Marc Gonsalves
Encyclopedia
Marc David Gonsalves is an American
Northrop Grumman
employee who was captured by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia
(FARC) and was held hostage from February 13, 2003 to July 2, 2008. He was rescued in Operation Jaque
, along with the two other American contractors, Ingrid Betancourt
, and eleven members of the Colombia
n security forces. On March 12, 2009, Gonsalves, Keith Stansell
and Thomas Howes
were each awarded the Secretary of Defense Medal for the Defense of Freedom
.
and has a brother.
for eight years prior to becoming a contractor employed by California Microwave Systems, a subsidiary of Northrop Grumman
.
As the program became increasingly successful, several former pilots and others familiar with the program said civilian managers pushed flight crews farther over the jungles, often at night and sometimes 300 miles from their base.
Their mission expanded, too, from locating targets in the illegal drug trade chosen by the American Embassy to keeping a look out for leftist terrorist guerrillas, who also delve in the drug trade, including those of FARC.
By 2002, pilots began to worry about what they perceived to be the lack of power and speed of their planes - the single-engine Cessna Caravan - for a country as big and mountainous as Colombia.
Two pilots, Paul C. Hooper and Douglas C. Cockes, wrote letters in November and December 2002 to Northrop Grumman warning that flying single-engine planes was a recipe for disaster. The letters suggested that the Cessnas be replaced with twin-engine Beechcraft King Air 300s
.
The planes were not replaced, and the two pilots resigned. After the two crashes, which temporarily halted the program, Northrop Grumman resumed the operation under a different name, the Colombia Surveillance System, using twin-engine planes.
After the first crash, the program was transferred to a newly created company, CIAO Inc..http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9907E3DE1F3AF937A25751C0A9629C8B63&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=3
, and Keith Stansell
were on a drug surveillance mission in Colombia's cocaine
-producing southern jungle when their single engine Cessna plane crashed on February 13, 2003 in territory controlled by FARC.
The American pilot, Tom Janis, and a Colombian army intelligence officer, Sgt. Luis Alcides Cruz, were led out by FARC gunmen and shot. The three surviving Americans, (Gonsalves, Stansell and Howes) were forced to march with the guerrillas, deeper and deeper into the jungle. After this, the three Americans' exact location was lost by US intelligence. Three other Americans associated with Northrop Grumman made an attempt to find the hostages by air, but were all killed when their plane hit a tree.
Then Colombian journalist Jorge Botero was allowed to contact the hostages and record a tape to prove that they were alive and well – and ready to be traded for imprisoned members of the FARC being held by the Colombian government.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Northrop Grumman
Northrop Grumman
Northrop Grumman Corporation is an American global aerospace and defense technology company formed by the 1994 purchase of Grumman by Northrop. The company was the fourth-largest defense contractor in the world as of 2010, and the largest builder of naval vessels. Northrop Grumman employs over...
employee who was captured by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia
Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia
The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia – People's Army is a Marxist–Leninist revolutionary guerrilla organization based in Colombia which is involved in the ongoing Colombian armed conflict, currently involved in drug dealing and crimes against the civilians..FARC-EP is a peasant army which...
(FARC) and was held hostage from February 13, 2003 to July 2, 2008. He was rescued in Operation Jaque
Operation Jaque
Operation Jaque was a Colombian military operation that resulted in the freedom of 15 hostages, including former Colombian presidential candidate Íngrid Betancourt. The hostages had been held by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia . The operation took place on July 2, 2008, along the...
, along with the two other American contractors, Ingrid Betancourt
Íngrid Betancourt
Ingrid Betancourt Pulecio is a Colombian politician, former senator and anti-corruption activist.Betancourt was kidnapped by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia on 23 February 2002 and was rescued by Colombian security forces six and a half years later on 2 July 2008...
, and eleven members of the Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
n security forces. On March 12, 2009, Gonsalves, Keith Stansell
Keith Stansell
Keith Donald Stansell is an American Northrop Grumman employee who was captured by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia and was held hostage from February 13, 2003 to July 2, 2008...
and Thomas Howes
Thomas Howes
Thomas Randolph "Tom" Howes is an American Northrop Grumman employee who was captured by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia and was held hostage from February 13, 2003 to July 2, 2008. He was rescued in Operation Jaque, along with the two other American contractors, Ingrid Betancourt, and...
were each awarded the Secretary of Defense Medal for the Defense of Freedom
Secretary of Defense Medal for the Defense of Freedom
The Secretary of Defense Medal for the Defense of Freedom is a decoration established to acknowledge civilian employees of the United States Department of Defense who are killed or wounded in the line of duty.-Description:...
.
Early life and education
Marc Gonsalves is the son of George Gonsalves and Jo Rosano. He was raised in Bristol, ConnecticutBristol, Connecticut
Bristol is a suburban city located in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States southwest of Hartford. According to 2006 Census Bureau estimates, the population of the city is 61,353. Bristol is primarily known as the home of ESPN, whose central studios are in the city. Bristol is also home to...
and has a brother.
Career
Gonsalves served as an imagery analyst in the United States Air ForceUnited States Air Force
The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...
for eight years prior to becoming a contractor employed by California Microwave Systems, a subsidiary of Northrop Grumman
Northrop Grumman
Northrop Grumman Corporation is an American global aerospace and defense technology company formed by the 1994 purchase of Grumman by Northrop. The company was the fourth-largest defense contractor in the world as of 2010, and the largest builder of naval vessels. Northrop Grumman employs over...
.
Marriage and children
Gonsalves and his ex-wife, Shane, have three children. (One daughter and two stepsons) On July 17, 2008, Marc Gonsalves filed for divorce from his wife in Key West.Mission in Colombia
Marc Gonsalves was part of a team of a dozen or so pilots and technicians overseen by the U.S. Southern Command. Their operation was dubbed the Southcom Reconnaissance System, and Northrop Grumman held the $8.6 million contract for the work.As the program became increasingly successful, several former pilots and others familiar with the program said civilian managers pushed flight crews farther over the jungles, often at night and sometimes 300 miles from their base.
Their mission expanded, too, from locating targets in the illegal drug trade chosen by the American Embassy to keeping a look out for leftist terrorist guerrillas, who also delve in the drug trade, including those of FARC.
By 2002, pilots began to worry about what they perceived to be the lack of power and speed of their planes - the single-engine Cessna Caravan - for a country as big and mountainous as Colombia.
Two pilots, Paul C. Hooper and Douglas C. Cockes, wrote letters in November and December 2002 to Northrop Grumman warning that flying single-engine planes was a recipe for disaster. The letters suggested that the Cessnas be replaced with twin-engine Beechcraft King Air 300s
Beechcraft Super King Air
The Beechcraft Super King Air family is part of a line of twin-turboprop aircraft produced by the Beech Aircraft Corporation . The King Air line comprises a number of model series that fall into two families: the Model 90 series, Model 100 series , Model 200 series and Model 300 series...
.
The planes were not replaced, and the two pilots resigned. After the two crashes, which temporarily halted the program, Northrop Grumman resumed the operation under a different name, the Colombia Surveillance System, using twin-engine planes.
After the first crash, the program was transferred to a newly created company, CIAO Inc..http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9907E3DE1F3AF937A25751C0A9629C8B63&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=3
Abduction
Marc Gonsalves, Thomas HowesThomas Howes
Thomas Randolph "Tom" Howes is an American Northrop Grumman employee who was captured by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia and was held hostage from February 13, 2003 to July 2, 2008. He was rescued in Operation Jaque, along with the two other American contractors, Ingrid Betancourt, and...
, and Keith Stansell
Keith Stansell
Keith Donald Stansell is an American Northrop Grumman employee who was captured by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia and was held hostage from February 13, 2003 to July 2, 2008...
were on a drug surveillance mission in Colombia's cocaine
Cocaine
Cocaine is a crystalline tropane alkaloid that is obtained from the leaves of the coca plant. The name comes from "coca" in addition to the alkaloid suffix -ine, forming cocaine. It is a stimulant of the central nervous system, an appetite suppressant, and a topical anesthetic...
-producing southern jungle when their single engine Cessna plane crashed on February 13, 2003 in territory controlled by FARC.
The American pilot, Tom Janis, and a Colombian army intelligence officer, Sgt. Luis Alcides Cruz, were led out by FARC gunmen and shot. The three surviving Americans, (Gonsalves, Stansell and Howes) were forced to march with the guerrillas, deeper and deeper into the jungle. After this, the three Americans' exact location was lost by US intelligence. Three other Americans associated with Northrop Grumman made an attempt to find the hostages by air, but were all killed when their plane hit a tree.
Then Colombian journalist Jorge Botero was allowed to contact the hostages and record a tape to prove that they were alive and well – and ready to be traded for imprisoned members of the FARC being held by the Colombian government.
Publications
- Out of CaptivityOut of CaptivityOut of Captivity, subtitled Surviving 1967 Days in the Colombian Jungle, is a book written by Marc Gonsalves, Keith Stansell, and Thomas Howes with the assistance of author Gary Brozek...
is a book authored by Marc Gonsalves, Keith StansellKeith StansellKeith Donald Stansell is an American Northrop Grumman employee who was captured by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia and was held hostage from February 13, 2003 to July 2, 2008...
, and Thomas HowesThomas HowesThomas Randolph "Tom" Howes is an American Northrop Grumman employee who was captured by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia and was held hostage from February 13, 2003 to July 2, 2008. He was rescued in Operation Jaque, along with the two other American contractors, Ingrid Betancourt, and...
with the assistance of author Gary Brozek about their time spent as hostages of FARC guerrillas.
External links
- The Forgotten Hostages on CBS 60 Minutes II
- Held Hostage in Colombia documentary film
- Americans Held Hostage - web site dedicated to the hostages release.