"Mad Mike" is the correct nickname, and yes, he's the same one jailed for hijacking that Air India transport to the RSA after that fiasco in the Seychelles; given the circumstances at the time and what he and his men faced had they surrendered, I really can't fault him for "borrowing transport" the way he did, but of course the South Africans had to be seen doing something ("world opinion" and all that!). He was released from imprisonment some number of years ago.
Hoare held a commission in the British Army during WW2, either in one of the infantry regiments or Armour (I forget which), but he was definitely not a Para, I do recall that much. He was born in Ireland, educated in Great Britain, and emigrated to South Africa during the 1950's.
BTW, the aforementioned Frenchman, Colonel Robert Denard, pulled off a successful coup in the Comoros during the late 1970s, ruling the islands until his bloodless ouster by the French government --- specifically with GIGN (Groupement d'Intervention de Gendarmerie Nationale: the French National Police SWAT unit) forming the "sharp end" of a task force that included a battalion of Foreign Legion paras. Unlike Hoare, Denard was a former Para (N.B.: French, not British, of course!), and was well known for his reluctance to fight against his fellow Frenchmen. Incidentally, Denard became a Muslim early during his stay in the Comoros.
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Anybody out after 2 AM is either a !!!!, a cop or a pilot. Or any combination of the three!
[This message has been edited by Constable Clipcock (edited 03 May 2000).]