Cuban Batteries Shot Down Own Plane in Angola, Havana Says; 26 Killed
- Share via
HAVANA — The Cuban government said Thursday that 26 Cuban soldiers, including a general, were killed when their plane was shot down by mistake by Cuban anti-aircraft batteries in southern Angola.
The unusually frank armed forces communique said that Brig. Gen. Francisco Cruz Bourzac was among the victims. He was Cuba’s vice minister for armament and a member of the Communist Party central committee.
A colonel and a lieutenant colonel were also killed when the Soviet-built Antonov 26 twin-prop plane, on a scheduled flight to the town of Tchahutete, was hit by a missile as it was about to land Wednesday morning.
Anti-aircraft batteries were on alert because of the reported presence of enemy planes in the region--a reference to South African aircraft.
Last October, Cuba exhibited a similar openness toward its armed presence in Angola when it announced that a Cuban MIG-21 fighter plane had been shot down.
Cuba, Angola’s closest ally since it gained independence in 1975, has about 40,000 troops stationed in the Marxist-ruled African nation.
Sign up for Essential California
The most important California stories and recommendations in your inbox every morning.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
