On October 27, 1962, commonly known as ‘Black Saturday’, the world stood on the brink of a nuclear catastrophe during the Cuban Missile Crisis.
The tension between the United States and the Soviet Union reached its peak when a Soviet anti-aircraft missile downed an American U-2 Lockheed reconnaissance aircraft over Cuba, resulting in the tragic loss of the pilot’s life.
This event was a critical turning point in the standoff between the superpowers, triggered by the Soviet deployment of R-12 medium-range missiles in Cuba, capable of striking Washington.
This move was in direct response to the U.S. placing PGM-19 ‘Jupiter’ missiles in Turkey the previous year, with the capability of reaching Moscow in a mere 10 minutes, as highlighted by USSR Defense Minister Rodion Malinovsky.
The U.S. reacted by imposing a naval blockade on Cuba on October 22, intensifying the aerial surveillance over the island. However, the situation escalated dramatically on ‘Black Saturday’ when the Soviet anti-aircraft systems finally engaged and brought down an American reconnaissance plane.
The world held its breath as the two nuclear powers teetered on the edge of all-out war.
