◆ SpookStack

That simplistic statement totally ignored the basic concept of the planned D-Day air strike which was to kill off the remainder of Castro's aircraft, interdict a major portion of his armor, and disrupt his communications. If the air cover for the Brigade on the beach was inadequate -- although on D-Day it appears to have been successful, but at heavy cost it was because B-26's were no match for Sea Furies and T-33's. Moreover, the cancellation of the strike made it impossible for the Brigade B-26's to operate off the airstrip at Playa Giron, and hence, coverage of the beach areas -- even without the losses to FAR would have been spotty. In response to the ques- tion of who did the planning, Kennedy responded: The plan that finally went into effect was approved by our military -- the Penta- gon, the Joint Chiefs of Staff, as well as the Central Intelligence Agency. This wasn't something that was planned by a few fellows over at the White House and then put in op- eration. However, the President had to give approval to the plan, and he quite properly has accepted the responsibility. 138/ , The point most conveniently ignored by the Attor- ney General was the fact that the White House did inter- fere with the air plan (a) by changing the initial site for the landing from TRINIDAD to ZAPATA, and - 298 -