As many of you know i have a great friendship with Ganyana ,ill publish some of the ltters we exchanged ,as i believe it could be intersting to you ,and because its a manner to remember him .
Hi Juan

I can send you several articles and provided they are published in Spanish only, the magazines I write for in the states won’t mind.

The truth about Easter Monday 1992 – guy fire 15-18 rounds at me with an AKM (7,62x39) from a range of about 3m. He was lying in a slight hollow and I was walking forward. I had five holes in my clothing but only one in me – you’ve seen the scar. Hit right clavicle, shattering it and turning the bullet about 80°, and it exited low down on the shoulder blade. I sat down hard, drew my revolver (S&W M58 in .41 mag) worn as per regulation, butt forward on left hand side, and shot him just above the left eye.

The problem was then policing up the battle field (we got 13 in the first couple of seconds ), Getting me to hospital when there was only one other man in the stick who could drive. Seven hours drive to hospital and then another day before A surgeon turned up to clean me up, dig the bone fragments up etc, Found a fair sized bit of clavicle in the rt lung which was why I was still coughing blood.

I have a few articles that would suit a Semi Military magazine- problem animal control in the middle of a war that I can let you have for free. I have a lot if somebody is going to pay me for them.

Cheers

Don

Dr. Don Heath
Marketing Specialist
Norma Precision AB

Hi Juan

Clem used a double .465 for the first 4 shots and then two Draganovs after that. While he was shooting one rifle the other was being reloaded by a scout. A second scout reloaded and carried a double. Mike La Grange started using F.N. FAL’s with Horniday 220grn solids. When we captured a pile of new US M1 Garands he upgraded to 30-06. Mikes personal rifle to open the cull with was a 500 A Square. He used a .500NE before Art gave hijm the rifle and my dad made him a sensible stock ( My dad did an aprentership as a stockmaker at the end of WWII but got a scholarship to be an engineer after Korea, and he altered or made new many rifle stock as extra cash.

Erik is coming here Friday so I will bring up you and your men with him face to face _ especially as he is on the scrounge for frangible training ammo.

Cheers

Don

Dr. Don Heath
Marketing Specialist
Norma Precision AB
S 670 40
Åmotfors

rån: Juan Pablo Pozzi [mailto:juanpozzi@hotmail.com]
Skickat: den 2 september 2015 2:56
Till: Don Heath <Don.Heath@norma.cc>
Ämne: RE: SV: SV: war days

DON JUST A QUESTION CLEM COETZEE USED A DRAGUNOV ,A DOUBLE 400 AND A FAL IN HIS CULLING OPERATIOS ,IS THIS CORRECT ....
From: Don.Heath@norma.cc
To: juanpozzi@hotmail.com
CC: mikebromwich1@gmail.com
Date: Fri, 24 Apr 2015 20:16:26 +0200
Subject: SV: SV: war days
Hi Juan

The books from me are in the mail. Mike is the secretary/chairman of the Daga Boys Association- the National Parks old boys network. Mike worked with Clem a lot more than I ever did.

Mike, Juan is an old hunting buddy of mine and a Selous Scouts fan. He is a Surgeon by trade but teaches their Special Forces Medics, and is a frequent contributor in the Spanish hunting and armed forces magazines. If you could tell him where to find truth about Clems amazing life I am sure that whatever is printed would honor Clem. Also send him the details of your book. At the moment I am too broke to pay attention let alone a copy right at this point – hopefully when I am back for Christmas I will be able to afford a copy.

Cheers


Don

From: Don.Heath@norma.cc
To: juanpozzi@hotmail.com
Date: Wed, 2 Sep 2015 04:30:48 +0200
Subject: SV: SV: SV: war days
Hi Juan

Clem used a double .465 for the first 4 shots and then two Draganovs after that. While he was shooting one rifle the other was being reloaded by a scout. A second scout reloaded and carried a double. Mike La Grange started using F.N. FAL’s with Horniday 220grn solids. When we captured a pile of new US M1 Garands he upgraded to 30-06. Mikes personal rifle to open the cull with was a 500 A Square. He used a .500NE before Art gave hijm the rifle and my dad made him a sensible stock ( My dad did an aprentership as a stockmaker at the end of WWII but got a scholarship to be an engineer after Korea, and he altered or made new many rifle stock as extra cash.

Erik is coming here Friday so I will bring up you and your men with him face to face _ especially as he is on the scrounge for frangible training ammo.

Cheers

Confirm you have Nyathi and the ons that have gone missing are my two and my dads?

Please send me a Physical postal Address and I’ll re-send registered.

The PP
1st day in Uniform
2nd day as Second Lieutenant being Briefed by my platoon sergeant what I had to do. My Platoon had 24 bushmen (Jan, my radio operator is the one making fire) Three black regular NCO’s who spoke !xo ( I do , which is why the police were desperate to get me to sign up.) and 6 white national servicemen in rotation to provide some firepower to the bushmen. We normally worked in sticks of 4. 2 bushmen, one white reservist with an F.N. MAG and either myself or one of the Black NCO’s who could talk to them.

I was a year young for my class so was only 16 in the photo. The black troops from the RAR who I got to lead that day (Because their own officer was needed in the command helicopter) where taking bets as to how long I would last. Only Titch (who took the photo) – and who reckoned I would be hit within 30 seconds but not killed, the black Sargent major who bet that > would stay on the radio until relief arrived – made any money

One of the other bushmen ( At the back in the photo) was a ‘sangoma’ – witchdoctor’ and once all bets were in he was asked to throw the bones and see what he though, and his prediction was that I would be badly in inside 30 seconds , but I would remain in command- exactly what happened.

4) Second war. I turned 20 that day and shortly after dawn got a notorious bandit and 7 of his men which a nice birst from the BREN and the blck WO got the last gang member square in the back with a white phos rifle grenade.

5) Witchcraft gone too far in the middle of war 3

6&7 – the rhino war

Dr. Don Heath
Marketing Specialist
Norma Precision AB
S 670 40
Åmotfors

rom a blind- anything you like from 7x57 up. The important detail is the scope, especially if you are hunting in an are where no spotlights are allowed. I like the Zeiss 1-4 , Swarovski 1-6 or Leupold VI 1,5-6. For follow up - shotguns are popular and with SSG buckshot are effective. I just carry my 9,3 it fits me and I can snap shoot out to 50m without looking at the sights. It also takes a bayonet.

I think a handgun for the guide is essential. A .357 will do but I carry a smith 329 their scandium framed .44. It is very close to the 629 I shoot in IPSC competition

Cheers

Don

Dr Don Heath D.Sc.
Manager, Research and Development
Norma Precision AB
S 670 40
Åmotfors
Sweden
+46 571 315 05

On 18 Aug 2015, at 23:19, Juan Pablo Pozzi <juanpozzi@hotmail.com> wrote:

Dear friend just a question for an article ,you will be named on it ....what do you recommend for hunting leopards from a blind ,and injured .What do you recommend for hunting leopards with dogs ,handguns for guides or not .
UN ABRAZO AMIGO

Trevor was my Father :- last man to hold a professional Ivory hunters License. His God father was Karamojo Bell, who gave him a .22 mauser for his 12th birthday present in 1934. I am going to give Iain the same rifle when he turns12. One of the best books I have ever read, along with Crocodile trader.

Myself and Ira wrote the book on bush medicine.


Cheers

Don.

Dr Don Heath D.Sc.
Manager, Research and Development
Norma Precision AB
S 670 40
Åmotfors
Sweden

Clem Coetzee.

Master of the Game

It is only one of many tragedies that have ensued since Rhodesia became Zimbabwe but the destruction of the Department of National Parks and Wildlife is one that has gone somewhat unnoticed as the full scale of the humanitarian disaster has revealed itself. The organisation that Robert Mugabe took control of was the best of its kind in Africa and arguably as good as any in the world. An unsung, reluctant hero of that service was a self effacing, publicity averse man by the name of Clem Coetzee.

Today he is now more alone against the odds than ever. Evicted from his land in the Lowveld of south-eastern Zimbabwe like most of his compatriots, he has had to sit silently and watch government supported thugs invade his property and destroy his life and livelihood. All he has so carefully protected and nurtured is devastated. Febrile life is replaced with death and dereliction.

But his personal plight is of little consequence to him and he does not dwell on it. It is the sacking of the country and the wildlife that moves him.

"We've had highs and we've had lows in this country but this is by far the worst. Worse than the war, when we could defend ourselves and protect our homes and properties. I cannot believe the destruction. I don't want to travel the country any more because I cannot bear to see what they are doing," he says.

I have known Clem since I was a little boy. Some thirty years later he has changed little. Medium height, muscular, a handsome man, sharp features and soft, busy-blue eyes below bushy brows. Trademark sideburns curl down the side of his face. Everything is about making do with the minimum; shorts, cotton shirt; shoes are

dispensed with unless absolutely necessary. Restless and driven. He has little interest in conferences and talk-shops unlike the people who have replaced him. No talk the talk - let's walk the walk. A genuine man of action who makes up his mind quickly and decisively and implements the plan as he goes along.

Born in 1939 in Rhodesia of Afrikaaner stock he gave up a promising engineering career to join the Parks service as a Junior Ranger in 1965. Even in those days the Department was low down the list as a budgetary priority and the rangers and wardens made do with little. Salaries were poor but none had joined for financial reward - they were there because they cared and they loved the life.

"There were times when we had no fuel to go out on patrol. We used to buy it ourselves. Swap elephant meat with other government departments to get spares for our vehicles but we always made a plan." Indeed they did. Coetzee is dismissive of the emphasis on helicopters, aircraft and other expensive hi-tec accoutrements called for today to combat poaching.

"We got on the ground and bloody walked. Sometimes we used donkeys to carry supplies. Followed tracks until we got to them. Slept on the spoor and just kept going. One has to be on the ground. You can see buggar-all from the air. We had some great trackers." He talks fondly of the black men who served with him with total loyalty. "We would never have got the job done without them. Some of them were absolutely fantastic guys."

His move up the ranks was quickened by the deaths of seniors; Warden Len Harvey, killed in Wankie by a lion which jumped into his house at night and his replacement, Norman Payne gunned down by ZANU PF insurgents.

For a time a warden in the Zambezi Valley, then home to the last big concentration of Black Rhino in Africa and also the venue for the start of the so-called 'liberation struggle.' He and his small band of men never wavered. Through a full scale civil war they went about their work undaunted and hardly an animal in their care perished. A former soldier recalls: "We had a hell of a time in the Valley. We spent our lives hauling ourselves up trees to get away from the damn Rhino. Their lives were more important than ours. We were warned if we shot one Parks would have us so we just had to run for our lives. The 'gooks' were a minor problem in comparison."

With Mugabe assuming power, the situation changed almost immediately. With high-level complicity the Black Rhino of the Zambezi were annihilated and no longer exist. Coetzee managed to get a few to safety before it was all over. "One of the highlights of my life was rescuing the few we had time to capture and move to safety. One of the saddest times was watching them kill the animals we tried so hard to protect."

Leaving the Valley, his posting was to Management Unit, the mobile, operational arm of the Department responsible for, amongst other duties; all population reduction exercises (culling), problem animal control (PAC), fire control and game capture and trans-location.

An ex-ranger remembers. "Clem ran a tight ship. We begged borrowed and stole and we spent our lives working on old vehicles but he led from the front and we would have followed him into hell. I spent 4 years at Umtshibe with him. I think he is the most competent man I have ever encountered. In practical terms he will find a way to deal with any problem. What I learned from him has seen me make a go of

everything I've tried since I left the civil-service. I've built houses, hunted professionally, farmed, run trucks and a diesel workshop, Coetzee taught me most of what I know. Management Unit was like an academy."

This period saw the Research arm of the department coming up with statistics demanding a radical reduction in elephant numbers, particularly in Wankie. The European had created a big problem here: In the early days of Rhodesia the area had posed a dilemma for the government because it appeared suitable for nothing. Seasonal water, poor soils and little game left the authorities in a quandary when a gentleman by the name of Ted Davidson suggested boreholes pumped by windmills would solve the water problem and make it an attractive refuge for wildlife. He was right but the end result was the plan succeeded too well. With human population pressures growing elsewhere and the establishment of a well managed protective zone, game flooded into the area and the eco-system began to struggle with the artificial pressure. Elephant, being particularly destructive, played havoc with the ecology and the conclusion was their numbers had to be dramatically reduced.

Much of this particularly unpleasant task fell to Coetzee who dislikes discussion of the details but there is little doubt he has hunted more elephant than any man alive and is decidedly unimpressed with this fact.

"As an elephant hunter he has no peers," says one who worked with him. "Utterly fearless, deadly with a rifle, instinctive, incredibly organised and as cool as they come. With him running the show we would 'do' a herd of 40 in 15 seconds. No one else has ever been able to match him."

Coetzee remembers those days well and not without sadness. "I often think about Tim," he says, referring to Tim Wellington, one of his rangers who he lost in

the process. "We had to go after a wounded bull and I was sick. I had Bilharzia and I was having treatment which hammers you, and I was battling to keep up with him in the heat. We had the tracks and it was just a matter of time before we caught up with the elephant but I decided to let Tim go ahead alone. I heard a commotion and when I got to him he was still alive but a complete mess. He had been tusked, raked through the bush for about 20 metres and crushed into the ground. We got a chopper but it was too late. I think he had a misfire." He finishes relating the story and looks down at the floor; he is quiet and lost in thought ruing a decision made at another time in another place. Then he puts it in context. "But you know," he looks up again, "during my time in Parks I lost nine of my friends. Three in the war, and six in the course of Department duties. The job took its toll." His salary peaked at the equivalent of £150 per month.

Anxious to find a way of resolving the population crisis without killing more elephant he pleaded for attention to be given to capture but there were problems with this. It was expensive, it was a complex process about which little was known and there were few alternative locations to move the animals to. Tragically, the elephant to the north in Zambia were, at that time, in the process of being decimated by poaching leaving a vacuum but politics and security precluded that possibility.

Coetzee refused to take no for an answer and plugged away. Astonishingly, for a man with no scientific training whatsoever he came up with all the right answers on drugs, equipment and how to actually manage animals of this size and physiology when under the influence of narcotics. His techniques improved steadily, culminating in what he says is the greatest achievement of his career: Moving an entire breeding herd from Zimbabwe to sanctuary in South Africa within 24 hours without a fatality.

Loading and moving live elephant had never been done on this scale anywhere in the world.

"I really am proud of that," he says. "And then with the drought in '92 we saved hundreds from dying." His face lights up when he recalls the events of this period.

But lurking in government offices was an enemy he was not familiar with and against which he was almost defenceless: The politicians who had ridden into town with Mugabe. Armed, dangerous, and powerful, their eyes were on the ivory and the rhino horn. Coetzee the custodian, was too honest, too committed and too professional for them. He had to go.

Harassment duly commenced and he was accused of all manner of criminal activity. Indicted numerous times on trumped up charges, his home was ransacked and he was arrested but despite determined efforts his persecutors could prove none of the charges they preferred against him. One, so ridiculous, it is almost funny; smuggling 200 elephant through Beit Bridge border post in broad daylight with no one noticing. Although no longer a civil servant his problems with the politicians continue to this day.

Despite all the setbacks he is resolute. "I'm not going," he says, "I'm not leaving this country. We have to see this through. We have to stick it out and then try and pick up the pieces." Blue eyes fire up. "This Transfrontier Park plan," he says referring to the budding plan to fuse areas of South Africa, Mozambique and Zimbabwe to create a contiguous protective zone, "maybe they'll leave me alone and let me get back to work on something there?" He looks for confirmation of this opinion. I wish I could give it.

I am wistful and sad. He never did claim to understand the deceit and deception of the political world. His brief never was to reason why. He knew the difference between right and wrong and thought he was right but in the African context, he was wrong. The quiet man with the huge heart and big ideas but outnumbered and out manoeuvred. Decisions were being made elsewhere and he and his small band of men were destined to be swept aside by the surly winds of political change.

"This is my Zimbabwe," says Mugabe, and so is all the game. Hope that help might come from outside has been dashed. A limp-wristed world shrinks from confronting the little tyrant. All agree it is the fault of the colonials. Mugabe has the green light to go on killing and destroying with abandon. In the midst of the mayhem, precious animals that so long had Coetzee to shield them from a predatory people must try to survive without one of their devoted protectors. During his absence from the killing fields of Zimbabwe it is sad but certain that many more of the animals to which he has dedicated his life are certain to die.

Hi Hugh

The Swedish Military have asked me to put together a small reference section on the Rhodesian war for their Library.

I am writing up ‘the Dissident war ’ December 1980-December 1987 where I plyed a much more significant role – has anybody else got a book out on this? Gukarahundi- Breaking the Silence by the Catholic Commission of Justice and Peace, barely touches the surface. I know where there are more dead bushmen than the CCJP gives for the total fatalities – we had helicopter gunships out sweeping Hwange National Park and killing all Bushmen for four years. Sorry I do not know of any books over this period except Kevin Woods

Ian Henderson (ex 7 Squadron- left air force 1985) has provided me with a lot of the details of the air ops. Looking for ‘Rocky’ Stone- shot down over the matopos and critically injured in 1983 in an allouette and made a spectacular crash at trade fair when the rotor of the bell he was flying came off shortly before touchdown on Giffords 1st team Rugby Field- that was the last time I saw him. Are you on Facebook? If so that is a good medium to ask for info on people – our group is at https://www.facebook.com/groups/152017521536350/ otherwise please email me a specific list of your requirements which I will publish in the next newsletter

One of the key people is Adam Ngwenya who worked for the Boy Scouts at Gordon Park in the Matops. Because of the three big parade/camping grounds it was a suitable place for up to 10 helicopters to land and fuel was often left there before a big op. Even when it wasn’t the Pilots often used to land at Gordon Park, Knowing that Adam could rustle up some tea and cake in short order – and the crew always dropped of a newspaper and some flower and sugar so that next time there would still be cake. Adam never spoke English but was the perfect servant. I caught him writing a letter – in perfect English – to the South African Military Intelligence about a big upcoming operation and saying they needed to stores to be moved from the White Rhino cave (That cave stretches for nearly 1km beyond where tourists go). A little Heart to Heart discussion revealed Adam was the main contact man in the whole of the matopos- which is why the Boy Scouts were never bothered, even when National Parks got shot up. I let it ride- I knew I was on the wrong side Morally, and I knew what Adam’s protection had meant for so many of my friends (and Myself when Adam was the ZIPRA contact man when I was a Boy Scout). It di however explain to me how come all the operations in the Matops failed. Lionel Dyke was there one day fuming and shouting at his men, the chopper crew and my scruffy police detachment- he then climbed up on the table with a big map and outlined where the sweep was to go in, the stops dropped off and where my tracking platoon was to be held in reserve- all the while Adam supplied endless cups of tea. The enemy within hey

After the meeting, I notice Adam carrying away the easel with the map on it, and when I looked into the main store (Being an ex boy Scout I had a key) the sheet with the map on it had vanished, the two way radio was warm, and Adam nowhere to be seen. I went back to my men and told them to enjoy the night, the next day was going to be a lemon- it was. I have never asked but I think I will this Christmas (and Adam is 80) who killed the gang (and their wives and Children) who carried out the massacre at New Adams Farm. I am fairly certain Martin Olds was one of the white guys - he had scrounged two case of white Phos grenades off me- and it was WP that was thrown into each of the huts belonging to the 15 surviving gang members and their families. However, the dissidents had to be involved. Eveybody knew that at 9am on the morning of 22 December the peace deal with Joshua Nkomo was being signed giving complete amnesty to both sides. Those huts were torched between 2 and 3 am on the 22nd, and dissident manned roadblocks prevented the news from getting out until the deal was signed. I had got some of the names of the gang (we killed one and captured a dying man- we wounded him and one of his comrades shot him so he wouldn’t talk to us- but oh boy did he keep talking! I know my father went straight to see Adam.

Dad is dead, and never admitted anything (not even visiting Adam two days after the massacre), Martin Olds is dead, so I suspect old Adam is one of the few who knows the truth.

All that said I would love to know if there is anything else out there?

Lastly, please could you send me a list of books that You have on hand on the Rhodesian war- rather get them from you All the books and DVDs that I have are listed at http://www.rhodesianservices.org/Books.htm and our own production Rhodesia Regiment 1899-1981 which should be part of any library is listed on this page http://www.rhodesianservices.o...hodesia-regiment.htm There are other books out there that I do not stock of course. The main reference books would be the likes of Fireforce, Out of Action, The Saints, Africa’s Commandos, Counter Strike from the Sky, Masodja, Blue and Old Gold, Special Branch War, Search for Puma 164, Rhodesian Forces Combined Roll of Honour, Winds of Destruction, applicable Africa@War series books

Cheers

don


Dr. Don Heath
Norma Precision AB
S 670 40
Åmotfors
Sweden

+46 571 315 05

Don Heath <Don.Heath@norma.cc>


Reply|
Sat 9/13/2014, 11:27 AM
You; +2 more
Hi Tim

Juan doesn’t just own the outfitting operation (he is actually a Surgeon as his ’day time job) but a whell know Journalist in the spanish speaking media. He has been on a Norma wild boar hunt before and we certainly felt we got our money’s worth out of him.

From your point of view, his operation would be a good one to film a rifle being used in open woodland for stag, through to thick brush for waterbuffao. Everybody talks about ’the all round rifle, but what about an all round ’scope? Never seen such an article and am going to write one, but caught on film showing the Versatility of a good Leupold scope (and throw in ‘low light’ for boar and jaguar.

Juan’s English is very good so you can call each other and discuss the nitty gritty bits. Obviously Norma would send (or catch the tab from Norma USA) for the ammo

Cheers

Don

Dr. Don Heath
Norma Precision AB
S 670 40
Åmotfors
Sweden

Hi Juan

Was getting some kit off leupold, and they mentioned they were looking for a 'exclusive' venue for their next launch.
I Recommended you in South America. Similar deal to us, 8-12 hunters and a few film crew along. Shoot Tim an email with prices and dates. They are also very interested in hammering hogs at night.

juanpozzi@hotmail.com

tlesser@Leupold.com


Dr Don Heath D.Sc.
Manager, Research and Development
Norma Precision AB
S 670 40
Åmotfors
Sweden
+46 571 315 05

Hi Juan

Thinking of you, especially with a mad president who is determined to see Argentina Broke! I am taking Swedish Lessons and have a young (and beautiful) Argentinian girl- (Spanish not mixed) in my class. Her comments on your dear leader mirror my thoughts on Robert Mugabe.

I will be going into 30º South Book publishers in December, I can find whatever you need that hasn’t been delivered. I have two new booklets out.

Send me your postal address and I’ll get you copies

Cheers

Don

Dr. Don Heath
Norma Precision AB
S 670 40
Åmotfors

Hi Juan

We are doing the budget for next year and I have been tasked to explore opportunities of where to take Journalists where they can shoot a lot of game at a reasonable price to demonstrate new products.

Could you please email Jörgen Sandström, the Marketing Director on jorgen.sandstrom@norma.cc and copy me in as well for a hunt for stag, boar etc for a party of 6 Journalists/Norma Staff with 3 Non trophy animals per hunter. The quote needs to cover ALL expenses except the airfare. No hidden costs, or surprises. If a Journalist wants to shoot a trophy stag and export the trophy- that will be to his own account. Norma is looking for non trophy animals that can be used to demonstrate our products. It is also important that each Journalist gets the opportunity to shoot at least three animals.

Also, as a separate quote, what having a professional video man from Argentina along will cost – we could bring one from here but I know you have plenty of competent people.

Also you mentioned Water Buffalo- are you still able to offer these? And what would that cost.

Cheers

Don

om: Don.Heath@norma.cc
To: juanpozzi@hotmail.com
Date: Wed, 25 Jun 2014 07:27:05 +0200
Subject: SV: SV: SV: doubles

Mike (always pronounced Mica) McKenzi was the only Italian I knew of in Special Forces. We all knew that it obviously was his real name- he spoke english with a very distinct Italian Accent. Claudio Chiarreli who was born in Libia and is a fantastic professional Hunter (was in Kenya before they kicked him out) Served in the Selous Scouts as a reservist. He knew Mike McKenzi from operations in either Libyia or Somalia. Claudio never said much- he had obviously been asked not to. Claudio is still in Zim running Safari’s – took his son for his proficiency exam in 2011. I like Claudio. Mike always made me wonder who he was really working for.

Captain Bob McKenzi was an American. The best Captain in the Rhodesian SAS. Killed in Sierra Leone in 1992. A fantastic guy…I even forgave him for his one rude comment about me- I had just arrived at the airstrip as a very new (2 days) 2nd Lieutenant in charge of the Police Anti Terrorist Unit ( PATU) Tracking Platoon-which was mostly bushmen, still mostly dressed in Skins and he turned to the RAR captain who was taking over the fire force duty at the airstrip and said “ Sorry to leave you short handed at a time like this, but something big is on, and even more sorry that the only back up you have is that bloody zookeeper and his troop of tame monkeys”.

By the end of the day, I was in hospital, and along with my bushman radio operator had been recommended or a medal, and the RAR were pretty impressed. Bob came to see me in hospital and apologized. That apology spoke much about the man. Not too proud to admit he was wrong. He was the ultimate soldier of fortune though.

Cheers

don


Dr. Don Heath

i Juan

Grame is a great lad. Just email him on thepilotgw@hotmail.com he can tell you where to get his book or send you one himself. He is probably away flying or hunting, but I am sure he will answer this email when he gets ot

Yes, my rifle is a Krieghoff, with an Aimpoint micro mounted where the normal rear sight goes ( the mount is a standard production part by Aimpoint) Very Fast

The Italian you ask about used the name Mike McKenzie – certainly after the communist came to power. Last time I saw him was in Somalia in 1993 and I last heard of him in Afghanistan long before the invasion of Iraq. He was heading a mine clearing team for Mine Teck

Cheers

Hi Juan

Yes I contactacted Tim no reply- I have copied this to Hugh Bomford who runs the Rhodesia Services Orginisation.


The standard reference on shooting Double rifles is ‘Shooting the British Double by Graeme Wright, who I have had the pleasure of hunting in Australia with. His book is excellent and Aussie has some fun Shoots and Graeme is very much part of the organisation

Cheers

Don
Dr. Don Heath
Norma Precision AB
S 670 40
Åmotfors

Hi Juan

I have put the word out on your hunts, we will see who bites- How many hunts are you wanting to sell and at what prices?

Re my rifle-I was a custom presentation one with a Kevlar stock detachable appature sight and qQD scope mounts. These days I tend to use it mostly with an aimpoint Micro on the front reciver ring for dangerous game hunting as there is no danger of a case hitting the scope and bouncing back into the action or if I need to single feed for some reason the top of the action is totally open.

Here in Europe I use a Leupold 1,5-5 illuminated scope – which was the one I think was on it when you borrowed it

Cheers

Don

Dr Don Heath D.Sc.
Manager, Research and Development Team
Norma Precision AB
S 670 40

Hi Juan

There is soooo much.

Initial security measures were – security fence with alarm at least 50m out from the house. – to this was usually added basic electrified fencing to keep wild pig and baboon out
Clearing unnecessary brush from around the house, to give a clear filed of fire
Good ‘security lights’ run off a battery pack – these were only ‘activated’ if the fence was cut or somebody inside the house activated them
All gates on roads leading to the farm were replaced with cattle grids with the gate to the side…many folk (including a lad in my class at school) got killed when they stopped to open a gate.

Later as the number of attacks increased the main defensive measures were concrete blocks at strategic places around the fence containing over sized claymore mines- the blast fields were over lapping.
Home made shotguns were added to the houses roofs- ours were made out of 3” pipe and loaded with 2kg of lead weights joined to gether by 50cm piano wire. Each lump of lead weighed about 50g so you would get 20 of these linked shot into each ‘cannon’- fired electrically from inside the house.

Many folk had other ideas- hand grenades that were automatically tossed over the fence etc

Biggest improvement came with ACE safety glass that would stop a handgun bullet or RPG blast.

Cheers

Don



Dr Don Heath D.Sc.
Manager Technical Support
Norma Precision AB

I am sorry to hear that. Stay well

I carry a S&W 329, but have always preferred the Taurus titanium 5 shot .41 mag – just more compact. These days I would probably recommend a S&W 360 with a 3” barrel- Have a M60 for Sheila and another for Jo, but they now do a Scandium one- too much recoil for a woman but perfect for a man who is primarily using a rifle and needs a ‘just in case’ on his hip. See attached Photo- the .44 is light but still quite bulky…smaller, less of a problem in the truck etc all point to the Taurus or, even better the S&W 60 or 360 as being better choices.

Cheers

Don

Dr Don Heath D.Sc.
Manager Technical Support
Norma Precision AB
S 670 40
Åmotfors
Sweden

Hi Juan

You have my brothers issue knife from scouts- a standard White Hunter …just the grips changed and the blade is worn down a bit by sharpening! In Parks we were never issued knives- there was a custom knife maker who offered a ‘parks’ knife – based on a scaled up White Hunter’. I bought one but it was too big and I never, ever used it .- I carried that White hunter I got from my Brother for all of my parks career Saeed has my ‘Parks knife’ now- drop him a PM nd see if he can send you a picture. It was darn expensive on a parks officers pay (About US$250 I think)

Cheers


Don

Dr Don Heath D.Sc.
Manager Technical Support
Norma Precision AB
S 670 40
Åmotfors

rom: Don.Heath@norma.cc
To: PWN375@aol.com
CC: juanpozzi@hotmail.com
Date: Thu, 12 Jan 2012 14:00:31 +0100
Subject: Moose hunt invite

A warm greetings from the frozen north

Details have been finalised for this years Moose hunt – You are both officially invited to come and Join Norma for opening day (and the rest of the week) of the 2012 season

Norma normally catches the tag for the tickets and Carin Hoglund will be in touch.

DATEs- You need to arrive by Sunday 16 September and the moose hunt officially ends on Friday 21st- A tour of the factory is an option for late Thursday or early Friday depending on flight schedules etc

Rifles- If you want to bring your own rifle- No problem but the paperwork takes a couple of months so Carin will need the rifle details early enough- Juan, you can also borrow my rifle again if you wish.

Look forward to seeing both of you

Cheers

Don

Hi Juan

Off back to Africa for 5 weeks next week. Got two lion and two elephant – but I am getting old for this game and beginning to get arthritis in my right hand (I shot myself with a .22 in the hand as a kid and now am beginning to pay for it).

Send me your correct postal address and I’ll mail you my copy of Kevins book- you can send it back when you have finished.

We’ll get to your end of the world! But dang it is a loooooong way!

Cheers

Don

Dr Don Heath D.Sc.
Manager Technical Support
Norma Precision AB
S 670 40

Hi Juan

Bushpig are not as tough as boar. I have hunted them with a revolver (.41 mag) in the fields at nigh- good fun. A 12g with heavy buck shot (SSG and up) works very well

May I recommend that an invitation be sent to my boss for some hunting…he is always looking for deer (he is hopeless with a shotgun) or similar- I might then get permission to come along, but it will seriously raise your profile as the hunt report will be on the Norma website etc.

He is on torbjorn.lindskog@norma.cc

Have a good time in South Africa and stay safe!

Cheers

Don

Dr Don Heath D.Sc.

Charlie was carrying the MAG..he didn’t trust the black troops with him to stand and fight…and they didn’t – when he went down they broke and ran and it was another stick that arrived 45 minutes later and picked Charlie up. Not only had he been shot to pices but he had fought off the gooks killing four and then survived ¾ of an hour without medical help as he was too badly injured to crawl to his pack.

And yes, they Grey Scouts stuck with shotguns longer than most ‘regular army’ units. Using a machine gun from horse back is difficult and hitting a moving target when you are moving…well, that’s what a shot gun was made for.

Dr Don Heath D.Sc.
Manager Technical Support
Norma Precision AB
S 670 40

Hi Juan

We initially made extensive use of shotguns for anti poaching operations – and encountered the same limitations that the Rhodesian Police had 20 years earlier. When the Rhodesian bush war took off in Ernest in 1975 there were simply not enough machineguns to go round. The few full time regular units- the RLI, Rhodesian African Rifles and C squadron SAS had what they wanted but the rest…it was all a sanctions busting operation. Captured RPD’s became a firm favourite with both the SAS and the Selous Scouts, but the regular Army (independent companies and the Rodesia Regiment), Police Suport Unit, PATU (Police Anti Terrorist Unit ) and the mass of territorial’s who served in both Army and Police let alone the ‘second line troops’ like ‘Parks’ (who were inevitably the first in action on each new terrorist incursion from Zambia or Mozambique) and the third line guys- Guard force, Veterinary dept (who’s tsetse control officers were favoured targets for new gook gangs looking for an initial ‘blooding action’ for new recruits…all were excessively short of machineguns. Old WWII brownings from the spitfires and hurricanes that had been sent to Rhodesia during the war as training aircraft were reconditioned and pressed back into service as vehicle or helicopter guns, A limited number of HB FAL’s with Bipod and machinegun stock were smuggled in from somewhere, and the old BREN guns were refurbished in South Africa and converted to .308. Parks and PATU got the BREN’s but the others…Browning Auto 5 shotguns were often issued as an alternative to HB FAL and as the older territorials were called up- many of whom had last done their national service 20 or even 30 years earlier the shotgun was usually seen as a reasonable alternative to an UZI SMG or Bolt action Lee enfield.

In practice it was found that the shotgun was effective at night both as an ambush breaker and for defending a fixed location (isolated house, school mission hospital etc) against superior numbers- and especially in the hands of under trained troops. The SAS were given 1000 rounds per week to use in snap shooting training when not on combat operations. They could take shots with a rifle without being able to see the sights and hit bad guys on the other side of a muzzle flash 50 to 100m away. Those with less training put down a rapidly declining rate of effective fire at night- and the militia and police reservist guarding the schools and convoys came to appreciate the shotguns strengths- it is a darn sight easier to hit someone at night with a shotgun than it is with an open sighted rifle- and For those on guard duty or protecting an isolated farm house or mine- hitting the bad guy is the key word. Didn’t matter how badly wounded he was, all that was important was he was hit. In the morning the regulars could follow up and a dog can follow a trail marked with the occasional blood drop so much easier than that of an uninjured man. A gook, no matter how lightly hit also wasn’t going to be interested in pushing home the attack, he would fall back and leave the assault to others…And when you are heavily outnumbered and out gunned- that is all you need. Consequently quite light shot AAA or American No 4 were the preferred sizes.

For daylight operations the Auto 5’s were initially issued but proved to be poor substitutes for a machine gun and as soon as sufficient machineguns became available, they were withdrawn and issued to those on guard duty’s. In practice, even the BREN was found many times superior to the shotgun even at night and especially so in daylight.

In Parks we initially used shotguns for our hunter/killer operations. All engagements were at night and all opened at very close range (10m or less). We tried No 4, SSG (American No 2), SpSG (American 0) SG (American 00) and LG (American 000). We quickly found that we ran out of ammo too quickly and that the short 2,5” or Rottweil 67mm shells generally fitted one more in the magazine than the 2 3/4” shells. We also found that at close range LG (OOO) buck was the most lethal and out to 40m or so SpSG (O Buck) gave the best patterns regardless of the make of shotgun (I had a Mossberg, others has S&W Browning etc)

As we got better the inclination came to use a rifle and M16’s with a IR laser came to replace shotguns. We had head mounted night vision and a laser on the rifle made hits just as certain. After a few close nigh time encounters with elephant I went back to carrying the BREN. The poacher gangs were also getting larger. Also the poachers had adopted the usual gook tacktic of ‘The Zanla retreat’…whereby a fleeing gook or poacher would point his AK backwards over his shoulder and fire bursts wildly behind him in the home of hitting or at least disturbing the aim of the troops. The Sound of a machinegun – and especially the BREN with it’s very low cyclic rate prevented that…any man who had survived the initial shooting and was running away had a pretty good chance of escape- unless he gave his position away by firing…then the machinegunner would just walk a burst across him- a rifleman might miss as he weaved through the bush, a man with an MAG or BREN wasn’t going to

Dr Don Heath D.Sc.
Manager Technical Support
Norma Precision AB
S 670 40

Hi Juan

The AK was widely used by units such as the selous scouts but the SAS only used the RPD LMG and the scouts came to the same conclusion with the white scouts carrying an RPD or RPK and the black scouts (many of whom we ex guerrillas) carrying the AK’s they were familiar with.

In Parks we had G3’s which were replaced with F.N. FAL’s as they became available (we came near the bottom of the pile for new weapons- most of the early battles fought between gooks and police/parks , the good guys had ex WWi Lee enfields and P14’s in .303)

Later, because we had accepted so many ex –guerrillas into Parks service we received constant requests for them from the men on the ground…and as our budget for training became less and less we finally accepted the AK’s, retaining the FAL’s for those officers and NCO’s who wanted them. When I left Government in 2000 I was allowed to buy my issue FAL as they were officially all decommissioned.

As you know I have picked up two bullet wounds from AK’s- the one through the collar bone would probably have been fatal if it had been fired from an FAL, and almost certainly would have put me out of the fight…instead of which, although I sat down on being hit, I was able to draw my handgun and shoot the poacher. The other, through the leg, had even less effect- I fell down on being hit, but the Sergeant-major stopped, looked back at me and said-‘ On your feet sir- the men need to see you’ So I stood up and limped forward- A couple of minutes later when it was clear the poachers had run, I stopped and with the Sergeant-Majors help, plugged the exit wound with a tampon, wrapped a bandage around the whole leg and wwith him helping me walked the kilometre or so back to the truck…I then drove myself the 5hrs to hospital.

My Best friend Charlie took a hit from a burst from an RPD which shattered the femur…if the bullets had displayed any better explosive wound effect they would have cut the femoral artery and the one that hit him on the hip bone would have smashed that instead of bouncing off…Result…they finally amputated Charlies right leg below the knee in Feb this year…The four gooks who shot him up? We stop and piss on their graves every time we go for a braai on the big mountain just outside Harare (there is a small gook cemetery near the bottom and the four Charlie shot after he was hit are buried there).

There are several features of the AK I don’t like- One is the safety- the Selous scouts learned to drill a small hole in the leaver and put a plastic ring in it…so you could pull the leaver out before pushing it onto fire…it kept it quiet and the ‘klack’ of an AK being pushed off safe saved many a Rhodesian troopie…and compromised several scouts operations until they learned the trick. In Parks we didn’t worry…mostly the ‘klack’ helped scare off both animals and bad guys and our scouts were not keen on dealing with either.

My Brother spent a lot of money on ‘modifying’ His AK. He had the ring on the safety catch but he also wanted more accuracy and better terminal effect, so he had a new barrel made up, with a altered chamber and with a short throat and correctly sized. He belw out the brass cases slightly to improve both powder amount and concentricity and he loaded the 110grn soft points for the .30 M1 carnine ..got about 2600fps if I remember 30 years ago. At the close range which most of our contacts took place the extra speed and the soft point worked and even on longer shots (to say 200m) if you use a ballistic programme you will see that the little 110grn round nosed at 2600fps shoots flatter than the more streamlined 123grn at 2300fps…at it was accuracy out to 200m that Les was concerned about. Most AK’s I have used give a 6” pattern at 100m- my brothers shot 1,5” groups.

On the other hand- in the forensic work I got to test shoot all sorts of rifles that had been hidden or dropped in wells and rivers etc to see if they matched outstanding crime cases. A) You could always get an AK to fire…even if it was a mass of rust with the stock eaten away it would not only fire but often repeat…An F.N. needed quite a lot of cleaning before it would fire and the attention of a good armourer before it would cycle reliably. The CETME G3’s we had…mostly we had to remount the barrels on another receiver to even fire a test shot and nothing would get them working again if they had been tossed in a well or buried without being properly greased for more than a few weeks.

When the zim army finally (in 1999) decreed that we had to switch from our FAL’s to AK’s for service rifle matches Charlie arranged a massive trial- we took 200AK’s of every brand we could find- Russian, Hungarian, Bulgarian Rumanian Chinese, Koreans Egyptian etc and cases of every brand of ammo we had available and we shot them for group size at 200m.

East German or Yugoslav rifles with Hungarian or handloaded ammo were ok…about 8-9” groups size at 200m…things went down hill from there to North Korean or Egyptian with North Korean ammo not being accurate enough to reliably hit a fig12 target at 200m.

In Summery- The AK is a suitable peasants gun. I have seen game scouts sitting on their rifles, throwing them off the back of the truck etc- absuse that would kill an FAL or M16 in short order. They wear out very quickly- the gas system is very violent and hammers the action – but none of this is a problem if you are not firing thousands of rounds in training and have no real ability or inclination to keep your rifle spotlessly clean. It certainly has it’s place- but generally it is the mark of a peasant not a pro. (NB in Afghanistan the Chetchens who are the best of the ‘enemy’ troops all carry RPD. RPK or PKM’s). The fact that a peasant without tools or materials can keep it working is what makes it dangerous…the peasant cannot shoot well so who cares if the rifle is pin point accurate? He is just as likely to hit with a wildly aimed shot from an inaccurate rifle as from a state of the art sniper system…and he is going to fire a lot more wild shots from an AK than a sniper system.

When peasants with AK’s bump into professional troops…it always goes badly. Disciplined, Aimed fire from semi Auto beats spray and pray every time. A classic example of this is the fmous ‘battle of Chinoyi…7 Gooks with ak’s and an RPD vs 4 police reserve with WWI vintage SMLE’s. One gook was shot from the support helicopter- the others fired some 400rnds at the police- the police fired 7 rounds back. Score…7 nill to us.

Dr Don Heath D.Sc.
Manager Technical Support
Norma Precision AB
S 670 40
Åmotfors
Sweden

A short history

Born June 66 in Gatooma, Rhodesia. Dad was mining engineer and grew up on the various small gold mines around the midlands province until I was 12, when we moved back to matebeleland (in the west) where dad grew up. Missed the Rhodesian bush war- got shot at occasionally but two older brothers served, one in Selous scouts and the other in RAR.. ‘Dissident’ war started in December 1980 (9 months After Mugabe came to power supposedly ending the bush war). Active in the boy scouts. Joined police reserve when I turned 16 and involved in several follow ups of ‘dissidents’. Joined Government service December 1984 as a Parks cadet ecologist. Seconded to veterinary dept who were working on a rabies outbreak and also took part in all the buffalo culls over the next 3 years. Attended university ’86-88. Dissident war finally ended in December ’87. Armed operations with ‘shoot on sight’ policy to poachers started in june ’89.

Went back for a Masters in Tropical research Ecology ‘91-’92 and started working on my doctorate straight after that.

Was made officer commanding Sengwa Research station (biggest wild life research station in Africa) in June 93 when Ian Coulson was killed in a plane crash. In addition was Ecologist Utilisation- ie the man responsible for setting hunting quotas. Promoted to Acting Chief Ecologist December 1997 and transferred to Head office in Harare. As farm invasions started position became untenable and left in December 1999.

Started examining of the Professional Hunters & Guides exam in ’96 and took over as chief examiner in 2001.

Injured by flying glass from an RPG blast 24th December ’79, Shot through right shoulder night of the 20/21st April 1992. Shot in the right leg September 18 1998 – Both in Sengwa – First by a poacher the second time by one of my own men running away and firing his AK over his shoulder as he ran.

Never really expected to live to 40, let alone have a wife and two kids J

Run over by elephant 3 October 2010 (did I send you those pictures?)

Dr Don Heath D.Sc.
Manager Technical Support
Norma Precision AB
S 670 40
Åmotfors
Sweden

+46 571 315 05

Thanks Juanpozzi for posting. Spoke to him a short while before he passed away. Was very helpful to me. What a great loss!

Hi Juan

Are you looking at the CZ in .308 like the ruger scout or the little CZ in 7,62x39?

A biography…how long? There are details which are interesting to me but perhaps not to others and there are things that I am sure do not interest me but other folks find interesting.

I was doing a talk at the local highschool on why I am a Christian despite having a doctorate in Genetics and being essentially a biologist by training (simple proof why evolution is limited…you cannot change chromosome number in higher organisms without getting a sterile, and mentally retarded individual) and somebody asked me if I believe in Ghosts…I said, Not really, but in the back of my mind I cannot help but think that there are quite a few ghosts who believe in me!

Am back in Africa for 6 weeks in November and December. Got two lion hunts.

At the moment I am flat out trying to get established here- not easy starting again at 44, but that is Africa with Bob around. Everything is going to pay off the house and refurbishments needed here. One day when I can sell some of the property in Zim, life will instantly get easier and I will be able to travel for my own pleasure – also the kids will be a little older and Sheila will not mind so much me being away. Unless the company send me to Argentina, unfortunately I cannot see myself getting there in the next three years (unless bob dies and things improve in Zimbabwe). It is not that I don’t want to come- I would love to but it is a simple reality of life. Perhaps we can bring you over for a moose hunt with carin next year J


Cheers

Hi Juan

Rifa courses have, sadly stopped since I stopped running them. Various people have talked about starting theings up again, but of the three main instructors, Ian Henderson is dead, Charlie Haley has got married and has a wife and kid to look after and I am based in Sweden.

I will ask if you can come on the PH proficiency exam- 1st week of October.

I’ll work out an IPSC stage for you and send it

Cheers

Don

Hi Juan

For years I carried a S&W 58 in .41 mag. I shot a hyaena that was standing on me, the fellow that shot me through the shoulder and used it to scare off a lion and an elephant when I was on a motorbike and got chased.

Since then I have taken to carrying a S&W 329 with crimson trace laser grips. It kicks like hell, but is sufficiently light to make it a pleasure to carry.

The biggest thing for a PH is that they are carrying it when they need it- a S&W 640 with a 3” barrel will serve pretty well, and will serve most far better than a large heavy gun like a ruger red hawk that is always left in the safe!

A PH’s primary weapon is his rifle- the handgun is only for when you cannot get a rifle into action for some reason.

In terms of effect- lion, buffalo and elephant are not impressed by the ‘power’ of a .44 or even a .454…a .357 penetrates very well with 180grn round nosed, steel jacketed FMJ’s. It is at least as good on buff or ele as a .44. for lion or leopard…give me the .44!!! But as I say, a little 5 shot .357 on your belt beats any cannon at home.

Also, weapon needs to fire double action and most semi auto’s are no good. 90% of the instances that I know of where a PH has used a handgun the muzzle has been pressed into the animal (like I did with the Hyeana)—if the pistol goes out of battery when you push the muzzle into something hard (and most do) it is of no use to a PH.

Cheers

Steven Hatfil…not a name I know and not listed with the regulars in Scouts- all the white regulars are listed, along with their names and force numbers in the book ’Pamwe Chete’. There are a heck of a lot of guys who pretend they were in the Selous Scouts…but actually it was quite a small unit. Only 400 whites in the whole time it existed. Most Scouts were black.

CZ rifles…good basic rifles. Need work. Barrels need to be shortened, magazine box needs to be properly fitted, stock needs to be properly bedded. After that, they are great rifles. Considering you have to do a lot of work on most other big bore rifles it makes them a real bargain. I am looking for a little one in 7.63x39. Make a great little vehicle gun.

Cheers

don

rom: don.heath@norma.cc
To: juanpozzi@hotmail.com
Subject: SV: SV: Invite etc
Date: Tue, 5 Jan 2010 13:37:35 +0100

Hi Juan

Just back from Africa- client eventually got a nice lion but it took me more work than I wanted! It is -26 here but very beautiful- if you are inside!!!! Sheila and the kids are still in Africa until I get the house sorted out!

Wishing you and your family a safe and happy year!

I will put something together with Perry – Probably for early April but I need to speak to the boss!!!

Have you had any magazine articles published yet? It is easier to convince the boss that I am taking you on a business trip if there is an article or two and photo’s from Poland etc.

I will be in the USA from the 17th of Jan of a week and will make proper pland when I get back from that.

Cheers

Don

Date: Wed, 16 Sep 2009 09:44:02 +0200

Hi Juan

Carin tells me she has re-emailed the invitation to you. Did it come through? Also, nearer the time we will find pick up details for us- and Carin will tell us where to meet up (and who is collecting us). I have never been to that airport before so have no idea of where is best to meet.

I am off to Africa on Sunday for three weeks hunting- first plains game in Namibia and then the proficiency exam in Zim- We have 16 elephant and 8 buffalo on quota so it should be fun. It is my last year as chief examiner!

Cheers

Don



Dr Don Heath D.Sc.
Manager Technical Support
Norma Precision AB
S 670 40
Åmotfors

Hi Juan

Carin tells me she has re-emailed the invitation to you. Did it come through? Also, nearer the time we will find pick up details for us- and Carin will tell us where to meet up (and who is collecting us). I have never been to that airport before so have no idea of where is best to meet.

I am off to Africa on Sunday for three weeks hunting- first plains game in Namibia and then the proficiency exam in Zim- We have 16 elephant and 8 buffalo on quota so it should be fun. It is my last year as chief examiner!

Cheers

Don



Dr Don Heath D.Sc.
Manager Technical Support
Norma Precision AB
S 670 40
Åmotfors

From: don.heath@norma.cc
To: PWN375@aol.com
CC: juanpozzi@hotmail.com
Subject: SV: I love this dog!!!
Date: Tue, 8 Sep 2009 15:23:31 +0200

I Have a potential opening for a PAC ele or two in Zim next april if you are game? In the week leading up to the 18th…

Let me know what you think.

I have attached a read receipt as so much mail is getting lost – there must be a zot somewhere in the system.

Cheers

Don

Hi Juan

See you in october – looking forward to that. Hopefully get to see your country next year. We are still struggling to get an export permit for Argentina.

Perry is a great lad – He has put up with me getting him lost in Mozambiqe, walking him half to death in the Zambezi escarpment etc and still comes back for more!

Cheers

Don

Hi Juan

Have never been to Poland in my life – I’ll ask Carin about kit. I nearly died on last years moose hunt. Warm African clothing just doesn’t make the grade up here in the North! Poland is further south but… don’t know!

We’ll sort out a rifle for you.

Warren offers good elephant and buffalo and fair quality lion hunting. Good lad.

I’ll probably not get down to see you in Argentina this year, but planning on it next year- you never know. Norma may want me to visit the two possible agents.

Cheers

Don

Från: Juan Pablo Pozzi [mailto:juanpozzi@hotmail.com]
Skickat: den 15 maj 2009 20:50
Till: don heath
Ämne: RE: SV: SV: SV: SV: argentine contacts

Dear Don i just want to say you THANK YOU for your kind invitation ,finally ill met you there im very happy ,i only need a rifle in any caliber ,adjusted by you .I would like to know what kind of clothing and equipment i will need there .I have several clients that hunt internatinally so i would like to know WARREN oferts for Africa .
After that i hope you came here to test NORMA PH in water buffalos and hogs ,and to enjoy our fantastic wing shooting.
Juan Pablo Pozzi Zurbriggen md.

From: don.heath@norma.cc
To: juanpozzi@hotmail.com
Subject: SV: SV: SV: SV: argentine contacts
Date: Thu, 2 Apr 2009 10:25:00 +0200

Hi Juan

Failed at the hospital. Getting someone to speak Spanish slowly enough for me to translate is nearly impossible!

Carin will email hunt details etc.

Be on my cell phone and back in reliable email contact on the 22nd April.

Warren has a fantastic offer out on elephants at the moment if any of your friends want. Just set up two lads from Sweden to go this week,.

Cheers

Don

Getting shot

By Ganyana

Being a research officer, most of my anti-poaching efforts were confined to acting as back up to the professional hunter/killer teams such as those led by Charlie Haley. This often meant I was simply the driver or the commander of the OP. I could be relied upon to be able to read a map, use sensitive night vision equipment and deliver both the kill teams and the stop groups into the right positions. Occasionally though I was invited along- mainly to act as mule. A shotgun or M16 might be a superb anti-personnel weapon but it doesn’t impress lion or elephant. Having me trudging along in front carrying either a Bren LMG or a heavy barrel LMG version of the F.N. FAL gave the kill teams a measure of real security. Also, as the poacher gangs became larger and increasingly better armed, having someone reliable set up with a machine gun to provide fire support became a popular concept.

The other job ecologists were valued for was manning the OP’s. We had scrounged several large first generation night sights and there were labouriously lugged up various hills. The reflection of even a small fire could be seen at upwards of 30km through one of these. Range estimation was difficult, but if two OP’s could get an accurate compass bearing, plotting the poachers camp was simple. After the first Gulf war, the British and American troops that came out to help us made generous donations of a fair number of heavy duty night vision sights taken from knocked out Iraqi tanks. The poachers never did work out how we found them.

Easter weekend 1993 was one of those life changing events. I was at Sengwa research station and the only officer present. Illness and prior booked leave had left us with a very depleted force. Good Friday afternoon bought a heavy clash between an under strength parks patrol and a gang of at least 30 poachers. How we didn’t loose any men I don’t know, but they broke off and managed a spectacular “flee”, when they ran out of ammunition. I went back out with every man I could scrape together but the gang had crossed out of the area and back into the tribal lands that surrounded sengwa on three sides. Local gossip was though that they would be back that night, knowing the station was short of staff.

I set up three ambushes on what I considered to be likely entry routes and was rewarded by hearing gunfire behind us as another two rhino were cut down. For Sunday night I again stationed ambushes on two logical entry routes, but realising the size and firepower of the gang I was forced to increase the size of each force. The station Sergeant Major Zakias Mlangu commanded one ambush and I the other. In addition, I had placed OP’s on the key hills of Ntaba Mangwe and Sampakwa Ridge using staff that were still officially on sick leave whilst recovering from Malaria (at any one time I could count on 15-20% of the game scout force being either off work or on light duty thanks to malaria). The poachers came round us on the way in, but the two OP’s got a good listen in to the gunfire as they shot three rhino at a group of small springs located almost exactly between the two OP’s. I collected Mlangu and his men and set off to try and ambush the only two routes out of the springs. Mlangu suggested leaving a small force with the station machine gun covering the less likely of the two routes, whilst he and I , along with most of the men set up a hasty ambush on the other.

Consequently twelve of us took up position covering the main crossing on the manyoni river which was still flowing strongly enough to limit the number of potential crossing places.

We had only been in position half an hour when a man cautiously stepped out of the riverine jesse on the far bank and scuttled across the river coming to rest directly in front of us. The bush on our side of the river was more open with 50m of scattered trees and combretum bushes covering what is occasionally a flood plain before the thick jesse started again. We were spread out along the fringe of the jesse either side of the path and I had my heavy barrel LMG wedged into position with rocks and between two trees to essentially give me the effect of firing on a fixed line - anybody on the path would be standing in the way of a hail of bullets all the way from point blank range back to the river. I even helped secure the bipod with a couple of tent pegs.. Mlangu was next to me and a game scout with my one remaining Icaress parachute flare lay directly behind us. The plan was for me to initiate, the game scout to fire the flare, and then everybody else would join in! Mlangu had threatened the men with several fates worse than death if any should panic and open fire before I did. Several more men crossed the river singly and took up station behind trees or bushes before the main column moved out. Using a pair of 10x50 Steiner Binoculars I could clearly make out who was the hunter - he was armed with a heavy rifle - and who was in charge of the escort- he carried an RPD light machinegun - as they crossed the river, and started up the path towards us. Fate played into our hands at this point. A herd of elephants broke out of the jesse about a hundred metres upstream on our side and splashed into the river. This had the effect of causing the poachers to bunch together for safety. A few were visible but who wants to wander alone through dense bush with a cow herd of elephants around? Two scouts moved cautiously ahead and passed within a couple of paces of where Mlangu and I lay, but they saw nothing - concentrating as they were on looking up for the shape of an elephant against the sky line. The rest of the gang moved up quickly behind with the hunter leading and the escort commander only a pace behind. When the two of them were about five paces from me they were perfectly in line with the machine gunner directly behind the hunter, and I opened up. I fired a short burst up into the two of them and then lowered my aim and fired the rest of the magazine in a long burst into the rest of the gang, wiggling it back and forth across the few degrees of lateral movement I had allowed myself. As I fired, Mlangu opened up with his F.N, the Parachute flare and a couple of Pencil flares arched skywards, and a hail of AK bullets from the rest of my men tore into the gang strung out along the path. There were screams, howls, wails, almost drowning out the gunfire and this in turn being almost drowned out by the shrill trumpeting of a large herd of elephants who were close by in the bush and who had been as surprised by the gunfire as the poachers.


In five seconds it was all over. The parachute flare still illuminated the field of battle but there was nothing to be seen moving. The small cow herd of elephants upstream had vanished and there was only ripples in the water to show where desperate men had sprinted back across. I reloaded, unwedged the bipod and folded it out of the way in case I needed to shoot in some direction other than straight ahead. I was fairly certain that the two scouts who had passed through out position wouldn’t have come back to fight but one never knew. The dying flare illuminated depressingly few bodies lying on the pale sand of the path. Besides the fairly dismembered bodies of the two main men there were only five others visible. Considering there had been at least twenty men bunched close together and some 300 rounds of ammo had been fired at them - still, we had got the two that mattered and judging by the sack lying beside a body we had also got the days takings of rhino horn.

We lay there watching and listening. At first there wasn’t even a mosquito that dared to whine around our ears, but after about fifteen minutes they were back, soon followed by the odd cricket - but still nothing moved. Two AM came and went and the bush sunk back into silence. Even the mozzies gave up for the night. We had been lying there for about an hour when I saw a hyaena moving down through the sparse brush towards the river. Where he was headed for there was a low bank more than high enough to conceal a couple of men lying down (for the most part the bank sloped gently down into the sand on our side with the steep high bank of the eroding side being on the other side of the river). I had noted the place as somewhere that could conceal men and already made a note to check it out from the flank in the morning rather than risk walking into somebody waiting for us. That low ledge looked like the only real place between us and the far bank where a man could hide. The arrival of the hyaena on the lip of the bank bought forth a terrified howl - sooo I was right, somebody had taken refuge in that one proper piece of both cover and concealment! The hyaena backed off at the scream, but not very far, and then circled round into the river bed so he could see exactly who was down there. I waited for a burst from an AK to deal with the hyaena but only another pitiful wail rose - Loud enough to create an echo off the surrounding hills. This was followed by a loud, babbling shout that he was badly wounded and would somebody... anybody come and rescue him. Through my binoculars I could see the hyaena plainly as it circled out into the river to get a better look. It wandered backwards and forwards inching closer with each pass. As the hyaena gradually closed in the screams of the wounded man became louder and, if that were possible, even more pleading .

The moon slipped behind a small cloud and the screams reached a new pitch of intensity. I whispered to Mlangu, who was lying next to me, that I was going to move forward and either help the man if possible or finish him off. Mlangu snarled back to lie still and wait for dawn. The moon re-appeared and once again I could make out the bank - and also the hyaena standing in the river bed only a few paces out. Just watching. The wounded man was still screaming for help and I made out a stick being waved about. He was definitely fading though, for the screams still conveyed the terror but lacked the volume of a few minutes earlier. The hyaena darted forward and there was a decidedly soul wrenching cry and the animal bounced back out into the river bed and turned to watch again. Another hyaena appeared and worked it’s way towards one of the bodies lying in the path, then a third dropped into the river from the opposite bank and joined the one watching the wounded man.


I stood up. There was no ways I could lie there for another couple of hours listening to a man being eaten alive.” Get down, bloody fool boy” came from Mlangu at my feet. I ignored him and moved forward, slipping the fire selector from full auto to single shot. I made at least ten paces when the tree stump ahead of me, just off the path blossomed flame. I don’t remember hearing the gun, just seeing the flame and feeling bullets tugging at my shirt. I clearly remember swinging the F.N. round just before an almighty thump caught my right shoulder. I dropped the F.N. and fell down in one easy movement, drawing my revolver with my left hand. As I hit the floor I made out my assailant. He was lying in a little depression behind the old mopane stump, with his head about three paces from me. I could clearly make out his eyes and took a snap shot in their direction. The eyes went out. I sat up and fired another round into his back at about the same instant that Mlangu arrived above me and pumped half a magazine into the body to be sure. I remember seeing other game scouts rushing forward, and spraying bullets into each of the bodies they could see and into every tiny patch of bush that could possibly conceal anything bigger than a field mouse, but the ability to think came very slowly. Mlangu was shouting in Tonga to the men (A language I don’t speak) and a scout carrying my pack arrived next to us. I always carried the first aid kit, since I knew that my men would soon loose all weight that wasn’t food, water or ammunition. Their idea of a first aid kit was two aspirin. Mlangu quickly cut my shirt open whilst the other scout held my torch. The sight wasn’t pretty. The bullet had hit the collar bone about half way along and the two splintered ends were sticking up at either end of a profusely bleeding mincemeat mess. Mlangu stuffed a couple of absorbent pads over the main wound and another over my shoulder blade (where there was another hole - but I couldn’t see that one) , and then went looking for other wounds. I had hole through my shirt and a burn mark down the left side of my belly but the skin was barely broken. There was a long tear in my left trouser leg, but there was only a nasty bruise. Having decided that I had been hit but once, Mlangu bandaged me up as best he could, binding the sling holding my right arm tightly across my chest, and wrapping the shoulder up as firmly as possible. He then gave me some doxypol tablets to ease the pain (there actually wasn’t any yet) and all the while directing operations for men to cut some small trees and make a stretcher, collect up the weapons from the fallen poachers but not to disturb the bodies etc.

I was helped onto the stretcher and with four men carrying it and Mlangu leading the way we set off back to the truck. All the station landrovers and ladcruisers were either out with staff who had gone into head office or off the road so we were down to using a very old and battered Nissan UD seven tonne lorry and the only people on station with a heavy vehicle license were Mlangu and myself. By the time we were half way back to where we had parked the truck on the boundary road, the doxypol was starting to make my head spin whilst at the same time my shoulder was beginning to really hurt. I usually carried a strong injectable pain killer like morphine or pethedine, but had run through all three vials kept on station in the last few weeks on various emergencies and hadn’t had the opportunity to get into Harare to pick up replacements - The really painful thing was that my second-in-command would bring five vials back to station the next day!


When we reached the vehicle, the old general hand we had left to keep watch over it had a good fire going and a large kettle on. He had heard the fight and figured that sooner or later he would have a bunch of tired and very thirsty men arriving back and so had got organised. A tin mug full of over sweet tea was very welcome whilst Mlangu issued some final orders, and then we set off on the five hour drive to Kwekwe hospital (the nearest that was certain to have a doctor, and necessary medicines). The old man and a game scout came along to help clear logs off the road and change a wheel if we had a puncture. I lay propped up against the door in the cab, half sitting and half lying whilst Mlangu drove. The first hours drive to Chief Sai’s village was a nightmare. The track was in very poor condition and hard going in a 4x4 landrover. Pushing the big two wheel drive lorry through took some driving and Mlangu concentrated on not getting stuck. Once we turned onto the main gravel road, he relaxed slightly, and began to give me the lecture of my life. Didn’t I realise that he had been fighting sundry terrorists and poachers since 1965? Who was I to think that I knew about fighting and to ignore him? Was it because I was white? An Officer? Had a university education? What about the men we had to abandon in the field because I was so stupid as to get shot? They were still heavily outnumbered, no clear leader and we needed to get the police in to clear up and fill out the death dockets. For the next two hours we bounced along without a let up in the lecture. At the same time I became aware of a salty taste in my mouth- blood. And worse still- my own! I managed to interrupt Mlangu and point this out to him. He shone a light into my face and merely confirmed that there was a thin trickle of blood from my mouth every time I coughed. We would stop at the police camp in Gokwe and try and get better help and a faster vehicle.

Dawn was breaking as we reached the hamlet of Gokwe and turned into the police camp. In a mater of minutes I was transferred into the back of a Landrover station waggon, and with a policeman driving roared off to the clinic. A nurse was already waiting and she simply climbed into the back as we stopped and looked me over as we sped off down the tarred road. There was precious little she could actually do about the wound, but she had a flask with some hot tea in it and some morphine. She also had a towel. A very practical person, for within 30 seconds of the morphine going in I threw up a great dollop of blood and bile. Only after that did she offer me the tea, and as the morphine eased the pain the tea went down a treat and I began to think I might actually live. It is 160km from Gokwe to Kwekwe down a good tarred road, but in the early morning there are always animals ranging from donkeys to elephants wandering across it, so it was very definitely a series of screeching breaks and wild swerves. At about the half way mark we met an ambulance coming the other way. There were certain advantages to being the most senior government officer in the district and a fairly popular one who made the odd donation of meat to sundry police and hospital functions. Even if Mlangu was seriously pissed off with me, the Police Inspector in charge at Gokwe had obviously pulled out all the stops. The ambulance had an army doctor on board and oxygen, and I was soon tucked into a decent stretcher, a drip plugged in, and sufficiently full of morphine to regard the world pretty favourably. The Army doctor decided that the city of Gweru, a 40 minute drive further than Kwekwe had considerably better facilities, and since I was stable we would go there. Gweru is now firmly on my list of places to avoid. They took an X-ray of my chest, decided that only a few bone fragments had hit the lung and that I was fine - where upon I was transferred to a ward and left. The next morning the Army doctor called in to see how I was doing before he went back to his station near Kwekwe and was horrified to find that no doctor had seen me, the drip that he had set up was empty but still connected and that I had been given nothing to eat or drink. A few angry shouts bought another drip, some pethedine and he went out and bought me a coke, and then phoned the main hospital in Bulawayo and arranged for my transfer there. I later felt I should have a T-shirt printed up with “I survived Gweru Hospital” on it. Anyway, despite everything I survived and was back at work two weeks later, although there were three subsequent operations to try and re-join the collar bone and remove bone splinters that were causing problems.


All together ten poachers died that night. The seven who’s bodies I had seen on the path plus the man who shot me, the wounded man lying under the low bank an another who’s body was found 15km away during a combined police and parks follow up that my 2 IC organised. At least two others had been wounded but got away. Our shooting had been better than I had thought. The man who had shot me had probably been hit in the hip and rolled off the path and behind the tree stump and waited to extract revenge. A bit difficult to be sure for in the usual African style every game scout left behind had wondered over and fired a couple of rounds into him, in addition to the two rounds from my .41 revolver and however many Mlangu had fired. He fired at least 15 rounds at me and had but one round left in his rifle when it was bought in. A couple of aimed shots and I would have been so much worse off, but I suppose he thought I was so close he simply couldn’t miss. The dead were carted off by the police to Gokwe and the machine gun, .375 rifle and six AK’s recovered sent off to the Forensics lab for ballistic comparisons with other crime scenes. I thought we had done rather well, and that our success would cause other poachers to reconsider coming into sengwa. I was wrong. The Rhino in the Zambezi valley were almost all gone and despite the dangers of trekking so far inland they came in increasing numbers. We began trying to capture and relocating the survivors to stations where they could be better protected. Despite several more successful ambushes of poaching gangs and numerous inconclusive gun fights between game scouts and poachers, by the end of the year there were no rhino left.

HI Juan

I will send you a couple of articles for Magnum – you will have to translate them, but have a variety that I original wrote for Soldier of Fortune magazine- but I had a fall out with the boss and they were never used.

Also, Norma are considering the following two firms as agents/distributors. Do you know them? Are they any good or can you make some other recommendations?

This year I will have some cheep elephant left over. I will put together a short survival course with a couple of the old Selous Scout instructors and then a PAC elephant. Cost should be around US$5000 all in- still awaiting a quite from the two instructors. They are the best in the game but oh boy! Trying to pin them down.

Cheers

Don