In Memory Of

FORD, MICHAEL STRANSHAM

Service Details
Age:
19
Date of Birth:
1923-05-26
Service No:
206379
Rank:
Lieutenant
Unit:
74 Operational Training Unit RAF
Regiment:
South African Air Force
Date of Death:
1943-05-04
Cause of Death:
Died in Aircraft Accident, Hurricane I W9359 ditched into the sea near Tel Aviv due to engine trouble. Despite making a good landing, the plane hit a submerged rock, resulting in his death
Commemoration
Grave Reference:
3. E. 8.
Cemetery:
RAMLEH WAR CEMETERY
Country:
Israel
Additional Information
Son of John S. Ford and Elizabeth Ford, of Luipaardsvlei, Transvaal, South Africa. Born Krugersdorp, South Africa. His parents farmed on Fupi Farm near Sinoia (now Chinoyi, Zimbabwe) and he attended Sinoia Public School before entering St George's College, Salisbury (now Harare) from January 1935 to December 1938. He then transferred to Christian Brothers' College in Kimberley, South Africa. In 1940, he enlisted in the South African Air Force and undertook pilot training before proceeding North to the Libyan campaign in support of the 8th Army in the advance to Tunisia. On St. George's College War Memorial, Harare, Zimbabwe