[Editor’s note: The text for this document was released in 2014 by the now-defunct Wikileaks website at https://wikileaks.org/plusd/cables/1978CARACA11112_d.html.]
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PAGE 01 CARACA 11112 290824Z
ACTION ARA-15
INFO OCT-01 ISO-00 SS-15 SSO-00 SCS-06 H-02 CA-01 DRC-01 /041 W
——————126694 290828Z /11/64
O 241957Z NOV 78
FM AMEMBASSY CARACAS
TO SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 4759
INFO AMEMBASSY GEORGETOWN IMMEDIATE UNCLAS
CARACAS 11112
C O R R E C T E D C O P Y (MRN 11112 VICE 1112)
E.O. 11652: NA
TAGS: CASC OREP (RYAN, LEO) GY VE
SUBJECT: SMALL AIRCRAFT REQUIREMENT FOR GUYANA
REF: STATE 295945
1. VENEZUELAN AIR FORCE DOES NOT REPEAT NOT HAVE TWIN OTTERS IN ITS INVENTORY. FURTHER, IT DOES NOT HAVE SIMILAR AIRCRAFT AVAILABLE FOR LOAN OR LEASE.
2. AERO POSTAL, A GOV-OWNED AIRLINE, DOES HAVE SKY VANS IN ITS INVENTORY. THIS IS AN AIRCRAFT SIMILAR TO THE TWIN OTTER. IT MIGHT BE POSSIBLE TO WORK OUT AN ARRANGEMENT FOR THE USE OF ONE AND POSSIBLY TWO SKY VANS IN GUYANA. HOWEVER, VENEZUELANS WOULD LIKE TO DISCUSS THIS AT GREATER LENGTH DIRECTLY WITH GUYANESE OFFICIALS. THE VENEZUELAN OFFICIAL WHO SHOULD BE CONTACED IS AIR FORCE GENERAL OSCAR ALI ARAQUE ANGULO WHO HEADS AERO POSTAL (TEL NO. 71-98-01).
3. EMBASSY HAS NOTED A CERTAIN RELUCTANCE ON THE PART OF VENEZUELANS BUT BELIEVES THAT, AFTER DISCUSSION AND FULL EXPLANATION BY GUYANESE OFFICIALS, SOMETHING MIGHT BE WORKED OUT. IN EMBASSY’S VIEW THIS WOULD PROBABLY BE A LEASE RATHER THAN A LOAN. AERO POSTAL, ALTHOUGH GOVERNMENT -OWNED, IS AN OPERATING AIRLINE THAT IS SUPPOSED
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TO MAKE A PROFIT.
4. EMBASSY WILL CONTINUE TO CONTACT OTHER CHARTER OPERATORS, AND HAS PASSED FOREGOING TO GUYANESE AMBASSADOR COLLINS.
LUERS [William Luers, American Ambassador to Venezuela]
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