“On 5 October 1986 the Iran-Contra operations rapidly broke down. One of Project Democracy’s cargo planes was shot down over Nicaragua and an American crew member (Eugene Hasenfus) taken captive. This was a terminal blow to [Oliver] North’s resupply operation, coming two weeks before Congressional appropriations to the Contra forces were to resume. The first step in the damage control effort was to deny wholeheartedly that the downed aircraft and the pilot had anything to do with the American government. This marked the origin of a cover-up … When asked about American involvement in the downed aircraft [Pres. Reagan] stated that ‘… There is no government connection with that plane at all …’ How much Reagan knew of the covert Central American resupply operations is unclear and naturally a matter for speculation. …” (Busby, Reagan and the Iran-Contra Affair [1999], p. 72 et seq.)