October 5, 1986:A C-123k cargo aircraft left El Salvador's Ilopango air base at 9:30 A.M., carrying ``
10,000 pounds of small arms and ammunition, consisting mainly of AK rifles and AK
ammunition, hand grenades, jungle boots. '' It was scheduled to make air drops to Contra
soldiers in Nicaragua.@s7@s1 The flight had been organized by elements of the CIA, the
Defense Department, and the National Security Council, coordinated by the Office of
Vice President George Bush. At that time, such arms resupply was prohibited under U.S.
law--prohibited by legislation which had been written to prevent precisely that type of
flight. The aircraft headed south along the Pacific coast of Nicaragua, turned east over
Costa Rica, then headed up north into Nicaraguan air space. As it descended toward the
point at which it was to drop the cargo, the plane was hit in the right engine and wing by
a ground-to-air missile. The wing burst into flames and broke up. Cargo handler Eugene
Hasenfus jumped out the left cargo door and opened his parachute. The other three crew
members died in the crash.@s7@s2 Meanwhile, Felix Rodriguez made a single telephone
call--to the office of Vice President George Bush. He told Bush aide Samuel Watson that
the C-123k aircraft was missing and was possibly down.
October 6, 1986:Eugene Hasenfus, armed only with a pistol, took refuge in a small hut on a jungle hilltop
inside Nicaragua. He was soon surrounded by Sandinista soldiers and gave himself
up.@s7@s3
Felix Rodriguez called George Bush's aide Sam Watson again. Watson now notified the
White House Situation Room and the National Security Council staff about the missing
aircraft.
Oliver North was immediately dispatched to El Salvador to prevent publicity over the
event, and to arrange death benefits for the crew.@s7@s4
After the shoot-down, several elaborate attempts were made by government agencies to
provide false explanations for the origin of the aircraft.
A later press account, appearing on May 15, 1989, after Bush was safely installed as
President, exposed one such attempted coverup:
Official: Contras Lied to Protect VP Bush
By Alfonso Chardy, Knight-Ridder NewspapersWASHINGTON-- Nicaraguan rebels falsely assumed responsibility for an arms-laden plane
downed over Nicaragua in 1986 in an effort to shield then-Vice President George Bush from the
controversy that soon blossomed into the Iran-Contra scandal, a senior Contra official said in early
May 1989. According to the Contra official, who requested anonymity but has direct knowledge
of the events, a Contra spokesman, Bosco Matamoros [official FDN representative in Washington,
D.C.], was ordered by [FDN Political Director] Adolfo Calero to claim ownership of the downed
aircraft, even though the plane belonged to Oliver North's secret Contra supply network.... Calero
called (Matamoros) and said, `` Take responsibility for the Hasenfus plane because we need to