Malvinas | El jefe de los Halcones que diezmaron la flota

Vice Commodore Zini always lamented having flown few combat missions. "Thanks to you, many of us are alive and many British ships are at the bottom of the sea," pilot Pablo Carballo once retorted, interpreting the feelings of his comrades. Nicolás Kasanzew, war correspondent in the Falklands, interviews then Vice Commodore Rubén Gustavo Zini, call sign "Thunder," Commander of the 1st A4B Squadron, the unit that inflicted the most damage on the British fleet in 1982. The leader of the Falcons provides fascinating details of the missions carried out by his Squadron, describes the distinct personalities of his battle-hardened pilots, discusses his interaction with the General Staff during the war to optimize the use of the A4s in combat missions, and reveals the keys to his particular—and effective—leadership style. With the rank of second lieutenant, Zini was the standard-bearer of the Fourth Air Brigade in Mendoza. In 1968-1969, he was a soloist with the Cóndor aerobatic squadron, composed of nine Morane-Saulnier aircraft. The squadron leader was then-Captain Wilson Pedrozo, future commander of the Cóndor Air Base in Goose Green. Zini also led the squadron that won the air-to-ground shooting championship with the F-86F Sabre aircraft in 1973. He was also an instructor at the CB2 Fighter School in Mendoza. Born in 1942 in Corrientes, Zini retired with the rank of Brigadier General, after serving as air attaché in Washington and working on the program to acquire A4-AR Fightinghawk fighter-bombers for the Argentine Air Force. Camera and editing: Sil Bonfietti. Post-production: Niki Kasanzew. #Falklands #TruenoZini