PORTUGAL FLIGHTS ARE TIED TO C.I.A.

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP75-00149R000100420006-2
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: November 11, 2016
• Document Release Date: October 29, 1998
• Sequence Number: 6
• Publication Date: October 7, 1966
• Content Type: NSPR

'
Sarn'itize
rPORTUGAL FLIGHTS
ARE TIED TO CILA
Witness Says It Supports
S Sale of B-26 Bombers
r?
By DOUGLAS ROBINSON
Special !B The New York Times
BUFFALO, Oct, 6 - A
Ina ormer con
sultant to several Federal agen-,
ties gave testimony today sug-',
gesting that the flying of seven'
bombers to Portugal last year,
was a secret operation of the;
Central Intelligence Agency.
He thus contradicted the Gov-;
}prgved For 'Release ,?';1
Mr. Caidin asserted, he was told
by an Air Force colonel to "lay,
off the case" and to "stop put-,..
ting on pressure."
He identified the officer as'
Col. Charles Callahan, the secu-1
rity chief at Patrick Air Force
Base in Florida, and quoted him
as saying that "another Govern-
ment agency is involved in the
case."
The defendants are John R.
Hawke, a bearded former Royal
Air Force pilot, now a resident
of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and
Count Henri Marie Fran oise de
ar n c Mon ma n, a pa
broker.
Both are charged with con-
spiracy and with violating the
Federal Munitions Control Act,
which forbids the exporting of
military materiel without a li-
cense to all countries except
ernment's contention that the 'flights were an illegal private A third defendant, Woodrow
venture by a British pilot arid- W. Rorr,~rick, a Canadian ac-
a French nobleman on trial .cused of being the so-called mid-
here in Federal Court. dieman in the transaction, was
The ? Writer was Martin, dismissed late last week for
Caidin, the author of at least lack of evidence,
32 books and numerous articles The World War II bombers t
on aviation, who said he was ostensibly. were to have been
r a former adviser to several Fed- used by Portugal to combat ',
CDY 'HT eral intelligence units. threatened uprisings in her Af- ! States without some form of co-
t ? operation," he told a jury of.
10 men and two women. "Aei
least, you ;ti .,. ?.;!,?? don't fly openly."
Mr. Caidin said he had been'
assured by the man responsible,
for carrying out the transaction,i
Gregory R. Board, the ownerl
of a Tucson, Ariz., plane-leasing
service now said to be living:
the flights had been worked
-,'out in cooperation with the
C.I.A.
Operation Sparrow
He also testified that he had'
openly discussed the C.I.A. In-;
V volvement with several intclli '
:.genre officers of the United;
States Air Force. He said the,
B-26 flights had been carried'
out under the code name ofd
?'? Operation Sparrow:
After the partteipants had' were not secret and that flighlr
? been arrested and he had filed) plans end customs clearances}
ii some 26,000 words With .the Air had been obtained for
ffi'orrce. jin:, sUpport?, of:. the `pilot. ~t:,.ot, thA boob , a~r~t l3 'kw L ru iiYi~ ,' f,,1 ~r"i~ P
U. S. Denies Guilt
Late last night, under prod-
ding ?'
by a Hungarian delegate to
the United Nations, the United
States denied that it- bad had
any part in the deal in violation
of an earlier pledge not to sell ?Y;
such aircraft to Portugal.
Mr. Caidin testified that Mr:,
Hawke had once flown directly) ?''':
over the White House in trying ;.,
to land one of the bombers
Washington. Despite the fact'
that this is strictly forbidden, .,,.
he went on, "no violation was,
ever filed against. him (Mr, Hawke]."
He said he had found this;.
"incredible . . based on any:
experience as a pilot and as w -
writer on air safety."
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OCT 7 1966
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