Bio / Text:
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Miraculously survived a steep dive where he was initially unable to free himself, he rode atop his spitfire for several moments before freeing himself. He also shot down a Fw/190, serving with SAAF 1 Squadron in Italy. There is quite a bit of information on him (with pics) at the davehastie.yolasite to the right. An except from this site states;
"Dave Joined the SAAF in 1941 and went “up north” in 1942 after extensive flight training. While in North Africa he received further operational training. At that time there were very few “vacancies” at the fighter squadrons and Dave did non-operational duties for a while.
He joined No.1 SAAF squadron in 1943 and saw operational service in Africa, Sicily and Italy. During this time the enemy activity regarding fighter opposition was minimal but Dave managed to shoot down a German Fw 190."
There are two excellent youtube videos with details and interviews and simulations on the right.
