211th Squadron
| 211th Squadron | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 | |||
| Air Force: Congolese Air Force | |||
| Group: 2nd Group | |||
| Active: 1964- | |||
| Theater Congo | |||
| Motto: Makasi (Strong) | |||
| Aircraft: C-46, T-28, B-26 | |||
| COMMANDERS | |||
| Group CO: Joaquin "Pupy" Varela | |||
| MAIN BASES | |||
| Air fields: Leopoldville | |||
| Donate | |||
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| Even a small donation of a couple of dollars goes a long way in helping | |||
The Makasi Squadron was a composite squadron that operated out of the Congo as part of Operation Anstalt Wigmo. Formally, the unit was the 211th Squadron, 2nd Group, Congolese Air Force. [1] By June 1964 the Squadron had approximately 25 pilots, mostly Cubans.
The B-26s were owned by the USAF, on loan to the CIA, based in the Congo, and flown by Cubans. The squadron had several other planes.
The squadron's insignia, a bull, was taken from a popular local brand of beer called Unibar. The name Makasi coming from the Cuban pilots, meaning "Strong" in Lingali, the native language of the Congo. 2
The squadron itself was a composite squadron that operated out of Albertville. All of the planes in the unit bore the Makasi bull emblem on the nose.
List of Planes
| USAF S/N | Registry # | Start Date | End Date | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| B-26 Invaders | ||||
| 44-35890 | 35890 & FL-890 | Sep 1964 | 1966 | B-26B named "U3" used for recon. Scrapped at Kinshasa. |
| 64-17644 | RF644 & FR-644 | 18 Aug 1964 | Jan 1967 | Named "Shit House Mouse"/"Cachita" |
| 64-17645 | RF645 & FR-645 | 18 Aug 1964 | Dec 1966 | Named "Rum Dum" |
| 64-17646 | RF646 & FR-646 | 18 Aug 1964 | Mar 1967 | Named "The Boogie Bogey" |
| 64-17649 | FR-649 | Jan 1965 | Oct 1966 | |
| 64-17662 | FR-662 & FM-662 | Jan 1965 | Feb 1967 | |
| C-46 Commandos | ||||
| 42-3577 | 9T-PLJ | 1966 | 16 Apr 1969 | C-46A-30-CU. Purchased from Transair Sweeden as a wreck after it crashed doing UN transports in the region. Returned to service. Crashed in the Congo River due to fuel starvation killing all 46 souls aboard. [2] |
| 42-3580 | 9Q-CRP | Dec 1967 | 1970 | C-46A-35-CU. Purchased from Fairline Sweeden. Withdrawn from use and stored. |
| 42-96281 | 9Q-CWN | Jun 1968 | 1969 | C-46A-50-CU. Sold to Aero Suppliers Establishment. |
| Some sources suggest a fourth C-46 was used. | ||||
| T-28D Trojan | ||||
| I don't know exactly how many T-28s were with the unit. I will list the data here as I come across it. A lot the information on the T-28s comes from photos. | ||||
| FG-067 | ||||
| FG-282 | ||||
| FG-289 | ||||
| FG-516 | ||||
| FG-576 | ||||
| FB-809 | ||||
| FB-87? | ||||
List of Members
Garcia, Rene
Ponzoa, Gustavo
Peron, Juan C.
Varela, Joaquin "Pupy"
Sources
Hagedorn, Dan & Hellstrom, Leif (1994) "Foreign Invaders:The Douglas Invader in foreign military and US clandestine service." Midland Publishing. ISBN: 1-85780-013-3