The Flight : Confessions of an Argentine Dirty Warrior Book

Retired Navy Officer Francisco Scilingo is the first man ever to break the Argentine military's pact of silence. Incensed by what he perceived as unjust treatment of former Argentine military officials, Scilingo stunned his compatriots and the world by openly confessing his participation in the hideous practice of pushing live political dissidents out of airplanes over the South Atlantic during Argentina's dirty war. The Flight makes available to English-language readers for the first time the complete text of Scilingo's confession, offered as interviews with Argentina's best-known investigative journalist, Horacio Verbitsky. In these interviews, Scilingo confirms what was rumored for years, but always denied by the Argentine military. He recounts his inside knowledge of and participation in the monstrous campaign of systematic torture and death waged by the military from 1976 to 1983; he details the military's practice of rotating personnel so that everyone, including ranking officers, would be complicit; and he talks about the Church's awareness and seeming endorsement of many atrocities. Scilingo's candid admissions offer unique insights into the psychology of guilt and present a riveting study of human behavior at its worst.

"Best-selling account of retired naval officer Francisco Scilingo regarding torture and murder of political prisoners during the Argentine military dictatorship. Excellent and gripping translation includes a new epilogue; afterword places these human rights violations in a worldwide context. Useful identifying list of historical figures and persons mentioned in the text"--Handbook of Latin American Studies, v. 58.