◆ SpookStack

Technically the Nicaraguan pilots were supposed to provide warning before shooting at strange aircraft, but TIDE suggested that it would be advisable not to tempt them. with reference to the coastal areas of Cuba, TIDE pointed out that there had been at least two instances where USN aircraft had strayed over Cuban territory and had been lost. In one instance "One [USN plane] shot down by rebel forces backed by KUBARK." 13/* A set of rules had been delivered to the Com- mander in Chief, Continental Air Defense Command (CONAD) providing rules for identification and engagement at the time that the Cuban air operations were being monitored out of Nicaragua. The main concerns of CONAD were to prevent Castro's aircraft from entering United States air space for possible attack under the guise of Brigade aircraft and to prevent the destruc- tion of Brigade aircraft, which might be headed for the United States air space on an emergency basis. 14/ * Whether the information about the shoot down of the USN aircraft by Agency-backed rebeis in Cuba has ever been revealed, is not known. - 191 -