South Africa`s Flying Cheetahs in Korea - Dermot Moore & Peter Bagshawe

Book 3 of South Africans at War Series

The South African Government announced, on 1 August 1950, its intention of placing a fighter squadron of the South African Air Force at the disposal of the United Nations for service in the Korean War theatre. A call was made for volunteers and the response was overwhelming. Men came from all ranks of the SAAF as well as from the Reserves.

Throughout the campaign there was never a shortage of volunteers despite the knowledge that the struggle was against an enemy having little mercy for prisoners. The distinction of serving in Korea became the responsibility of 2 Squadron SA AF and, in order to acquire an adequate liaison and communication link, it was decided that the squadron should be accompanied by a small administrative detachment designated the SA AF Liaison Headquarters which would be stationed in Tokyo for the duration of the conflict.

The record of 2 Squadron, or the Flying Cheetahs as they were known, is a proud one. During its service in Korea, the squadron with its support personnel, totalled more than 800 men in the field. The South Africans were attacked on several occasions by vastly superior Russian-built MiG-15 jet fighters but the more experienced South Africans, using their tactical ability, proved their mettle; of the thirty-four pilots killed during the three year war due mainly to groundfire only one South Africa pilot and aircraft were lost in air-to-air combat.

Apart from a short period when 2 Squadron was converting from Mustangs to Sabres, its continuous armed reconnaissance, interdiction and close-support missions, often under the noses of enemy MiG-15s, bear testimony to the Cheetahs heroic contribution to the United Nations war effort.

Author: Dermot Moore & Peter Bagshawe

Publisher: Ashanti Publishing, 1991

Pages: 282

Dimensions: ± 23.5 cm x 15 cm

Hardcover with dust jacket. Good condition. Binding intact.