The Bay of Pigs Cuba 1961

by Quesada, Alejandro de; Walsh, Stephen

• ISBN13: 9781846033230
• ISBN10: 1846033233
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2009-01-20
• Publisher: Osprey Publishing

Summary

In early 1961 President John F. Kennedy gave the go-ahead to an existing plan for Cuban exiles to return to overthrow Fidel Castro's communist regime. While the CIA helped in the planning stages, the attempt would not be assisted by any US armed forces. On the night of April 16, 1961, a force of 1,400 exiles, known as 2506 Brigade, landed at the Bay of Pigs on the south coast of Cuba, supported by a few World War II vintage aircraft flying from Nicaragua. While they succeeded in knocking out some of Castro's small air force on the ground, the remaining Cuban aircraft sank two of the exiles' support ships, and the beachhead became isolated. Fighting continued for three days before Castro's army overwhelmed the landing force. Most of the exiles were captured and suffered a harsh imprisonment before the US negotiated their release. This episode, followed by the installation of Soviet missiles in Cuba, led directly to the Cuban Missile Crisis of October 1962, and continues to affect US/Cuban diplomatic relations to this day. This book, written by the nephew of a surviving 2506 Brigade veteran, includes detailed color plates, unpublished photographs, and interviews with veterans.

Author Biography

Alejandro de Quesada is an experienced researcher and collector of militaria, photos and documents and runs an archive as a secondary business. He has written 12 books and over 50 articles, including Osprey Elite 137: The Mexican Revolution 1910-20 and the forthcoming Elite 161: The US Home Front 1941-45. The author lives in Tampa, Florida.