Cuban-Exile Group Disbands Rescue Ops

Brothers to the Rescue has ceased operations. Since the early 1990s, the Miami-based Cuban-exile group had flown Cessna 337s and other light general aviation airplanes in search-and-rescue patrols off the coast of Cuba as thousands of Cubans fled the Communist island. In recent years, the group has drastically reduced its activities as Cubans sought modes of escape less dangerous than makeshift rafts and small boats. The group came to international prominence in 1996 when members were killed while flying two light aircraft that were shot down over international waters by Cuban MiG fighters.