Very Lucky Dube

[reptile]

This is an interesting story.....

There is a pilot at the national carrier who felt that as a proud SA citizen, he should do more for his country. He decided that the best way to do this is to become a pilot for the President. Just one catch.....he is not SAAF qualified.

No problem: His uncle happens to be Rev. Frank Chicane, Head of the SACC. Using his political connection, our friend managed to convince the SAAF that should fly ZS-RSA.

How did they solve the military bit, you may ask. Well, he did basic military training in a morning and then two days of officer orientation. He was then duly presented with his SAAF wings and appointed as a Leuitenant-colonel (I'm not jocking!).

The story doesn't stop here. Our pilot then felt that he deserved a lot more than the silver wings he was presented with. He insisted on the gold wings (you get these after a certain number of accident free flying in the SAAF), and the silver wings were promptly swapped for gold wings.

Since he was flying Airbus at SAA and the BBJ in the SAAF, SAA decided to move him to the Boeing fleet - lest he gets confused. His roster will also be adapted to allow for his BBJ flights.

Man, what a sweet deal............

[captain cumulonimbus]

I wish I was the right shade of Cadbury's Bourneville and had relatives in the right spots...

SA,harbouring nepotism and corruption? Never! That only happened in the bad old days!

[B Sousa]

Reptile, if this is a true story, it should not surprise anyone, just frustrate the old crowd........
By the way, did he bother to have a license and some experience or was that done in the afternoon.......

[Solid Rust Twotter]

The sight of a general in the Army walking out of a bank with the faraway look of a man in love and a digit purposefully rotating in his nostril is something that will stay with me forever. :yuk:

Folks, if you REALLY MUST excavate the sinuses, a little discretion....PLEASE!!

[mini]

Guys, you joking yeah? this is a spoof?

[reptile]

I wish this was a joke.

All of this took place in the last two weeks. I am very good friends with a senior officer who almost killed his career trying to block this.

Must say, I'm a lot less proud of my old SAAF wings now. I guess when Dube catches on to things like the Honoris Crux and Air Force Cross he is also going to demand one each.

Right now I'm carefully going through my family tree - who knows, I might have a connection somewhere that might help me when I start demanding!

[MysticFlyer]

Now watching all of this jumble unfold because of the ownership of the bank's (read AAC/DeBeers's) little ploy in politics, based on a whole lot of ownership in idiots!

Watching it all unfold on PPRUNE.....now that's priceless!

Hello there reptile! I see you found some of my Dube, we should get together and smoke a peacepipe man, you got some good stuff here....

MF:p

[reptile]

I'm all for peace MF

"Steek - moet net nie dood steek nie"

[Shrike200]

Correct me if I'm wrong - but isn't the highest award one can earn in the military the 'O.R. Tambo' something-or-other? No more Honoris Crux etc? Apropo of the FAJS name discussion, combined with this one, I am curious.

And doesn't nepotism etc. suck? I remember asking a SAAF guy what the difference between the gold and silver wings was, and it made sense - shortcuts just don't. There's no way that guy should feel proud about his un-earned uniform and associated bits.

[Gunship]

My (Golden) Wings will remain a proud possesion.

I know I earned them.

:mad: :mad: :mad: I can not believe it ! :mad: :mad: :mad:

Cheers all - off to London.

[prospector]

S R T,

Do you know what you find in clean nostrils?

Fingerprints

Prospector

[MysticFlyer]

Well well....now what do you expect!

The hero's were not even experts at warfare. Terrorists led by Nelson Mandela, Marxist communist - (refering to his handwritten manuscript).

Hero's in the struggle planted bombs, murdered, raped etc. while SA's finest was mainly occupied to secure the oil and diamonds. They got power through the guy who was the minister of foreign affairs, appropriately. Hero's who shot innocent people in their backs in churces, bars etc.

It's getting rhetoric, I know, but if you haven't by now have seen the REAL light, you never will!

MF:{

[Oyindo]

TWO wrongs don’t make it right. What happened in the past should remain there. Positive things will only help build proper integration and understanding in SA. You don’t have to be Bourneville or a milkshake to do the right thing.
We have our own fair share too here in the west, it’s a time bomb waiting to explode.
Get it right and you all will put the rest of us on the continent to shame. You have a great and very beautiful country don’t spoil it
Good luck

[reptile]

You are 100% right Oyindo....but,

Guys like Dube - and the others who manipulate the system through political favours - make it difficult to work together towards a better future.

Corruption and nepotism is keeping this continent in the Third World.

[MysticFlyer]

Exactly that is the problem.

The ANC by not tackling very crucial problems surrounding the racial issue, by implementing BEE, Affirmative Action, all programs that never worked anywhere!

THEY are making it a racial issue, by murdering whites and stealing their right to a job in an EQUAL SA. Granted, you cannot have 40 odd million up to a level of 6 odd million that was left back then. The only solution was to.....no points awarded for that one, but they got carried away with the smell of new money.

With a name like your's Oyindo, I take Nigeria or so. Anyway it's not important. Yousee you may have grown up in a country where crime, murder, rape, nepotism and corruption etc.was a daily occurrance. In the SA I and a lot of other people here too remembers, was very different.

But your crime could be too linked back to parties I have mentioned in my previous postings. Do a search.

MF:ok:

T

[bendix]

You need 3,000 SAAF hours to qual. for gold wings

when I now look at mine I get a s:mad: t taste in my mouth:}

bendix:yuk: :yuk: :yuk:

[B Sousa]

I have to stray a bit here when you guys hit on nostrils. A well known Beer afficiando (Solid Rust Twotter) and a couple of us other guys were in a little Pub in Pretoria, having a couple.no a few...no a lot of Beer. Think it was Eastwoods.
We had struck up a concersation with some around us and all was going well, until SRT visibly instructed all in how to eat Oysters............You got it, he SNORTS them........so much for anyone hitting on the ladies......

[MysticFlyer]

Well, well Bert,

Now you are really going around making a lot of friends and aquaintances in SA.

Keep it up man! In the meantime, take a tip from me and let me do the dirty-work, you see no-one knows (well) who I am, lest you sit in Eastwoods alone or only with your students next time.

It is also affectionately referred by the frequenters as the "Chambers", but as those bunch can not be trusted either, I herewith arrest my case.

MF:suspect:

[Solid Rust Twotter]

Well Bert, if you don't like the taste of oysters and the girlfriend is climbing the walls with lust, you have to make a plan....:E :ok:

[B Sousa]

SRT. We will do it again next year. Bigger Oysters this time and we can watch the morons cook the steak till its rare.......

[Solid Rust Twotter]

You're on.:ok:

Cholesterol and beer, what better combination?:}

[Gunship]

:confused: I see not much was added to the topic during my travel around the world ...

Anyway hi oke's .

Here is the :mad: article : (Page 16)

http://www.dcc.mil.za/sasoldier/2005/December2005.pdf

So what's up ? Anybody else got free wings in the mean time ?

PS: This also happened in the old SAAF - do not make that mistake. A certain General had a skoonseun who was a burgermag piloot.

He got his wings over his desk.

Well he was always known as the one that never earned it.

In fact I think he is still in the SAAF :p :p :p

[Solid Rust Twotter]

Nee wat, nothing's changed.

It's the old story of not what you know, but who you know...:(

Those of us without connections will just have to work a bit harder to get there, that's all...:ok:

[Gunship]

Those of us without connections will just have to work a bit harder to get there, that's all...

Lo Rusty,

Yip mate - that seems to be the fairy tale ending ... :E

[MysticFlyer]

But please don't sell your soul, as I hear so many aviators say!

Sad Guns, I agree, it stinks rotten, and in this case too, two wrongs does not add up to a right!

Both should be judged equal, I'll be the first to point out what should happen and approve of a fair trial for both.

See my quest, it's justice and fairness! Die broederbonders was later net so korrup en besmet van die vryemeselaars. Die oordeel kom! Anton R het bedank nadat hy hulle finaal in die afgrond in gedryf het, maar lid gebly van vrymesselaars!

Laat jou dink ne'?

Mystic

[Captain Pheremone]

Vir voks sake...it is embarrassing and disgraceful. However the official quote in the above link says it all.............

"Lt Col Dube underwent various
flying training courses in the United
Kingdom and completed his aircraft
typewriting on the Inkwazi in
September 2005. "

....a typewriting....isn't that what I am doing now????????????

I earn't mine!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[MysticFlyer]

I never knew SAA (Spoories) received their A380's already!

What a laughingstock they seem to have drifted off the tracks.....

MF;)

Exile in Swaziland, let's see, if he remained there, he may have driven the presidential Maybach....that's it, I'm selling mine! Solly!

[Gunship]

Amazingly on DeanW 's SAAF site and newsforum not one SAAF guy has said a word.

Does anybody know what happened to "old" A.S. that got his wings over the Brig's (Brig B.H.) clean desk ?

Last I heard he was meeter and greeter at W'Kloof :mad: :mad:

Yes Capt P ... you did indeed earn't them like some folks here. :E

[Captain Pheremone]

eggsactily!!!!!!!!!

[reptile]

Our friend made it into the paper testerday.

http://152.111.1.251/argief/berigte/beeld/2005/12/08/B3/02/01.html

[Solid Rust Twotter]

It appears CG no longer has any pride. Each time he opens his mouth, His Master's Voice comes out....:( :{

Hy maak sy naam gat.:hmm:

[Gunship]

He was a good guy when I last saw him as a major with a Mirage strapped to his a$$ :E

Always had a chip on the shoulder but what vlamgat did not :E






Uhmmm except my dear neigbour of 5 years :ok:

[The Actuator]

Time to get this thread back to the top.
Clearly those SAAF wings are now worthless, perhaps we should be mounting a mass campaign to post all our wings to the president with a covering letter urging him to have another fast tracked individual to be appointed co-pilot so that the two of them can mix their ignorance and their arrogance at low level in some rat infested airport north of here at night in some weather - the results are sure to be spectacular!

[reptile]

That would certainly make a statement!:ok:

[Goffel]

:E Eisch.

Not wanting to burst the bubbles of certain ex SAAF drivers,but about 10/15 years back,certain SAAF drivers from 21 sqd and 28 sqd were awarded their Com and ATP licences without having to write any of the exams.


I cannot remember the details,but it certainly made Sunday Times front page.
If I can remember some of the details,it was because of flying ZS registered a/c and flying o/s.

So I suppose what is right for the wit okes,is certainly not ok for "not so wit okes".

All they have done is reversed the policy.

Vok Guns,I can see you are about to have a heart attack.Just breath slowly and drink quickly.


:8 :8

[The Actuator]

Gffel - I reckon you're missing the point a little. I have no doubt that what you have said occured and was a disgrace. The point here is that Airforce wings are a little harder to secure than a comm/ATP. I'm not saying having them makes you a better pilot but they do represent certain flying achievements that are not covered in the comm/atp syllabus. I for example would love to see the honourable gentleman do a take-off from the back of a Harvard under a full hood or find roadside on a 1:50 000 map at 300 knots or some IF formo or some confined hovering or some short strip landings at night with lanterns/jeep lights.....The list is endless but the point is you cannot get your wings without being proficient at USING an aeroplane. You can get a comm/atp by being able to fly an aeroplane.

In this case what is just as surprising is his military rank. Lt-Col. after a couple days/weeks of military training? Don't forget you are Pilot GD - I look forward to his first parade or letter or his sitting on the first board and most of all he is subject to the RVD!

Most of all though I look forward to his command flight with a pissed off co-pilot into deepest darkest with a problem!

My wings have been posted.

[Gunship]

Vok Guns,I can see you are about to have a heart attack.Just breath slowly and drink quickly.

Lo Bru,

I am actually gargling a cuppa green tea down - believe it or not but maybe will get rotten on the tee blare :E

Bru as far as I know these guys did a " quick com" .

They did have classes and they did write the tests.

I was nearly on that course and I know the guys that did the course all passed.

Anyway - catching the drift but mate a 2 year wings course and up to the rank of Lt Col ... well it took me 15 years (some poor fools 25 years - but then again I am bright - ask Orca :E ) ;)

Uhmmm ok back to the green tea ... slow now ... :ok:

[MysticFlyer]

Smokin guns...maak 'n stoppie man, knip en voeg ou kouse daarby! Sit kameel-mis by, actually an old family recipe I'm disclosing here, but anyway...

"Quick-com" the one I heard of, left the last one eating the cookie! As I said, left right and center, all over, well earned wings will start to loose it's flavour too....

Sies man! Well, I heard once of basics being done via a correspondence course, but a quick-com with golden wings - :yuk:

But let me rather shut the trap, before the moderater modulates me on the other languages forum. Could be found to be speaking in tongues here....but good dooobie on the plate here (papegaai-slaai).

Smoke up!

MF:)

[BAKELA]

MF, I'm getting the distinct impression that all that's left in your life is PPrune...only but just. You've lost it so big time that even some of us having any braincells left (like me) doubt your ability to be rational...logical is unknown to you. Rabies gets worse...in time...like you!

[MysticFlyer]

Dit lyk my ek kan dit nou begin persoonlik begin vat.

Rabies, now that's new, something I thought contracted on the cliffs of Table Mountain in the company of very shrewd individuals, like....perhaps a Bergie or two....

Better check on it though, the thing sometimes gives false calls....

beedi-beedi.....oh-oh!!!!!

MF

[reptile]

The plot thickens........

Dube has been running around 21 Sqd accusing people of spreading "filth" on the internet and supplying the papers with info. He got fairly p!$$ed of with a couple of guys. One of them has started with a 'Re-dress of Wrongs' against Dube (welcome to the SAAF, he, he, he...)

Dube has now been seconded to the SAAF. That means he gets paid by SAA while flying the BBJ - and he gets payed by the SAAF.

In the mean time.......turns out that Mr. Mbeki knew nothing about the appointment. Said President is starting to get very edgy - doesn't like to have things of this nature happening near him. Dube might just get fired by the same guy he wanted to fly around.

Big time mud slinging going on at HQ. Lads are getting very nervous - Mr Mbekis' attention might just turn their way.

[BAKELA]

"Dit lyk my ek kan dit nou begin persoonlik begin vat." Asof jy dit nie al lankal met baie PPruners doen nie. Groot word boet...shame. Anyway..enjoy the day...or night...or wherever you live...or whatever you see...or whatever you believe :zzz: :zzz: :zzz: :zzz:

Guns, nice one about AS getting his wings for free. :E Was at the same Sqn as him at the time. All I can (mostly) remember is his after wedding party at Fountains (when the Fountains Circle was still what it was) getting quite "frayed" late at night (or morning?) and "all had fun".

At least AS spent a couple of weeks at Dunno's at the time...more than Dube...there ain't no Dunno's :sad: no more. Can't remember M's (AS's wife) maiden name but the Brig's (her father) first name ("B") I can recall from my stint at HQ.

(Last edited by BAKELA to keep mystic flyer bugs bugs at bay)

[reptile]

BAKELA.....check your pm

[MysticFlyer]

BAKELA, maybe it's just me and my slow uptake abilities, but....relevance here of the first part of your story, unless you suspect perhaps that I'm AS..:ugh:

It would make juicy reading in the Campfire, come to think about it. Does this sort of story then also solve the "panga-man" mystery?

Anyway, chill-pill or it could just be a wind. Fact is, it stays.... unorthodox.

MF:hmm:

Ps. Fact is, there's a snake in the tall grass.

[bendix]

reptile wrote:

Dube has now been seconded to the SAAF. That means he gets paid by SAA while flying the BBJ - and he gets payed by the SAAF.


This cannot be possible

:suspect: :suspect: :suspect:

I was seconded once, and only received one salary:{ :{ :{

It took me 17 years to get my " Gold Wings" and 20 Years to become a Lt. Col. ( who did you gatkruip Guns):(



bendix:ok:

[Gunship]

Guns, nice one about AS getting his wings for free. Was at the same Sqn as him at the time. All I can (mostly) remember is his after wedding party at Fountains (when the Fountains Circle was still what it was) getting quite "frayed" late at night (or morning?) and "all had fun".

At least AS spent a couple of weeks at Dunno's at the time...more than Dube...there ain't no Dunno's no more. Can't remember M's (AS's wife) maiden name but the Brig's (her father) first name ("B") I can recall from my stint at HQ.

Yeah the same guy BAKELA ... you are right - he DID in fact spend some time at Dunno's :ok:

Huis... :E

t took me 17 years to get my " Gold Wings" and 20 Years to become a Lt. Col. ( who did you gatkruip Guns)

:p:p:p

Sorry ou maat .. fokoli gatkruip - hard work :ok: This included 8 years as a Captain ... :E

My Gold Wings was 8 years I think ? Anyway it was before my 10 years was up.

REPTILE Pse Keep us posted mate - I love it ! :ok:

[reptile]

bendix....I also found the setup a bit strange. Had a chat to lads at SAA and the lads in the SAAF. A deal was indeed struck as i posted earlier. To make matters worse, it looks like his FDP in the SAAF might be used for EFP calculations at spoories - amazing!

Just to keep perspective......Dube did very well on his BBJ conversion. Lack of flying skill was never a question here. The problem i have is the fact that an individual can abuse a system through political connection. That he got gold wings and an appointment as Lt Col is irritating - but the fact that he gets to fly the BBJ while many guys and galls in the SAAF have been waiting patiently for that position for many years, well...that is down right criminal !!......(in my humble opinion)

p.s. much more to this story (read blatent disregard for procedures)....but i'm getting tired of being tailed by a black jetta with tinted windows....gotta run!

[nugpot]

Clearly those SAAF wings are now worthless, perhaps we should be mounting a mass campaign to post all our wings to the president

Guys, the SAAF has changed so much that you cannot compare it to what we had.

My wings (Black & white and came with stars that said "ex unitate vires"), represents an awesome phase in my life. I got the best training available and flew and fought with some of the best people.

But even then there were those who I thought should not wear those wings. I know how I got them. The guys that knew me then, know what they represented and how hard we worked for them. Nothing that the current shadow of an air force can do, can diminish that.

I look at my wings and I remember those that died up north wearing them.

Cheers Rob, Andre, Richard, Ed, Willie......

[bendix]

reptile wrote:-----....I also found the setup a bit strange. Had a chat to lads at SAA and the lads in the SAAF. A deal was indeed struck as i posted earlier. To make matters worse, it looks like his FDP in the SAAF might be used for EFP calculations at spoories - amazing.


Seems to me there is a good reason for a" redress of wrongs" by all SAAF pilots - A investigation by the Auditor General will effectively freez his SAAF salary!

bendix


:ok:

[TooBadSoSad]

This is the same character who is heading up the drive at SAA for accelerated command. He and some of his DG buddies are tired of seniority systems and want their commands now, obviously with the increased pay that goes with it.

[Herc130]

Ja, the SAAF is not the SAAF any more, check the Huey thread, Baas Frikkie, if he's still at 21, must be freaking. Took me 8 years as a Captain, as well, to make Major (still with the castle), think I'll post my wings to Carlo wrapped in a turd!!:{

[Gunship]

NUGPOT
Cheers Rob, Andre, Richard, Ed, Willie......

Rob ?
Andre ?
Richard ?
Ed ... (not Rave the Brave :E) will never forget him a great guy was with me and RealOrca at AFB Hoed (1 Sqn). We had a serious send off for him at Dunno's :ok:
Willie van Kop ?

You are ex vlammie I pressume.

My list is way to long ..

John Twaddle
Chris Pietersen
Mike Earp
Otto v Rensburg

Grey matter ... lots of them.

Then do not forget those that perished for the cause (those that had a very hard life ...)

RIP Oom Polla
Jiks Kruger
Cor Greef and many more.

Long Live the OLD SAAF :ok:

[Herc130]

Gunns/Nugpot?

Ed Every - (F1 - sam 8)
Robbie Turner (Imp Mk 11 - BFCU failure)
Rich Miller (Imp Mk 11 - Judgement?)
Willie von Coppenhagen (F1 - Small arms?)

May they rest in peace.

[MysticFlyer]

All of those, Bakela, all of those, is daai wind uit?:p

Went back to the SAA court case thing, and I came to the conlcusion that:

Saywhat is paddling upstream in rapids on a Beechmonkey Mk1 conoe, armed only with a leftpedal, singing....dumb doobey, doobey....dumb, poking in his nosi all the time. For energy he rolls some green doobie from Swaziland, as there the rivers are flowing nowhere.

Meanwhile, downstream....more patient than the oxen, lies Mabalel, die nare Krokodel, for he knows, what goes up, must come down...

Now which Mafutatjie, will come and save this Umfaan? He could after-all stay underwater "vir 'n honderd duisend djaar."

Bert did you have anything to do with this leftpedal thing? Will he at some time kick some right-pedal too, and come back on the cyclic?

Anyway, on with the opening and closing song..."Weg, is ons....weg, is ons op 'n heerlike, sonnige dag...."

MF;)

[Gunship]

Ahhh Robbie and Rich ... yes now I remember them.

Also Jan Pen Wessels - dunno how he died but I have been Supersonic Twice ... both times with the oldest bachelors in the SAAF ... JP Wessels (RIP) and Mitz Maritz (Genl I think?)

Ai those where the days ... lekker :ok: (uhmm not the Mirage flip ... ) :E just the memories :ok:

[Herc130]

Man, MysticFlyer,

Stem saam met Gunns, moet van daai goed kry wat jy rook my Gauloises is te lig.:}

Stry vandag met nuwe SA regering en wil iemand net moer.:mad: :mad:

[Gunship]

Ou Herc I must agree I have "lost" Mysty along the way ...

I just get second hand smoking in this internet cafe (6 Degrees outside so the feckers smike inside) but these Libyan Twak kan my nie so laat kak praat soos Mysty nie :E

[Herc130]

Gunns,

You chopper jocks have no culture :} supersonic twice, nogal, en die gogga byt nie.:=

I still believe in the addage atributed to Wilbur Wright:" Any machine where the wing move faster than the airframe is inherently dangerous and should not fly."

But then what you fly is dangeous, nowdays, I just fly rubber dog **** into to inherently dangeous places.:yuk:

[Gunship]

Lo Herc,

Mate it is strange I flew Mirages / Pampoentorre / Hawk / and a Ruskie or two ...

The only thing that always give me a bit of a piepie styf was the Lear 55 / and I just loved the Citation.

Talk about that (and back to the topic as 4HP will be on us sooner than later - sorry 4HP) ... talk about 21 Sqn and Lucky Dude .. what happend to "our" Citation at 21 Sqn ?

used to be H551HK ??

She was a beaut and we even made her nicer ..

Eischh ek verlang :sad:

To Hover is Devine .. to fly Jets is a waist of time ... :E

[Herc130]

Gunns,

MLN (Malelane) and LIG is still at 21, as far as I know, but when I left 21 they were not in any great nick, I believe there were plans afoot to redo them, eech, I think the new SA BBJ put paid to that plan.

The C550, a C172 with two hairdryers stuck to the arse.

:ok:

Choppers is a waist of jet fuel.:} But wait I've got to send a fax to 19 Sqn.:8

[Gunship]

Is MLN the Cit II SP ?

She used to have a maroon and blue stripe with a flat panel / storm scope ... oh yes baby and she had GPS ..

Ok hou op lag bliksems ... I am from the old School - these where new things then :E

[Herc130]

Guns,

Both are now in the SAAf Blue colour scheme, LIG has the clam shell, Lear, door for casevac, and is a SP with thrust reverse, MLN, no such luck.:}

[Gunship]

mwwhhh we had "normal doors' / beautiful blue leather interior with a nice lavvie in the back.

Full CD system and small bar / fridge as you enter.

Also thrust reversers and special brakes ... damn was it Brembo or Firestone / Bridgestone ? Just remember they where damn good and touchy when taxing !

But no clam shell door ? :hmm:

[Herc130]

Gunns,

MLN came from the home lands (He-he) and I think the SAAF changed around the sytems a bit to accomodate the casevac role ie clam shell etc,(before my time at 21) they both had CD and flat screen instruments, maintenance was outsourced to FALA.

[Gunship]

Broer ... Gunss also came from the Homelands :E:E:E ... yip so that was "our machine" :ok:

She was a beauty when the SAAF got her. Well maintained (over serviced) and a fresh paint job (paid R100k for that) from Atlas.

Well that was 10 years ago ... last entry in my logbook ... :{ :{ :{

Hope Lucky Dude does not fly it ... but a Dude that earned to fly her. :ok:

Ahhhhh a newspaper picked up the story ! :ok:

Thanks Pretoria News :ok:



Nepotism claims beset Mbeki\'s pilot

By Eleanor Momberg

The South African Air Force has denied that political pressure had anything to do with the appointment of the new pilot of the presidential jet, Inkwazi.

Lieutenant-Colonel Nhlanhla Dube – a relative of the director-general in the Presidency Reverend Frank Chikane – was a appointed a member of the SAAF Reserve Force in August and received his gold wings at an SAAF Wings parade in October – two months after he first piloted the Inkwazi.

Dube\'s appointment and the decision to award him gold wings have caused unhappiness among SAAF pilots. They claim the pilot (33) made no bones about his family ties to Chikane. They also say he only underwent a morning\'s basic training and two days of officer training before being made a Lieutenant-Colonel.

\'These factors justified the appointment\'

Under normal circumstances permanent force members would undergo months (???) of courses and staff training before becoming an officer. Pilots would, according to their training and flying hours first receive bronze wings, progressing to silver wings and then gold.

Dube\'s roster at SAA had been adjusted to allow him time off to fly the Presidential Jet as part of his Reserve Force duties.

Commenting on the claims of political pressure to appoint Dube, SANDF spokesperson Colonel Petrus Motlhabane said: “The SAAF was never subject to the implied coercion.” Dube had applied for, and was given, a post advertised with the aim of making the SA Reserve Force more representative, he said.

Dube was appointed on grounds of his qualifications on similar type aircraft at SAA, which made him eligible to be brought in line to pilot the Boeing Business Jet (BBJ) used by President Mbeki.

Motlhabane said Dube had logged extensive incident-free flying hours on Boeing 737 at SAA. He was trained according to the BBJ syllabus “as prescribed by Boeing with simulator training at SAA facilities on the 8738 simulator”.

He underwent further BBJ simulator training in London and base pilot training at Waterkloof Air Force Base and other SAAF bases.

Responding to unhappiness about the fact that Dube had been appointed as a junior pilot with a higher rank than some of his senior officers, Motlhabane said the Reserve Force dispensation allowed for the appointment of reserves at a specific rank “authorised by the minister of defence”.

“The appointment would be linked to the profile of the post and level of qualification. In this instance these factors justified the appointment of Lieutenant-Colonel Dube.

According to an article in the December edition of the SANDF\'s magazine, SA Soldier, Dube received his wings on October 21. “He has been flying this aircraft since August this year,” the article said.

:sad: :sad: :sad:

LINK (http://www.int.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=13&art_id=vn20051214065255112C664059)

[I.R.PIRATE]

Maybe I missed it somewhere in here, is Dube the Capt, or co of T-BO's chariot. What happened to Oom Spof?

[nugpot]

Gunss, Herc.

Rob Rodell. I know he didn't die in action, but was the first missing man formo I flew in and it struck a chord.

Andre Stapa. Lost during night ops over Cahama.

Richard Glynn, SAM 8 north of cutline in Bosbok.

Ed Every. SAM 11 @ Quito

Willie van Copenhagen. I went to photograph the accident site with Riaan van Tonder in the other Imp.

Richard Miller died in SA, so did Rob Turner. They will all be missed, but did not fit with the general gist of my original post.

I treasure my wings for what it represents to me. Dube can wear platinum Viking horns with diamond tips for all I care. He will never know what "esprit de corps" is and what makes a real SAAF pilot. We should actually feel sorry for him and his ilk. They are snatching watered down versions of what we had and think that that makes them better. Little do they know that the harder you work for something, the more it means to you.

[Herc130]

Nugpot,


U bring bach some serious memories,

Andre, was a SAM 6, serious fokker, Land role radar and all, SCARRED ME ****eless:} :ugh: :ugh: Didn't no all the 42 AND 41 BOYS at the time but they wre dodging some big ****e.

[TooBadSoSad]

Remember the Swazi King's Global Express? Guess who SAA gave three months leave to so he could get a Global P1 rating in Canada? Yours truly Lt Col Dube. Dube was running around SAA telling everyone he was going to make R10 million out of the deal!

[MysticFlyer]

Not one to let a good story pass too, I'm currently having another monologue on the Campfire.....

"Gripping stuff" I've been told!

MF
:E thought I'll add a little blue condoleeesa, this may make some blue with envy....

[B Sousa]

Dube's appointment and the decision to award him gold wings have caused unhappiness among SAAF pilots. They claim the pilot (33) made no bones about his family ties to Chikane. They also say he only underwent a morning's basic training and two days of officer training before being made a Lieutenant-Colonel.

I do not understand the problem.Two days for a Lt Col, why so long......Africa is noted for making Corporals to General overnight...
You guys have to quit whining.

[Gunship]

Africa is noted for making Corporals to General overnight...

I seem to remember Cpl Hitler and Cpl Foday Sankoh as two of the (worst) "leaders" and only one was from Africa.

Long live the Colonels ... :E

Now back to the topic. Has anybody seen Dube saluting ? Can he address people on their rank ?

I mean in General terms .. is he an officer or a gentleman ? ;)

[Herc130]

Bert,

You may have a point there, I mean, Idi Amin went from Corporal, to President so this must be the continent of oppertunity. But then again, Bush went from rich kid to President.:E

[Gunship]

Bush went from rich kid to President.

Was he not dumb as well ? :E

[Gunship]

Ok I was a bit offline after a visit by the CIA :E:E:E

Uhmm back to the topic : How was Dube's day / weekend oke's ? :hmm:

[MysticFlyer]

Hey, everybody moaning at sticking in ranks too long should look at the humble Colonel Gaddafi. He skipped the ones between captain and colonel and holds it now for the last 35 years.:sad:

Does his generals salute him?

MF

(Guns rapporteer asb.):E

[Gunship]

Does his generals salute him?
MF
(Guns rapporteer asb.):E

Problem is : You never know when it is him. He has 3 look-alike's :E

PS: Wonder where Dube is ? Been Lucky with the deputy Pres ? :E

[TownshipDog]

I may not be totally correct but doesn't one need a tertiary diploma or degree to become a reserve force officer? Does he have one other than his PHc (Pa Het connections) Degree?

[iceweed]

To the SAAF guys who are still doing good work wherever you are.. look at the writing on the wall, think about your future now. There was no better calling than to fly in the SAAF, but that has sadly changed.

Do not become like your CAF (and others) who are willing to sell their soul for a lost cause.

The Dubes will unfortunately prevail, and multiply, for some time still, until one day, the pendulim will swing back - but not in our time....

[MysticFlyer]

Excellent post iceweed! But you have it right, it will never swing back to be a one colour system. The idea started off well, that's why we agreed, because we thought apartheid is really over.

What happened in return is that greed set in, and then inabilities of the "selected" candidates with the PHc's, had trouble meeting the bar, or jumping through the normal hoops. Real good candidates are there, waiting to be given a chance, even in the townships!

The yanks trained a monkey and a dog to orbit for those who still believe that it's a godly career. But the selcted the candidates on fairness, as all came from cages and although some were bigger, some were smaller, some had less hair, but they were all primates, but some had more aptitude, and they made it to space!

Please don't tell the other, this is still a secret too.....We, we are all humans, with feelings and emotions or the ability thereof, some have theirs just deeply embedded, covered with a thick layer of hate, racial hate.

Could be well within our time.

[prospector]

Mystic Flyer,

Have trouble keeping up with you, "Could be well within our time",
Guess you must be an optomist before anything else.

Prospector

[TooBadSoSad]

Do any of you SAAF guys know if the SAAF is paying Dube a salary? Apparently he is on full pay with SAA, even though he now works there part-time.

[Gunship]

Mystic Flyer,
Have trouble keeping up with you, "Could be well within our time",
Guess you must be an optomist before anything else.
Prospector

Mate ... Misty is special ... his vocablularly and commitment is beyond my wildest dream.

But I still love him :p:p:p

Uhmm like in Brotherly love ;)

[sukhoijunkie]

What is this country of ours becoming guys? It really is sad to see corruption like this out-ranking flying safety and all other factors so easily isn't it.....:yuk:

[Globetwotter]

Eish, flying safety is long gone. Affemetef Ektion now rules the skies. According to a mate of mine Dube is really Duubeous behind the controls! :p