WATCH: Air Force Base Swartkop hangar gutted by fire

Footage of a fire raging through a hangar at Air Force Base Swartkop over the weekend has surfaced. It shows the hanger covered in smoke.

Officials are investigating the cause of the fire in Pretoria.

The general-purpose hangar, which did not house any aircraft or museum artefacts, caught fire around 5am on Saturday, causing extensive and structural damage, said SA Air Force Corporate Staff Services Director Brigadier General Hilton Smith.

There were no casualties.

Tshwane Emergency Medical Services (EMS) spokesperson Charles Mabaso told News24 that the fire was in a hangar where old, unused furniture was stored.

He said the fire was extinguished by both the EMS and the SANDF fire services.

The majority of hangars of AFB Swartkops are classified as “heritage structures” because this was the first established air force base in South Africa.

Smith said the base and hangars were built from the early 1920s.

“This loss of the hangar is a setback to the South African Air Force and the history of Military Aviation worldwide.”

He said the Chief of the SA Air Force, Lieutenant General Fabian Msiman, initiated a programme in 2012 to preserve and promote the country’s air force history.

Smith said the cause of the fire was unknown and the SANDF, with the support of Tshwane Fire Services, would initiate a preliminary investigation and/or a board of inquiry.

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