Bay of Pigs - and Other Cuban Aviation

[teeteringhead]

I'm planning a trip to Cuba for next year, and in addition to sampling the rum and cigars - one is probably past the age for tango-ing - I intend to visit the Bahia de Cochinos (Bay of Pigs), where I gather there is a Memorial/Museum to the events of 1961.

I've seen the previous (2012/13) fascinating AH&N thread here (http://www.pprune.org/aviation-history-nostalgia/498122-nine-pilots-saved-castro-s-cuba.html) about the Cuban "Few" in their Sea Furies, and have just "Kindled" the Howard Jones book.

Knowing the vast erudition of contributors to this forum, I ask:

Are there any other aviation sites etc of interest in Cuba? Maybe something connected with the '62 "Missile Crisis"?

Are there any other "good reads" on the B of P or anything else of Cuban Aviation interest?

Many thanks - will report back after the trip! (prob Oct 17)

;)

Teeters

[Coochycool]

I visited the Bay of Pigs museum a few years ago, which is at a spot called Playa Giron. There's now a (pretty deserted) tourist chalet complex along the beach there and the museum behind it, and not much else.

Outside they have a garishly painted Sea Fury and a few artillery pieces. As I recall the museum was interesting merely because it had obviously seen little revision ie. it still speaks in openly propagandic terms.

There are also a few airframes outside the Museum of the Revolution in Havana. Apart from that, fraid to say I encountered zero other points of aviation interest apart from the odd bit of Gary Powers' U2, sorry can't remember where.

I spent a super hot, frustrating day negotiating the suburbs of Havana in search of the Museo del Aire, only to learn that it had moved from its advertised site, so watch out for that one. I believe its now at a local Air Force base.

Good luck!

[teeteringhead]

Many thanks Coochycool, some very useful tips there.

I gather that Playa Giron is how the Cubans refer to the site, which is more specific than Bay of Pigs, which is the wider area - I guess like Omaha Beach is a specific part of Normandy...

I'll try and track down where the other Havana-ish Museum is before I go - I've got enough time!

I knew they had wreckage of a B-26, but not a U-2. Would it really be bits of Frank Powers' machine, as he was shot down over Sverdlovsk in 1960?? Not that unlikely - good propaganda anyway, and - as the following year (1962) showed, Havana was really closely involved with Moscow.

thanks again

Teeters

[Cubs2jets]

This thread is two years old...but it has some information...

Warbird Information Exchange ? View topic - Cuban Warbird Photos by Mike Henniger (http://warbirdinformationexchange.org/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=54841&hilit=Cuba)

C2j

[teeteringhead]

Thanks C2j - more fascinating stuff. Some "adventurous" colour schemes there.

From the serial number given, looks like the U-2 was a U2-F taken out by a SA-2 Guideline in Oct '62 during the Missile Crisis. From here (https://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/wiki.php?id=87086)the pilot was Major Rudolf Anderson (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rudolf_Anderson) who was killed.

Teeters

[Edited to add: Serial number of Powers' aircraft was 56-6693, the one in Cuba - presumably Anderson's - was 56-6676.]

[AtomKraft]

The U-2 bits must from Rudy Andersons U-2, which was shot down by an SA-2 (same missile as got Powers), while on a recce flight over Cuba.

I believe that a piece of shrapnel from the Dvina punctured Andersons pressure suit, and the aircraft was lost after the pilot became unconscious.

Rotten luck.

[sandiego89]

Some aircraft on display at the main airbase at San Antonio de los Banos, I don't advise on hopping the fence however!




Google map link shows A-26, MiGs, etc- also note dumped MiG 21's and 23/27 a bit to the east of the museum.


https://www.google.com/maps/@22.8591355,-82.5156041,19z/data=!3m1!1e3

[Autobahnstormer]

Teeters,

I was there in March and concur with Coochycool. The Playa Giron museum has a Sea Fury and a couple of tanks outside and a few bits & pieces inside (according to the Tour Guide) I stayed outside as we were on a horrific bus trip from Cienfuegos to Varadero.

In the middle of Havana is the Granma Memorial, which was closed and guarded when I was there, something perhaps to do with POTUS visiting the day afterwards. It has a Sea Fury, what looks like a Dauntless and some other hardware outside including an SA-2 & Launcher.

I didn't make it to the Museo Del Aire, as others have suggested, it may or may not have closed, information is very sketchy. None of the locals could confirm that it was open and even if it still existed in the suburb of Miramar.

You will utterly loathe Jose Marti Airport at Havana, it makes Jomo Kenyatta Airport at Nairobi positively efficient, but you can sneak a quick smoke in the bogs, they turn a blind eye to that. It will take 3 hours for your luggage to travel 150 metres from the Aircraft to the carousel.

HTH (ish)

ABS

[teeteringhead]

Many thanks to all for helpful and interesting input.

Date is looking like Autumn half-term (ish) in 2017, so will bring this back to the top when plans are firmed up....!

Teeters

[Cubs2jets]

AHhhhhhhh... Hurricane season. Take an umbrella.

C2j

[teeteringhead]

AHhhhhhhh... Hurricane season. :eek::eek:

...and Milady T wants to do some cycling ......... :eek::eek::eek: