James M. Hawes - Cold War Navy SEAL: My Story of Che Guevara, War in the Congo, and the Communist Threat in Africa

Copyright 2018 by Jim Hawes and Mary Ann Koenig

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available on file.

Cover design by Rain Saukas

Cover photo credit Lobert Broussard

ISBN: 978-1-5107-3418-0

Ebook ISBN: 978-1-5107-3419-7

Printed in the United States

Dedication

With much love and thanks to my children, Melissa, Liana, and James, and grandchildren, Jackson, Lily, Elizabeth, and William, for your love and for your forgiveness for all I should have done.

With deepest respect and admiration for the Congo Navy Cubans: loyal, brave, proud compadres. They put their hearts and guts in harms way, not for fame, glory, or riches, but to contribute to the defeat of an evil philosophy; no medals, accolades, or even official recognition.

Rene Gough, Gooch, the ultimate swim buddy (a special few will understand).

I hope this story, and the hostage rescue that triggered it, will help my children, grandchildren, and all readers appreciate:

(a) the contributions by special operations warriors and their families to the preservation of freedom and civilized behavior in your increasingly volatile and hostile world;

(b) the importance of intelligent, imaginative, and resolute leadership at all levels, and

(c) an appreciation for the diverse profiles of the men and women with the qualities of mental toughness, humanity, and courage to prevail at the tip of the spear on our countrys behalf.

Contents

Acknowledgments

The events recorded in this book occurred over fifty years ago and are now declassified. The SEAL and CIA codes of secrecy have been honored over those years.

Any future historian will be forced to make assumptions and suppositions on the facts officially recorded in government archives, held in Washington, some 6,500 miles away from where these events took place. The circumstances will be examined by individuals with no firsthand knowledge of the events or the contexts in which they occurred.

This book attempts to accurately record the events by the remaining few who lived them, when and where they took place.

In appreciation of:

My Son: James, who may want to know me and my history better when he is old enough to be curious.

My Daughters: Melissa and Liana, who have urged me to write this since they were old enough to listen to my and my comrades stories.

My Parents: You can do anything, son. Believe in yourself.

My Brother: Mike, stalwart, faithful, always there.

Class 29 UDT/R (later BUD/S): life-long friends and Teammates with an unexplainable bond.

Wayland Academy/Ray Patterson: changed my life, maybe more than anything except UDT/R.

Mary Ann Koenig: cowriter of extraordinary patience, dedication, and determination; a real friend.

Rick Dobbis: constructive, wise advice.

Richard Leher: much appreciated and helpful legal assistance and expertise.

Howard Hart: one of fifty CIA Trailblazers and friend.

Robert Pete Peterson, USN SEAL ret.Vietnam teammate, warrior, diplomat, gentleman

Manny Pichardo: faithful son of Ricardo Pichardo, dedicated to honoring and keeping alive the memory of the Cuban Congo Navy.

Brigade 2506 Museum and Library: for ensuring that the deeds and memories are not lost in the mists of time and to revisionist historians.

Alan Horn, faithful, unflinching friend

Larry Bailey, Tom Dunton, John Fleming, Tom Greer, Harry Humphries, David Janke, Mike Kammerer, Don Mann, Gage McAfee, Lou Morin, Roger Neff, John Roat, Bob Schoultz, Brad West, Maynard Weyers, Charles Hardeman, Janet Joy Ray, Per Bang-Jensen and others unnamed: all contributed.

Indonesia School of Business & Cultural Learning Institute: Original American Business Pioneers & Special Friendslike trying to explain SEAL bondsWhat a book these stories would make: Dave Herron, Frank Morgan, Dan Emmett, Andy Bartlett, Joe Bartlett, Roger Perrin (token Scot), and those who have moved on too soon: Peter Jennings, Tony Granucci, Chase Waring.

Names and Places

The names of many cities and locations in Congo have changed over the years, principally after Joseph-Dsir Mobutu (Mobutu Sese Seko) came to power. Albertville became Kalemie, Lopoldville was changed to Kinshasa, and Stanleyville is now Kisangani. Elisabethville has become Lubumbashi.

Ive changed the names of some of the people in this story for national security reasons, and in certain instances they were changed, as I saw it, simply to protect the guilty.

Preface

On a November morning in 1964, the skies over Stanleyville, Congo, filled with elite Belgian Rgiment Para-Commandos, delivered into action by US Air Force C-130s. The joint operation, code-named Dragon Rouge, remains the largest successful US hostage rescue mission in history.

The triggers for the operation were brutal massacres in and around Stanleyville in northern Congo, which became the catalyst for my mission. A Chinese- and Soviet-backed insurgent group, the Simbas, had captured Stanleyville the previous August and escalated their activities amid the political chaos raging throughout the Congo. They instituted a reign of terror that included torturing and killing missionaries and thousands of Congolese citizens while also taking hostage hundreds of white missionaries and US officials. They threatened to kill them all unless the US withdrew support for the current Congo government.

As the Belgians parachuted in to rescue the hostages and Lieutenant Colonel Mad Mike Hoare, the 5 Commando Commander and acclaimed British/South African mercenary, approached on the ground, the Simba rebels herded priests, nuns, and missionaries into Lumumba Square in downtown Stanleyville. Some attempted to escape and the rebels opened up and gunned down women and children in the streets.

During those horrible hours while the massacre began, a group of Cuban soldiers, led by an experienced American paramilitary officer, Rip Robertson, was operating independently with their own column. They began shielding children from Simba atrocities and shepherded many to the airport and out of the country. There were still many murders at the hands of the Simbas, but by the end of the day, Belgian paratroopers and US/Cuban-exile soldiers had expelled the rebels, rescued the hostages, and loaded hundreds of them onto US Air Force transport planes that flew them to safety.

One of the children was Ruth Reynard. Only four years old at the time, she was rescued by Juan Tamayo, a machine-gunner who sheltered her with one arm as he fired his weapon with the other during the five-mile ride from the missionary compound to safety. He covered her head to protect her from the expended, hot machine gun cartridges. For many years she believed that the man who saved her life was a mercenary. But she would learn later that he was a Cuban freedom fighter. Imagine that, she said when she found out. A Cuban in the Congo!