The story of the death of Sergeant Michiel ... - tekkieraces.co.za

The story of the death of Sergeant Michiel Labuschagne (Vingers)
Kruger
7 January 1951-28 October 1977
4 Reconnaissance Commando- South African Defence Force
As told to me by Staff Sergeant Gert Eksteen 4 January 2004
Leon Bezuidenhout
Yes, Friend, What can I, an old man tell you?
You want to hear the story of a death?
Good then!
It is never too late to learn,
and to use – especially
For young people- Keep tight
What we have and stand straight and take
your part in our nation!
From: Oom Gert Vertel- Louis Leipoldt (Uncle Gert Tells by Louis Leipoldt)

Operation Kropduif, the attack on Eheke 28 October 1977
Deemed to bleed
Operation Kropduif (the attack on Eheke) on 28 October 1977, would forever be the
darkest day in the history of the South African Special Forces.
After the withdrawal of the South Africans from Angola in 1976, Swapo would take the
opportunity to establish operational & logistical bases close to the South West African
(Namibian) border. Two regional HQ’s were established. Cassinga would serve the
attacks on central Ovamboland. Eheke more to the east would support the eastern
Ovamboland and Kavango.
Due to persistent sabotage, landmine incidents and abductions of the local population, the
South African government decided that the Swapo bases have to be destroyed. Both the
regional HQ’s were to be destroyed in lighting attacks.
Strategically the attack on Eheke was the more important one. Eheke was closer to the
border, and smaller than Cassinga. It could act as dress rehearsal for the bigger Cassinga.
After the gathering of what was believed to be sufficient information, it was decided to
attack Eheke. Three Companies of the newly formed 32 Battalion would cross the
border on foot and attack the base from the south. At the same time a group of Special
Forces soldiers would be para-dropped to the north of the base and launch a first light
attack from the north.
Right from the offset things start to go wrong. The Special Forces group of around 80
men was dropped at 22:00 on 27 October, 15km too far from the planned starting point.
To complicate matters even further the terrain was flat and featureless and navigation was
very difficult. Only at day break was it possible to make any substantial navigation.
When 32 halfway to the objective, also ran into a determined and aggressive Swapo
force, the leaders on the ground leading the attack seriously questioned the continuation
of the operation. Sergeant Major FC van Zyl one of the founders of the Commando also
questioned the continuation. In Rundu, the Officer Commanding the operation, Brigadier
Ian Gleeson, decided that the attack had to go on. FC called his section together and said
although they are disagreeing with the decision, they all were soldiers and had to obey
orders. So they did.

Vingers somewhere on Lake Kariba as part of “D” Squadron Rhodesian SAS, the SADF
Special Forces squadron in Rhodesia.
Another mistake would also surface. The information about Eheke was also wrong.
Eheke consisted out of a larger complex than that the photographic interpreters
recognized. Except for the base in the south, another base further to the north east was
totally missed!
‘The unplanned afternoon attack’
At around 15:00 the Recces walked into a herd of cattle. The bush was dense but the
cover and dry would was removed from underneath the trees. One of young herd boys’
nerves cracked and he showed the attackers the direction where the trenches were. What
was supposed to be a surprise dawn attack now turned out to be an afternoon attack, and a
motivated and alerted enemy was waiting.
The Operators formed a sweep line with the support groups to the back. On the extreme
left flank was the section of lt. Chris Strydom. In this section was some of the most
experienced operators in the SADF. The man on the end of the line is sergeant Michiel
“Vingers” Kruger, a veteran of Operation Savannah, Vingers Kruger armed with a RPG.
“Vingers”? “Yes, I have the big vingers so my little brother would end with the name.
They were too scared of me”, his brother also a retired parabat would later tell me. The
second man from the end of the line was Sergeant Gert Eksteen, the only successful

candidate of the second Recce selection. For six weeks he would alone brave the
Caprivi. The only man left on the course! Gert Eksteen was armed with a LMG.
Somewhere on the border (Fort Doppies(?)) Gert Eksteen far left and Vingers
Kruger far right
Next to Gert Eksteen was Sergeant major FC van Zyl. He was a member of the original
“Hunter” group- the first Recces. He was a veteran of the Biafra expedition in Nigeria.
Wentzel Marx with a LMG, Gary Walker with a RPG, Neville Clark, then Antonie
Badenhorst en then Lt. Chris Strydom.
To the section’s right more sections were moving forward. Then all hell broke loose.
Chris Strydom’s section has walked into the part of the trenches where the trenches were
breaking 90 degrees away from the line of attack. Where the rest of the attack was busy

with a frontal attack, the left flank was getting it from both the front and the right hand
side. They walked past the camouflaged trenches!
This sequence of developments would cost six young men their lives. Two more would
walk the rest of their lives with the scars. The lives of the bravest and the best. Literally
within seconds. The first to fall was FC van Zyl. He was the man that inspired the rest
when the motivation was low after the long walk and the heat. A real professional. At
the same time Vingers Kruger was shot. Between them Gert Eksteen’s LMG jammed.
He crouched down. When his right hand touched his weapon to clean out the stoppage, a
bullet went through his hand just above the index finger. The LMG also damaged. To
their right things did not go better. Wentzel Marx, Gary Walker, Neville Clark and
Antonie Badenhorst all died. Lt Strydom was also wounded. Gert Eksteen has nowhere
to go. He is in a bit of a depression in the ground but he cannot stay there. He took out
his hand weapon and continued the fight with his pistol- in his left hand. Next to him
members of the neighboring section are pinned down by a machine gunner behind a tree.
The one wounded Recce, Sergeant Callie Greyling, is hanging exposed in the air.
Supported by his rifle and the counterweight of his backpack and equipment, he is
prevented from going down. From where his support is, they cannot hit the RPD
gunner. When the gunner crawled around the base of the tree again, he moved into the
sights of Gert’s 9mm. Gert helped him into eternity. The pinned down men could move
again. A Honoris Crux would go to Callie Greyling and to Corrie meerholz, trying to
pull him out of the firing line.

With courage and determination the small Recce force edged forward, bit by bit. The
forward movement turned the tide. Gert Eksteen is not needed anymore. His hand bled
profusely. He moves to the back where he finds Captain Meerholz with a bullet through
both legs. He carries Meerholz on his back to the medical post at the mortar position,
200m to the back. At the medical post he plucked his finger, dangling by only a few
pieces of skin from his hand, and through it into the Angolan dust. His hand is bandaged.
He goes back to the line where his comrades fell and one by one he brought them back.
The helicopters came in and at 21:00 the same evening he and the other wounded were
pushed through the doors of 1 Military hospital in Pretoria. When returning to base that
night Vingers’s friends opened up his backpack. In there somewhere they found a bottle
of Rum. He took it to Eheke to celebrate the victory. Later that evening it was used to
celebrate his life.
The earliest days- Wings parade at 1 Parachute Battalion
Except to his son and daughter Gert Eksteen never told the story to anybody. Six months
prior to this evening in January 2004 I asked Gert what he knew about Eheke. He said he
has never heard of the place. When on that evening in January 2004, I walked back from
the bookshelf with Paul Els’s book, he knew I found out more than he hoped for. He
took a page of white paper and graphically drew the attack on paper. “I injured my hand
at work” he would always say. Yes, at work. It was the truth.
Hero’s all of them. But medals for bravery are never awarded in big numbers. Not even
when they are a section of 8 Recces. They could all have received one. On that day only
3 were awarded. One to Capt. Corrie Meerholz trying to drag Callie Greyling from
machine gun fire, and one to Callie Greyling whom Gert Eksteen saved with an accurate
pistol shot from his left hand.

The grave of Vingers Kruger at Balfour.
Although 4RC was not yet operational, his transfer was
effective from 1 July 1977. Often his unit is wrongly
indicated as 1 RC

Epilogue: 30 Years on
On 11 July 2007, 30 years after the battle at Eheke a remembrance run was held at the
Voortrekker Monument. 1100 people participated. The race known since as the
Springbok Vasbyt Run, is a tough 10km or 25km run through the veld and on bush
tracks. It takes place in mid July, close to the Delville Wood Commemoration. It
commemorates the South African fallen of our past.
The 2007 medal was made from a photo taken of Vingers Kruger in his Rhodesian
battledress.
Vingers Kruger brave Springbok Soldier of our past, as was Gert Eksteen and the others.

Sources:
They live by the sword, Jan Breytenbach, Lemur Books, 1990
The Silent War, Peter Stiff, Galago, 1999
32 Battalion- The inside story, Piet Nortje, Zebra Press, 2003
Baffalo Battalion, L.J Bothma, Published by L.J Bothma, 2008
Old Staff sergeant Gert Eksteen, Former 1RC Operator, Personal interview Pretoria 2004
Johan Kruger, Brother, Personal Interview 2007
Photo’s: Alta Grittiths, Parow 2007