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Field Ethos
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By Caleb McClain
The still morning was broken by the sonic boom of a jet engine passing low over the airfield. That was nothing out of the ordinary at Naval Air Station Key West. Being over a year since the Berlin Wall had fallen, the Cold War was all but over, and the once strategic base for defense against our communist neighbors in Cuba was now a dream destination to be stationed.
The noise returned as the jet circled again.
“There’s a Russian MiG!” an airman shouted.
Had every pilot on base created a bingo card for that day’s events, I am certain that none of them would have had a Soviet MiG-23 painted with a Cuban flag landing on their base, but there it was. As the plane came to a halt, the pilot sat on the tarmac, awaiting whatever fate befell him.
Orestes Lorenzo Perez wanted to be a pilot for almost as long as he could remember. Growing up as the son of staunch supporters of Castro, he was indoctrinated to believe that their way of living was the only just way. He joined the Cuban Air Force and soon achieved his life-long goal.
He briefly saw action in Angola before attending additional training behind the Iron Curtain. He returned home to a depressing sight and realized that he no longer shared the values of the very country he was serving. With the blessing of his wife, he made plans for his escape.
On March 20, 1991, Orestes was set to be on a solo training exercise in the cockpit of a MiG-23. After takeoff, his plane vanished from radar. With favorable weather conditions and a max speed over Mach 2, he kept the plane low and reached Key West in no time.
After circling three times to signal friendly intensions, he landed, unsure of what would happen next. A truck approached and Orestes jumped out of the cockpit—his first taste of freedom. As he explained his situation in Spanish, it was relayed to the base commander who reached out his hand in friendship and exclaimed “Welcome to the United States!”
After settling in Virginia, Orestes attempted to bring his family to America. Humanitarian organizations wrote to Castro and begged for their release, and President George H.W. Bush even echoed their cries on a TV broadcast aimed at the dictator. Raul Castro responded to the pleas with the statement that, “If Lorenzo had the pants to leave with one of my MiGs, maybe he has the pants to come and get his family.” For Orestes, it was a challenge too tempting to refuse. He purchased a Cessna 310F for $30,000 through the help of a generous benefactor and made his plans. On December 19, 1992, Orestes took to the skies for one final mission: to save his wife and kids.
He flew low, barely over the ocean and by sight only. After avoiding the known surface-to-air missile locations, Orestes was now over the highway in Varadero, the agreed upon meeting location. He saw his family on the side of the road in their orange clothing and touched down, dodging a car in the process. No sooner than they boarded was he nose-up again.
He touched down in Marathon only a couple hours after he left as a true American hero, despite having been in the country for less than two years. His family was all granted citizenship, and they settled in Tampa, operating a concrete business and chasing the American dream.
And so now, 35 years later, we can look back on the works of Orestes Lorenzo Perez and raise a drink in celebration of everything this great country has, and a second to the man who wanted it so badly that he stole a fighter jet to have it.
The post Ninety Miles in a Stolen MiG appeared first on Field Ethos.
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The still morning was broken by the sonic boom of a jet engine passing low over the airfield. That was nothing out of the ordinary at Naval Air Station Key West. Being over a year since the Berlin Wall had fallen, the Cold War was all but over, and the once strategic base for defense against our communist neighbors in Cuba was now a dream destination to be stationed.
The noise returned as the jet circled again.
“There’s a Russian MiG!” an airman shouted.
Had every pilot on base created a bingo card for that day’s events, I am certain that none of them would have had a Soviet MiG-23 painted with a Cuban flag landing on their base, but there it was. As the plane came to a halt, the pilot sat on the tarmac, awaiting whatever fate befell him.
The 90-Mile Run
Orestes Lorenzo Perez wanted to be a pilot for almost as long as he could remember. Growing up as the son of staunch supporters of Castro, he was indoctrinated to believe that their way of living was the only just way. He joined the Cuban Air Force and soon achieved his life-long goal.
He briefly saw action in Angola before attending additional training behind the Iron Curtain. He returned home to a depressing sight and realized that he no longer shared the values of the very country he was serving. With the blessing of his wife, he made plans for his escape.
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Facebook photo. 
Facebook photo.
On March 20, 1991, Orestes was set to be on a solo training exercise in the cockpit of a MiG-23. After takeoff, his plane vanished from radar. With favorable weather conditions and a max speed over Mach 2, he kept the plane low and reached Key West in no time.
After circling three times to signal friendly intensions, he landed, unsure of what would happen next. A truck approached and Orestes jumped out of the cockpit—his first taste of freedom. As he explained his situation in Spanish, it was relayed to the base commander who reached out his hand in friendship and exclaimed “Welcome to the United States!”
Orestes’ Invasion of Cuba
After settling in Virginia, Orestes attempted to bring his family to America. Humanitarian organizations wrote to Castro and begged for their release, and President George H.W. Bush even echoed their cries on a TV broadcast aimed at the dictator. Raul Castro responded to the pleas with the statement that, “If Lorenzo had the pants to leave with one of my MiGs, maybe he has the pants to come and get his family.” For Orestes, it was a challenge too tempting to refuse. He purchased a Cessna 310F for $30,000 through the help of a generous benefactor and made his plans. On December 19, 1992, Orestes took to the skies for one final mission: to save his wife and kids.
He flew low, barely over the ocean and by sight only. After avoiding the known surface-to-air missile locations, Orestes was now over the highway in Varadero, the agreed upon meeting location. He saw his family on the side of the road in their orange clothing and touched down, dodging a car in the process. No sooner than they boarded was he nose-up again.
He touched down in Marathon only a couple hours after he left as a true American hero, despite having been in the country for less than two years. His family was all granted citizenship, and they settled in Tampa, operating a concrete business and chasing the American dream.
And so now, 35 years later, we can look back on the works of Orestes Lorenzo Perez and raise a drink in celebration of everything this great country has, and a second to the man who wanted it so badly that he stole a fighter jet to have it.
The post Ninety Miles in a Stolen MiG appeared first on Field Ethos.
Continue reading...
