Obituary: Glen Warden

GLEN WARDEN WAS the consummate aviation professional. He rose to the top of his field in the South African Air Force, then as an airline pilot, and also as an aerobatic pilot.

It was as an aerobatic pilot that his life ended five days before his planned retirement on his 65th birthday in a crash at the Baragwanath ‘Ace of Base’ competition.

As a jet fighter pilot, Lt Colonel Glen ‘Gringo’ Warden was extraordinarily accomplished. Best known for his displays in the SAAF "Black Widow’ Mirage IIICZ - he was gifted at displaying all types of aircraft from fast jets to flying whatever he was asked to display.

He gained his callsign ‘Gringo’ from having been seconded to the Chilean Airforce. He ended his service to the SAAF with the rank of Lt Colonel, to take up a pilot position at Comair airline, where he became Flight Operations Director and then the CEO of the airline’s flight simulator business.

Glen Warden was passionate about general aviation. He devoted his weekends to sharing his love of flying through airshows – despite the death of his wife Louise in the Albatross double air crash returning from the Tzaneen airshow in 2011.

He was a team member of the Sasol Tigers jet team and regularly flew the air force museum aircraft. He was an extraordinarily accomplished aerobatics pilot competing for many years in the Advanced class – which he had won - and also being the contest director.