Tahan, Chaim
Haim was born on the 12th of Tishrei 5712 (October 12, 1951) in Alexandria, Egypt, and immigrated to Israel with his family in 1964. After studying in an elementary school in his hometown, he continued his studies at the elementary school “Achdut” in Ashdod and completed his studies at the Ashdod Comprehensive High School and the Air Force Technical School in Haifa. He was an outstanding and disciplined student, a favorite of his teachers and an admirer of his friends. Despite the difficulties of language, which he encountered as a new immigrant, he successfully completed his studies in the upper grades of the elementary school and eventually became one of the outstanding students in the Air Force Technical School. He was sociable and kind, quiet in nature and smiling, and always willing to help others. He was loyal to his parents and devoted to his family and served as a model for other family members. Haim was drafted into the Israel Defense Forces in mid-December 1969 and assigned to the Israel Air Force, where he was trained as a mechanic in the helicopter and was awarded the rank of sergeant. Many and varied on the best side and with full readiness. “He was awarded the outstanding soldier’s certificate on behalf of his unit and at the end of compulsory service he signed a contract to serve in the career army and served as a pilot in the squadron and was promoted to the rank of lieutenant colonel. During the entire period of his service he tried not to worry about his family and refrained from telling about the difficulties and uncertainties he knew. On 19.4.1974 he flew in a helicopter as part of a mission in the Mahanayim region and fell while carrying out his duties. He was laid to rest in the military cemetery in Ashdod. Survived by parents and sisters. In a letter of condolence to the bereaved family, his comrades wrote: “Every job Haim performed – with faith and professionalism – he did not need the watch – he was among the first to take up the task, This led to his commander’s decision to appoint him as head of the team, and many pilots preferred him to his team, but only thanks to his coolness, his meticulousness and his recognition of his willingness, could he overcome the difficult moments we all knew during the Yom Kippur War. ” His parents donated a Ark-Kodesh and a chandelier to the synagogue named after Rabbi Anan Ha-Nasi in Ashdod, and the Yad Labanim department of the Ashdod Municipality published a booklet commemorating the fallen among its residents.
