Vlamgat - Dick Lord

Vlamgat, literally flaming hole in Afrikaans, was the nickname the South African Air Force (SAAF) gave to the Mirage F1, its formidable frontline jet fighter during South Africas long border wars in South West Africa (Namibia) and Angola from the late 1960s to the late 1980s.

Battling Soviet MiG-21s over African skies, the Vlammies, the Mirage pilots as they were affectionately known, acquitted themselves with distinction and honour. Vlamgat is a gripping account of these pilots and their deeds of bravery; their experiences are authentically related with accuracy, humour and pathos by the author, himself a Vlammie.

As Willem Hechter, former Chief of the SAAF, says: Vlamgat deserves a place of pride in the long history of this, the second oldest air force in the world.