Captain M Overed

The Dreaded Telegram

Three “Rangitata” airmen lost their lives in April. Twenty-six-year-old Lt Emile Van Heerden a No 515 Mosquito pilot from Carnarvon in the northern Cape lost his life on the 2nd, No 174 Squadron Typhoon pilot Lt Frederick Higgins was killed on the 3rd and Captain Martin Overed on the 19th, both 20 years old.

The Airmen who started at Sea

Flight Lt Hay lost his life “flying in Typhoon 1B JP247 of No 182 Sqn which was shot down by flak near Falaise” on August 18th 1944. The squadron’s South African commanding officer Major DH “Dormie” Barlow who had held that position since April having previously commanded No 80 Squadron in Italy, had been captured by the Germans after being shot down three weeks earlier while two other South Africans serving on the “Second Tactical Air Force” squadron were killed in quick succession. Seconded SAAF pilots Captain GH Kaufmann DFC and Lt RG Jennings were coincidentally from the Eastern Cape and educated at Dale College. Twenty-five-year-old Kaufmann had been with the squadron for six weeks when he lost his life on July 18th while 20-year-old Jennings killed a day after AJ Hay having been with the squadron for two weeks, had travelled to England on the “Rangitata with former “General Botha” Cadets SH Capstick-Dale who was killed in a Typhoon flying accident in 1944 and, Captain Martin Overed.

The Airmen who started at Sea

Born in Johannesburg in 1924 and educated at St Mark’s School in Swaziland, Martin Overed joined the General Botha in 1940 as Cadet No 1128 and volunteered for the SAAF after his training. Awarded his wings in 1943, he was among the 83 SAAF pilots who volunteered for RAF service in Europe and was identified by Captain AM Cooke DFC as being a member of the “Rangitata” contingent. He trained on Wellingtons, joined Coastal Command’s No 14 Squadron in September 1944 at RAF Chivenor in Devon and was based there when he and his crew lost their lives over the Bay of Biscay on April 19th, 1944, during an anti- submarine patrol.