Sanjurjo Dies

Only scant days after the start of the civil war, our side has already been hit by tragedy, as the coup's selected leader, José Sanjurjo, has died in a plane crash on his way from Portugal to take command of the Nationalist forces in Spain. It would appear that, in an attempt to make a heroic "daring aviator" impression upon his return to Spanish soil after over two years in exile, the General insisted upon flying in a small plane rather than any of the larger ones that were available, and subsequently overloaded it by demanding all his heavy luggage be loaded onto the same plane. Crashing immediately upon take-off, he was killed instantly, and in doing so has reduced Nationalist leadership to a collection of squabbling generals vying for control.