MOSSEL BAY NEWS - Today, Friday 30 November, seven members of the Southern Cape Canopy, who meet regularly in Great Brak, take part in the annual water jump in the Bloemhof Dam in North West province.
These local intrepid former SANDF parabats are joining their comrades once more and making new memories.
The seven are Lourens Jansen van Nieuwenhuizen, Dave Swanepoel, brothers Pieter de Bruin and Nico de Bruin, Louis du Toit, and two more brothers, Marius O'Niel and Cobus O'Niel.
Speaking to the Mossel Bay Advertiser on behalf of the group, Swanepoel said on Wednesday, 28 November: "The seven of us are all driving up together now. We all kept in contact with one another after the army.
"At the jump, there will be guys taking videos and stills. We're looking forward to it. The seven of us are aged from 55 to 67. We don't do much jumping these days, apart from this annual jump. But we get together each month in Great Brak."
It is expected about 300 veteran paratroopers will perform the water jump in the Bloemhof Dam.
Current members of 1 Parachute Battalion will also participate in the jump that will be executed from a Hercules C130 of the South African Air Force.
The water jump is an occasion for long time friends to meet again, including members of the Parabat Veterans' Organisation (PVO), an organisation that promotes the interests of paratroopers, sometimes in the form of financial, medical and legal aid. The PVO has branches (called Canopies) in all the major cities in South Africa. They are also in contact with parabats now living abroad.
A photograph taken at last year's jump.
Retraining is taking place at 44 Parachute Regiment in Bloemfontein preceding the jump. This includes fitting parachutes, safety and hook-up drills in the aircraft, and actions to be performed in the air as well as landing in the water.
Today, Friday 30 November, the veteran parabats will fit chutes and enplane at the Bloemspruit Air Force Base outside Bloemfontein. They will jump in groups of 20 and immediately after landing in the water they will be picked up by members of 1 Parachute Battalion patrolling the dropping zone in rubberducks.
Some of these veterans are even in their 70s.
Photographed before leaving for the mass jump this week are (back) Marius O'Niel, Louis du Toit, Dave Swanepoel, (front) brothers Pieter and Nico de Bruin and Lourens Jansen van Nieuwenhuizen.
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