Original Border War Cuban FAPLA Advisor’s Grey Lizard Camouflage Cap.
Made in Cuba with makers tag “Caribe Cuba” and size tag “FAPLA RPA Size 58” still present. Equivalent to a modern size 7 1/8.
Operation Carlota was the codename for the Cuban intervention in Angola, which began on November 5, 1975. Cuba sent combat troops to support the communist-aligned People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA) against the pro-western National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA) and National Liberation Front of Angola (FNLA). The intervention took place after the outbreak of the Angolan Civil War, which was a result of the country's independence from Portugal after the Angolan War of Independence. The civil war quickly became a proxy war between the Eastern Bloc, led by the Soviet Union, and the Western Bloc, led by the United States. UNITA and FNLA were backed by South Africa and the United States, while the MPLA received support from communist nations.
FAPLA, short for the People's Armed Forces of Liberation of Angola (Portuguese: Forças Armadas Populares de Libertação de Angola), was initially the military branch of the People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA). It eventually became Angola's official armed forces following the MPLA's rise to power within the government.
