The Rescuers
 It is 9 August 2005, the National Women's
day. On this public holiday the members of 17 Squadron enjoy
a quiet and well deserved day of rest but, as any one will
be able to tell you, the quiet times are when you should be
the most wary.
The call for help came through shortly before
2 o'clock that afternoon. The hilly farming area named
Bakenkop near Nigel was ablaze. Veldfires were raging out of
control and residents of the area feared for their houses
and possessions.
There is always an Oryx crew on standby
should any emergency situation arise. However, experience
has shown that firefighting can only be done effectively
with 2 Oryx helicopters working as a team. In the spirit of
pro re nata (as the occasion arises), the 17 Squadron motto,
all the necessary ops personnel, ground crew and flying crew
for 2 Oryx helicopters were ready in no time.
 Within 1 hour of the call-out being
activated, the 2 helicopters lifted off the tarmac at Air
Force Base Swartkop and set sail for the area from which the
distress call came. The plume of smoke on the horizon guided
the crews and served as an indication of what could be
expected. Once on the scene the situation was quickly
assessed and bambi buckets were hooked on with the help of
the extra ground crew that had volunteered to go along
 The crews started working on the most
threatening fires, picking up water at the closest useable
farm dams in the area. The helicopters were greeted
everywhere by waves of thanks from people on the ground. The
local farming community joined with the SAAF by fighting the
fires from the ground. As soon as one fire was brought under
control from the air, the helicopters could move to the next
blaze while the fire was given a coup de grāce by the
firefighters on the ground.
After approximately 140 tons of water were
dropped from the air by the two helicopters at 2 tons per
bucket, the fire was firmly under control throughout the
whole area. The helicopters returned to base with little
fuel but lots of gratitude from the farming community of
Bakenkop.
With courtesy from AD ASTRA magazine
Article: Lt Carl Jonker, 17 Squadron, AFB
Swartkop
Photos: WO2 Cristo Crous, Photographer, AD ASTRA
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