.

In the early phase of the terrorist incursions, when the groups were small in number, perhaps only six or seven, a few soldiers, correctly deployed, could account for them - especially when the soldiers could call for air support. The main idea was to surround and kill the bastards. In the Vietnam conflict the Americans called it Vertical Envelopment, but they only used helicopters.

In Rhodesia, troops were deployed in sticks of four men – three riflemen and a MAG (M60) gunner. The stick leader carried a radio to communicate, not only with other sticks on the ground, but also with the aircraft overhead. This ability to talk with the ground force commander in the K car as well as the air commander contributed greatly to the success of Fire Force.

In the Rhodesian Bush War, the Army (Brown Jobs), and the Air Force (Blue Jobs), were always able to talk to each other, and on the Fire Force bases they lived together and got to know each other.

From early 1976, the terrorist groups got larger, and when attacked could escape by slipping through the perimeter formed by the limited number of helicopters available.

More troops were needed to prevent the enemy from escaping Using additional helicopters was out of the question, but paratroopers could work, as proven on the few occasions when the SAS were dropped with excellent results. But the only paratroopers we had were the SAS and Selous Scouts, who were better utilised in special forces duties. So now it was time to parachute train the regular units of the Rhodesian Army – the RLI and the RAR–.

The Rhodesian Light Infantry (RLI) was an all-white unit formed in 1961 during the time of Federation. Of battalion strength, it was a regular unit of the Federal Army, and, when Federation broke apart, was absorbed into the Rhodesian army.

The Rhodesian African Rifles, (RAR), was first formed in 1916 and was the oldest regiment in the Rhodesian Army. At the end of WW1 it was disbanded but reformed in 1940 and saw service in Burma. It returned to Rhodesia in 1946 and again disbanded.

Reformed for the second time in 1953, the 1^st Bn RAR was sent to assist Britain during the Malayan crisis and, after the break-up of Federation, was also absorbed into the Rhodesian Army.

From its inception in 1916, until 1979, the RAR was exclusively white-officered with black soldiers and NCOs. In 1973 a second battalion was raised and barracked at Fort Victoria (now Masvingo). From 1977 as the war intensified, it was evident that more paratoopers were needed and eventually almost the entire Rhodesian Army was trained.

Up until November 1976, only Rhodesian special forces, the SAS and the Selous Scouts received parachute training, and this form of transport was mainly used for clandestine operations, outside our borders.

Within our borders, the Bush War was fought by the young men of the Rhodesian Light Infantry and Rhodesian African Rifles. In addition to these regular soldiers there was also the Territorial Army and the  B.S.A. Police  and  Police Reserve but these units were not parachute trained. On a few occasions, the SAS were used in the paratrooper role to assist the RLI or RAR, when large numbers of terrorists were located.

In order to train more troops we needed more PJIs, more parachute packers, and a few thousand more parachutes.

The PTS had carried out exercises and operations for years with the SAS, and, in anticipation of having to use static line paratroops to surround enemy groups on the ground, I’d devised a basic standard operating procedure: paratroops should never be dropped closer than 1000 metres from the enemy. Anything closer, would provide the enemy a good chance of escape as they could run underneath the stick as they floated down from above. When the shooting started the ters could break any Olympic speed records and the 4minute mile was broken with ease.   This would put the enemy both behind and in front of the troopers, not ideal. The drop height was 500 feet AGL. At a push, it was lowered to 400 feet, but never any lower as there may have been insufficient height for the parachute to deploy properly; trees were not a problem, as long as they were not too high or too thorny; as usual, high ground winds were avoided And finally, the PJI had complete control of the jump and his instructions were law.

The first RLI troops arrived at PTS in November 1976, from 1 Commando. They were a pleasure to teach; keen to prove they were as good as the supers (SAS). They were young, fit men who’d seen combat with the Fire Forces; the PTS were just showing them a different way to get into action.  As always, everybody who came to the parachute training school was a volunteer and had the option of pulling out at any time until they completed their final jump. After that, there was no turning back and severe penalties applied for refusing to jump at any time after receiving their wings. This did not occur during my time at PTS.

Soon after the first RLI static line paratroops were trained, they were deployed to the Fire Force at Mount Darwin complete with a Dakota and crew. Now there was a whole new ball game within the Parachute Training School. Not only were we training the two special forces regiments, but also the RLI and two battalions of RAR with a third RAR battalion to follow in 1977. More PJIs were needed, as

quickly as possible; not only for the training of new paratroopers but to man the Fire Forces in the bush. There was also an escalation in special operations, and all seemed to require HALO  drops far across the borders

The solution was to ask the South Africans to help train Static Line paratroops. This was agreed to, and the RLI sent their commandos to the Parachute Training School at Tempe, Bloemfontein.  Kevin Milligan went down with the first batch and devised a four jump Fire Force orientation course on his return to ensure all men jumping from Rhodesian Air Force Dakota’s did exactly the same drills. Once back in Rhodesia, South African trained troops did four jumps at 500 feet, carrying Fire Force gear, into a bush DZ, situated close to New Sarum. These men were then ready for Fire Force, and invariably their next jump would be into action.

Fortunately, the South Africans had a similar training regime to our own, and we meshed very well. The original South African PJI’s were also trained by the RAF at Abingdon. The major difference was their failure to have the rifle or MAG attached to the body which they carried in a suspended load instead. The South Africans still used the side cable as we had done with the X type even though they were now using the SAVIAC parachute which deployed with the overhead cables. The South Africans also allowed clapping, feet stamping and yelling during take-off to encourage the troops. We  stopped  this, because if things went pear shaped on takeoff the PJI needed to be heard.

This photograph shows the first Rhodesian Light Infantry soldiers to be trained at the South African Parachute Training School at Tempe Bloemfontein. The South Africans were able to take 60 RLI at a time and we were training 60 RAR at a time plus courses of 8 doing HALO. When the RLI troops returned to Rhodesia we immediately converted them to our more practical method of combat parachuting and they did a 4 jump conversion course into one of our nearby bush DZ,s from 500 ft AGL. 

To navigate the apartheid policy, the PTS in Rhodesia trained the indigenous soldiers of the RAR, and the South Africans trained the white soldiers of the RLI.

The PTS was a very busy place. Often the early morning training sorties had as many as five Dakota aircraft doing two or three lifts each to get through the daily training programme. We dropped up to 300 troops a day during these intensive training periods.

The word went out. We urgently needed more PJIs . I had an unlimited number of vacancies for sergeant PJIs – and these were not acting ranks, they were substantive, with parachute pay of 25 cents per day (about one beer in the Sergeants’ Mess, in those days).

In response the RLI and SAS sent some of their best junior NCOs for training as PJIs. The majority of the new PJIs were from the armed forces, but some were civilians . With this increase in training, the UT/PJIs were able to get through the program in a much shorter time. But at no time did the PTS ever drop its standard, regardless of the pressure from above. The only troublesome phase of training the RAR soldiers was the ‘Dribble Factor’ on the exits, but provided not too many men failed this we were satisfied.

This photograph is of basic static line course #76 in about 1977. This was one of the first Rhodesian African Rifles (RAR) parachute courses  to be run and included the C.O and 3 Officers. This course also enabled Pete Laubuschagne seated on my right to qualify as a PJI. Seated on my left is  Denis (Charlie) Buchan who was promoted to W.O. and would soon be Commissioned. 

As soon as the troops completed their training they were deployed to the bush. For every Dakota used in the parachuting role, the PTS had to provide a qualified PJI and two dispatchers. Until we were able to train sufficient dispatchers we deployed two PJIs with every aircraft. This meant that the available PJIs did a three week training stint in the PTS, were deployed on Fire Force for three weeks and finally returned to do the next basic course. At the same time this was taking place, the school was also running HALO courses and carrying out HALO operations. It was a very busy time for all.

On most occasions when the PJIs were on Fire Force duties, they were allocated the paratroops, and, depending on the situation would maintain daily continuation parachute training. Although this seems excessive, especially considering the troops had just finished the basic course, this constant drilling kept the injury rate to below one per cent .

The PJI was also to ensure all parachutes were looked after. Each Fire Force was deployed with 60 static line SAVIAC parachutes and every one issued to a paratrooper was recorded on the jump manifest, with the soldier’s name and the main and reserve numbers. As soon as the fire force was called out, the manifest was handed to the Ops room at the Forward Airfield so it could be passed on to PTS where the master log was maintained. 

During quiet periods on the various fire forces the PJI often requested permission to carry out a training jump (or fun jump) every week. Most times this was allowed and the PJI would use his discretion on the drop height. Some of these fun jumps were from heights above 2000ft AGL and the troops really appreciated the long ride under the canopy. These fun jumps gave all the soldiers involved greater experience and Rhodesia possibly had the most experienced military parachutists in the world.

CHAPTER 20 LEGENDS OF THE SELOUS SCOUTS: HALO TRAINING

Soon after they completed the first static line courses, we were tasked to train a number of Selous Scouts to carry out HALO drops. The trainees had to complete the basic static line course before attempting HALO, and the first soldier to knock on my door was, of course, RSM Muvangere. He was not going to miss this opportunity. By this time, the first freefall jumps were done from 8000 feet AGL and we had found a technique which allowed men to fall with stability. I will not say that the RSM took to freefall like a duck to water, but he completed the course and learned how to track, carry weapons, and a suspended load in a most satisfactory manner.At this time the Basic HALO course had doubled from 20 to 40 jumps and at least 10 were done at night using SAVIAC parachutes. All HALO jumps by now had KAP3 Automatic openers fitted.

 There was a Selous Scout soldier who became very good at HALO. I will identify him only as Corporal Stephen. This man was truly a legend, and  word is, he should have been awarded the Grand Cross of Valour, Rhodesia’s highest award for bravery. He instead received the second highest award, the Silver Cross, for outstanding bravery. I am not certain of the exact circumstances for this award, but in a war which saw countless acts of bravery on an almost routine basis, it must have been impressive and extreme.

Schullie Schullenberg was a large man who played a good game of Rugby for the Rhodesian Army and he was an outstanding bushman who could move through the veldt without being seen or heard. However he had another side to his many skills, He had a great sense of humour and a great skill for drawing wonderful cartoons on the PTS black board. This is one of his many drawings.


 This man and Chris “Schulie” Schullenberg were dropped deep inside enemy territory on numerous occasions, mainly on reconnaissance missions to identify terrorist camps. Dangerous work which earned the respect of the PTS staff.

Chris Schullenberg had already trained as a HALO jumper whilst he served with the SAS. All he had to do was a few freefall jumps to keep up-to-date. Corporal Stephen had not completed a Free Fall but managed to get onto the first Selous Scouts Free Fall Course which he completed without issue.

 On November 9, 1977, I received an Air Task calling for a last light drop in Mozambique, a long way from the border well past the Gorongosa area. Schullie, Stephen and I were to fly down to the Forward Airfield at Grand Reef and use the Fire Force Dakota stationed there.
 Stephen and Schullie arrived in the PTS hangar with very little in the way of kit. Schullie was blackened up and carrying the barest of equipment; usually an AK47 with a couple of ammo magazines taped together, a water bottle, a radio, and not much else. Stephen, who was a black African, carried similar equipment. They looked just as they were supposed to look, like a pair of scruffy terrorists.
Then No. 3 Air supply Platoon wheeled in the HALO box with the stuff these men would need for the next few weeks as they tracked down the enemy base camp or supply dump. Whenever these and other clandestine operations were carried out by both the SAS and the Selous Scouts, the PTS Hangar was cleared and only those with the need to know were inside. It usually happened on weekends because the courses under training had weekends off and the place was usually empty
 I collected the maps, aerial photos, parachutes, my own personal AK47, and the oxygen equipment and collected OC Flying, Wing Commander Randy du Rand, to fly us down to Grand Reef.
 Randy was happy to help out, as it got him out of his office and into an aircraft. Additionally, it gave him a chance to see how the aircrews stuck out in the bush were getting on. As soon as we arrived at Grand Reef, I grabbed the PJI on Fire Force duty and his dispatchers to help move the gear from the Islander to the Dakota, and then briefed him on what we were about to do.
 The drop was going in toward last light and we needed to be over 15,000 feet ASL when we crossed the border. The drop point was an uninhabited area of Mozambique, but in order to get there we had to fly over lots of habitation; hence the minimum altitude of 15,000 feet. Soon we were airborne, on oxygen, and flying into the setting sun. When we reached 15000ft ASL the pilots turned and headed for our first navigation point.

The HALO box was rigged with a KAP3 to open the parachute, so the deployment height could be altered. That was just as well, because as we approached the area we noticed dozens of cooking fires spread over a large area. I called Schullie to the door and showed him what lay below.

 Dropping them into what was obviously an inhabited area was far from ideal.  As a last minute decision, we decided to open the box parachute at 10,000 feet ASL, and for Stephen and Schullie to pull at 11,000 feet and follow it down from there. By this time we were above 17,000 feet ASL and still going up. I quickly reset the box KAP3, checked the run in, found what looked like a clear spot, the stick went out and we proceeded back to FAF8.
 I felt sure that at this height these two men and the box would not be seen from the ground, and only very bad luck would stop them. But they had a long, long way to the ground. A long time dangling below a parachute, helpless against attack.  And it was dark. And cold. All the way down.
 All the way back to FAF8 I waited for the call from Shullie. But nothing came. After we landed, I loaded up my bits and pieces. Still nothing.  I tracked down Randy du Rand, and we took off for New Sarum. Still no news. There was a basic course running and I was needed back at the PTS so I had no choice but to head back.
As we flew home I was going over and over the drop in my head, replaying all possible scenarios. Randy said, “You’re really worried about that drop.”

“Yes,” I answered. “I should have scrubbed it.”  But Schullie wanted to go and I let him. The trouble with these drops was the long wait to find out if the guys were okay or `were, instead, stuck on the end of a spear, or worse.

 Randy was my immediate boss in the Air Force. PTS was part of Flying Wing at New Sarum, and he gave me some sound advice. “It is not the first time you haven’t heard from the guys you dropped and it won’t be the last. Just think of it as a bonus when you do hear. Remember, they may be busy, and if they are in trouble then we will go and get them.”

 It was still reassuring to know somebody else was also thinking about these dangerous operations. I got word the next day. Everything was fine and the drop was good. It had been a long, and stressful wait for this news and the relief was palpable. Sometimes the weight of responsibility was heavy indeed.

CHAPTER 19 ENTER THE SELOUS SCOUTS

 The Selous Scouts, or Skuz’apo, as they were called by the enemy, were a unit of special forces soldiers, both black and white. Their task was to infiltrate the enemy ranks when they entered the country, entice them into a specific area, and then call in the fire force to wipe them out. It was a very dangerous occupation.

Terrorist survivors of  contacts with Rhodesian Security Forces were invited to join this illustrious unit. Those who decided against joining the Selous Scouts were charged and dealt with by the civil courts. Those who decided to change sides then received training as if they were Rhodesian Soldiers which included parachute training.

The vast majority of the Selous Scouts were extremely brave men, who were forced to adapt from fairly primitive weapons and training to jumping out of aircraft in a matter of weeks. Only very few men can claim to be that type of warrior, and the black African soldiers of Skuz’apo were such men.

Despite the success of the initial operation by the SAS, some heavyweights within the Rhodesian Army still believed parachuting was the preserve of special forces, and so it was the Rhodesian Special Forces units who were trained first. It was not until   August 1976, that the first Selous Scouts course came through the doors of the Parachute Training School. They were lead by the African Regimental Sergeant Major RSM Mavengere – a capable and brave soldier. The RSM was probably the keenest and by far the oldest man on the course, and was determined to lead the way

This photograph is of the fourth Selous Scouts basic Static Line Course and shows RSM Mavengere in the centre  of the first first row behind the seated PTS staff. The seated PJI's from L to R are Sgt Paul Hogan, Flt/Lt Frank Hales, Sgt Kevin Milligan,and Sgt Pete Marshal. RSM Mavengere was injured on his first course but qualified on this course after completing the necessary eight parachute descents. A large number of these soldiers were recoursed having failed the previous courses.either through injury or the dribble factor on exit. 

He was injured on his fourth static line jump, but this did not deter him in the least. As soon as his leg healed he completed his course, followed shortly after by a HALO course. The RSM was a man who truly believed in leading from the front. On a number of occasions I was invited to the Selous Scouts for various social events, and often took my children with me. If the opinions of children are any indication as to a man’s character, then RSM Mavengere was one of the very best – they loved him.

The same could not be said about all the Selous Scouts who came through the PTS. At times we had problems with some of the less enthusiastic members of this unit. This was most likely because they were the members captured and then recruited after enemy contact.

Their reluctance was understandable -they were abruptly informed the deal they’d struck with the Skuz’apo had changed, and now included jumping out of aircraft. Most came from poor rural backgrounds with limited experience of anything modern, and now they found themselves in the middle of an Air Force base, surrounded by strange machines. It must have been frightening, almost like being on another planet, surrounded by strange men speaking a foreign, highly technical language.

All potential paratroopers had to be volunteers. This was emphasised throughout the course, not only by me, but by the PJIs as well. A number of trainees requested a return to their original unit and were never penalised because of this decision. As far as the PTS was concerned, you were able to pull out at any time until the eighth jump without repercussions. After that, it was another story.

 There was no discrimination toward the trainees by the instructors – it did not matter if you were black, white, brown or yellow; as far as the PJIs were concerned all students  were green. The parachute did not discriminate and neither did we. Having said this, it was of course, generally easier to teach those who spoke and understood English as their first language, and who had enough education and experience with technology to trust the equipment we used.

Up to this time, all the troops who went through the school had been Anglo-Saxon, English speakers, and all were destined to be SAS. These men passionately wanted to be in ‘C’ Sqn Rhodesian SAS and, because of this innate enthusiasm, were easy

to train. They understood and followed instructions precisely which meant the  pass rate on Basic Static Line courses was always in the very high nineties.

Our first Selous Scouts course was different. For the first time it contained a number of black men, some of whom were not entirely happy about being there, and many of whom spoke limited English, and had only basic education. Nevertheless, the ground training phase was completed to a satisfactory standard and most seemed to be looking forward to putting the theory into practise.

The big day of the first jump arrived and the trainees were taken by their section instructors and ordered to fit their parachutes. The course emplaned and one of the PJIs jumped out as the drifter. The pilots adjusted their run in and the first pair of Selous Scouts jumped out. The first man out was RSM Muvangere, who, as expected, carried out all the drills in a satisfactory manner. The second man out was one of the white men on the course, who also did a reasonable job. The next pair was not so good, and it soon became apparent that when it came to the black troopers the exits left a lot to be desired.

The big problem was to get them to jump forcefully against the power of the slipstream, which in the case of the Dakota, would always try to blow you back inside. In a large number of cases the black soldiers just stepped down at the door, or simply collapsed and fell out. This could be very dangerous with static line parachutes, especially if the soldier twisted his way out, or just sat and fell out.

The PTS staff were horrified and complained. I told them in my usual quiet way to get on with the job and to concentrate on exit technique. In almost all cases, after the parachute deployed, the drills were carried out in a reasonable manner. However, I was not happy with the way these, our first black African troops, performed and reported my concerns to Ron Reid Daly ( C.O.) of the Selous Scouts), Air Force HQ and Army HQ.

This photograph shows the remnants of the first Selous Scouts Static Line Parachute Course. This course started with twenty men but due to the Dribble factor on exit technique only ten men qualified for parachute wings. After an improvement in training techniques and the lowering of some standards the pass rate increased to a more acceptable 70% to 80%.

By the end of the first Selous Scout course, about 50 per cent of the members failed due to bad exit technique. We even installed a movie camera to record the frightening sequences as the troops left the door. We were faced with two options: to change our training methods, or exclude black Africans from the parachuting role. Neither option was acceptable. We just had to bite the bullet and get on with the job to the best of our ability. It was not easy to accept, but there was no choice but to allow a lower standard, especially when this lower standard could mean a dead stop.

More and more Selous Scout courses were scheduled. Failure rates reduced as training techniques improved and bad techniques were ignored. But somehow, despite the increase in numbers, the problems with communication, and the necessity of turning a blind eye to exit errors, the injury rate did not increase. This was due to the professional abilities of the PJIs. 

BEST DAYS By TONY HUGHES PART 4 (Final )

Because of the sanctions imposed upon Rhodesia, we were often required to use our initiative and ingenuity to devise ways and means to get things done, both from a training and operational sense. We did not have the convenience of being able to call Air Force HQ and ask them to order/acquire some sexy bit of kit we desperately needed, or for them to find out how the “Brits” or the “Yanks” did things, without us having to re-invent the wheel. This was simply not possible under the sanctions regime.

 

This photograph was Basic Static Line #20 April 1966 and was Tony Hughes qualifying course as a PJI . He had instructed a section of these soldiers under the watchful eye of all the staff and had shown himself to be an excellent instructor. The PTS staff seated from L to R are Sgt Trevor Smith, W.O.1 Bill Maitland, Sqn Ldr Boet Swart, Flt Lt Derek de Kock, Sgt Frank Hales and Brand New Sgt PJI Tony Hughes Holding Sgt Fred Bear. 

What happened as a result of this impost, was that No.1 PTS, and the leaders of the specialist Army Units using parachuting, had to devise, learn, and develop our own unique operational operating techniques. This caused our enemy a succession of catastrophic defeats, and also attracted the “interested” attention of other forces overseas. I believe it is fair to say there was probably no more versatile, effective and committed unit in a “can do” sense than PTS. It truly could hold its own as a specialist unit of the Rhodesian Armed Forces, measured by any gauge against its peers, and in doing so earned the high regard and respect of Rhodesia’s (specialist) Armed Forces.

For all of the seriousness of our work and of the “best practice” ideology we strove to adhere to, it was just as important to have a lighter side to one’s working life. When men are at war, there is a saying “that they fight hard and then play hard”.

In all I’ve ever read on the Rhodesian economy during the war years I can find no reference to Rhodesian Breweries having a tough time selling its product in this period! Periodically, a pause, or slow- down in activity would come about, (often when we were deployed) and, provided there was no flying planned for the next day, we would support the Breweries.

Often, when there had been a successful operation, internal or external, there would be a request for a lot of lager, and if available, some hooligan juice, supported by a good meal.

My recollections throughout this time of conflict in Rhodesia, are of being part of “one superb team” - operating to one plan with one agenda irrespective of whether you where Army, Air Force, Police or whatever. Morale was always high, and men and women mucked in and supported each other to the full to get the job done regardless, for example, of say how much sleep one might have had in the last 48 hours. These were truly the best years of my life and to this day I miss the comradeship, excitement, training and the applications of these components, operationally.

Derek’s Note : I asked Tony to check his log books, and, if possible, to provide an example of one of his call ups. He would have been sent out into the bush with a Parachute Fire Force and the following was his reply. It should be remembered that at this time Tony was a Civilian and was liable to call up into the Air Force on an as required basis. This was rather often.

Derek, I've been through both log books in the period F/F was most active. 

And, deliberately without looking at any "Rambo" type incidents or detail, I thought what follows below would be, in a classically descriptive sense, useful to you. It highlights the quite intense and persistent use of the Fire Force and of the comparatively many number of occasions when we achieved nothing, verses those times the unit achieved kills!

This classically underscores the saying - War is 99% boredom and 1% frenetic activity! (Derek’s note: it most certainly illustrates this, but also how busy we were kept.)

The year is 1977, and I arrived for F/F duty at Buffalo Range, here's what took place between November the 1st and November the 15th:

The pilots were Flt/Lt D'hotman and Air Lt. Armstrong.

1st Nov.

06.20 N/S to West Nicholson - 1hr 35m

08.45 West Nich - Rutenga - 0.40m

10.00 Rutenga - Buffalo Range - 0.25m

11.35 Buff to Mabalauta 0.30m

15.45 Mabalauta - Lemon - 0.30m

17.00 Mabalauta - Buff - 0.30m

Nov 2nd.

06.00 Buff - Rutenga - 0.30m

16.45 Rutenga - Lemon 01hr.00m

17.50 Rutenga - Buff - 0.30m

Nov. 3rd.

06.00 Buff - Rutenga - positioning - 0.30m

17.00 Rutenga - Buff - 0.30m

Nov 4th.

06.00 Buff - Rutenga - Buff  - 01hr.10m

Nov 7th.

06.00 Buff - Rutenga - 0.30m

17.30 Rutenga - Buff - 0.30m

Nov 8th.

04.30 Buff - Rutenga - 0.30m

08.00 "Op" drop D.Coy 2 RAR, 1 stick of 16 - 3 kills - 01hr.00m

13.45 Rutenga - Lemon - 01hr.45m

18.00 Rutenga - Lemon - 01hr. 45m

19.10 Rutenga - Buff - 0.30m

Nov 9th.

09.00 - Buff - Rutenga - 0.30m

17.00 - Rutenga - Mabalauta - Buff - 01hr.00m

Nov 10th

06.00 - Buff - Rutenga - Buff - 01hr . 00m

Nov 11th.  

06.00 - Buff - Rutenga

09.20 - Rutenga - Lemon 

17.30 - Rutenga - Buff - 0.30m

Nov 12th.

05.30 - Buff - Rutenga 

               15.35 - Rutenga "op drop"  D. Coy. 2 RAR - 2 sticks of 8 - 2kills and 1 capture -            01hr.30m

18.30 Rutenga - Buff - 0.30 mins

Nov 13th.

06.00 Buff - Rutenga - 0.30m

06.45 - Rutenga - Buchwa uplift of troops - 2 RAR D. Coy - 01hr.00m

13.00 - Rutenga - "op drop" - 7 kills and 1 capture

17.15 - Rutenga - Buff - 0.30m

Nov 14th.

06.00 - Buff - Rutenga - 0.30m

Rutenga - Buff - 0.30m

Nov 15th.

05.40 - Buff - Rutenga - 0.30m

11.00 Rutenga - Bulawayo - 01hr.30m

Bulawayo - New Sarum - 01hr. 30m

Home until the next call up exciting stuff.

Thanks again Tony for sharing your story, and your great insight into the characters in the PTS. You were, and remain, a most valued member of the team.

BEST DAYS By TONY HUGHES PART 3

Frank Hales military history began as a boy soldier in the British Army and his career developed through service in the Royal Artillery and finally, prior to coming to Rhodesia, to serving as a soldier attached to the British 22 SAS Regiment.

Frank was highly respected by all of us at PTS and this respect was echoed amongst the specialist Rhodesian Army units too, more specifically by those with “C” Squadron Rhodesian SAS.

He was always a particularly fit man carrying no excess weight, an excellent instructor and an extremely competent parachutist both static-line and freefall.

The responsibility fell between him and Derek to design and trial a freefall training course for the SAS. With no-one to instruct them, they devised this course and then further developed it by individually trialing all aspects of the course skills on a trial and error basis until they were satisfied they had it down pat. Following this, they then trained the future freefall PJI instructors.

Frank had a superb military mind, and was of enormous assistance not only to Derek de Kock in his capacity as PTS Operations Officer, but also to the SAS with his ability to readily assess, then select the most effective options available to enable their operation to succeed.

Frank enjoyed curries and all Asian dishes, and frequently brought into work for his lunch, the remains of the previous evening’s meal. The smell would get everyone’s salivary glands working overtime.

As mentioned previously, he was skilled in survival techniques and in tracking, but it was his skilled ability in parachuting which became his forte and those of us fortunate enough to serve with him at PTS could not miss being affected by those skills which he demonstrated in his work.

Trevor Smith had come to PTS as one of its founder members from the British South Africa Police in 1961.He was a fine parachutist and one of the best instructors PTS ever had.

Naturally he was highly accomplished with those students who took naturally to the training, but it was his singular ability to effectively reach those slower students, as well as those whose nerves got the better of them from time-to-time, to expertly lead them through to eventually become fine static-line and free fall parachutists, which was one of his great skills. This was well worth carefully watching and noting if one was a junior instructor.

During the quiet years leading up to the late 1960’s, Trevor and I attended a Physical Training Instructor course at the Rhodesian Light Infantry’s base at Cranborne Barracks, held under the direction of C/Sgt Len Momsen.

This course, conducted in 1967, comprised students from across the Rhodesian Armed Forces and ran for several months. It was always enjoyable, a real testimony to Len and his staff, and brought the two of us closer together as we competed with the Army students. Suffice to say we both completed the course, ended up becoming a couple of pretty fit individuals, and, as a bonus, became honorary coaches of the RAAU in 1968.

I should add that despite having literally done hundreds of push-ups each day over the whole course, when we returned to PTS on completion, Derek de Kock was still able to beat my best number in this exercise, to my undying chagrin! (Editor’s note: the secret is always go last, then you know the number required and, come hell or high water, can pace yourself and pump out just one more.)

This photograph of an article published in the Rhodesia Herald  in approximately 1970. It was policy at the Parachute Training School that the newest PJI carried out the milestone parachute jump and part of this duty included jumping with Fred Bear (Later Fred Barbear).Unfortunately I am unable to give the exact Date. All the parachute descents up to this time were with the 28ft Dia X type parachute.

By the time I left the Air Force following yet another parachuting leg injury in early 1973, the size of PTS’s instructional staff had more than tripled and it would continue this accelerating pace of growth all the way through to the war’s end in 1980.

PTS attracted some wonderful characters from military units as well as from civilian life from around the world into its numbers.

                Amongst these characters were;

Mike Wiltshire, an ex-London bus driver who became an excellent instructor, endowed with an incredibly good sense of humour and one of the best “can do” attitudes I’ve ever seen.

Mike made a hilariously funny, unintentional exit from the Para Dak one night whilst on the run-in to drop free fallers. With the cabin darkened to assist the jumper’s night vision, …. he took a step back towards where he thought the opened “para” door was, and literally stepped into the night sky!

Apart from the obvious initial fright he experienced, he managed the situation well but paid the price for his error by having to walk miles home, mostly through the bush, making sure he rang the Boss to advise he was, apart from his embarrassment, in good shape!

John Boynton was an ex- Brit Army man, who decorated his face with a wonderfully dense and well-kept moustache.

John too was well-humoured, and eventually became School Warrant Officer, a clear indication of his overall military bearing and of the way he always conducted himself. John was a rock solid PTS member and the sort of bloke you would trust every time with your life.

John Bolton-Smith, was another Brit who had enjoyed a private school education and spoke with a very posh voice. John joined us at the time we began training the RAR to parachute. In fact one of first courses he took was a section of black RAR soldiers.

He was experiencing difficulty communicating with his men due to language and, wanting to ensure all of the skills his section needed, sensibly approached their senior NCO to explain the problem.

He asked the senior man if he wouldn’t mind helping him, by being his translator?

“Sure” the Colour Sergeant said.

“One other thing” asked John, “could you teach me some key words that I will need to know to ensure the men fully understand me?”

“Sure,” the NCO said, “what words?”

“Well, for example,” said John, “what is the word for think? I need them to be constantly thinking about what they’re doing up there to avoid injury, collisions with other parachutists, steering, preparing to land, and so on”.

“The word for think is funga”.

Later that morning I was sitting close by and monitoring his lesson.

I was listening to him describing harness release and dragging when I heard John, in his very intense, up-market English accent, beseeching his men to “please chaps you really have to funga harder when getting the canopy collapsed!”

 I nearly pissed myself laughing, then at the break went over to him and congratulated him on the efforts he was making. His course eventually made it through to its conclusion and he became a top team member.

Charlie Buchan and Ralph Moore were both ex- Brit Army and had served with the Rhodesian Army before transferring to PTS. What a couple of great and different characters they were!

One Scottish, the other Irish, both funny as hell, each in his own right an excellent instructor, and each brought to the school that added value of their own past military experience. Each brought their particular gifts to swell the rapidly increasing pool of skills PTS could now boast.

Ralph’s morse code sending and receiving for example, was quicker than I could speak! Apart from this, he too was a superb maker of an outstanding curried chicken. He would marinate it for 48 hours before transporting it to a bush (night stop) DZ and serve it to us after the night jump program had ended.

Charlie’s previous military experience and natural instructional skills added greatly to the growing number of truly top drawer instructors on staff. Charlie subsequently went on to become commissioned as the PTS Operations Officer.

John Early came from the US Army with a Special Forces background. He had jumped as a member of the Golden Nights Army Demonstration Team and was an accomplished free faller. John was small in stature and kept a very well trimmed, small “Mo.” He was always smart, even dapper in appearance.

John was a thorough instructor, and like most, equipped with a great sense of humour. I remember towards the end of his time at PTS, with the war now close to ending, he asked me whether I would be interested in joining him in a new, and as he described it, “lucrative,” venture when the time came to leave?

When I asked what this might be he said: “It will be based in my country, and specifically in New York”.

I reminded him that unlike him, being a single man, I was married, had two young children, a mortgage and so on and couldn’t possibly just up sticks to the USA. He reminded me about the “money” I could earn, so I asked what we would be doing to earn this?

He told me we would buy/hire a large van, have massive speakers fitted to the roof, then drive around the streets of New York broadcasting the fact we were that great city’s first Mobile Abortion Service. ‘

“I’ve already thought of the logo for the van,” he said; “No foetus can beatus”!

I watched John perform one of the calmest cut-aways I’ve ever seen at our DZ one morning. Talk about being unflappable. Ten years after Zimbabwe came into being, I was watching the Four Corners Program on TV and saw John step out of a United Nations aircraft he had been flying for the WHO.

Paul Hogan and Iain Bowen. Whilst Iain came to PTS from the SAS, Paul arrived from Australia. Both were already trained parachutists, however whilst Iain had already completed his military parachute training through PTS, Paul’s experience was civilian sport parachuting. Paul completed the whole Basic Para and freefall courses then went on to become one of the PTS top instructors in free fall training.

Both these men loved parachuting with a passion and this translated into making each of them amongst the very best instructors PTS ever had. They were entirely dependable, intuitive and above all constantly demonstrated the highest safety standards through their work.

Those students who had the good fortune to be trained by these men would have derived much benefit from their skill and careful attention to detail and through this would have become far better parachutists than with any lesser instructor.

Paul had also learned skills on explosives in Australia, working on the mines there, and I’m advised, these were put to use.

What was consistently true of all of us and of the culture we developed at PTS and which prevailed throughout all of those who would join us in later years, was the unique blend of absolute and professional team commitment to;

# The maintenance of unswerving adherence to the best possible safety standards for everyone who attended any type of training at PTS.

# The recognition that , small as we were, each of us would be capable of performing any and every PJI role.

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PART 4 BY TONY HUGHES TO FOLLOW