They were ensnared in a web of paperwork “to crush the communist threat.” The story of the trial of the airmen remains unprecedented in history. Without any evidence, 20 individuals were accused of treason and sabotage in the Air Force under the alleged guidance of the Communist Party of Greece (KKE). During that same period, Nikos Belogiannis and his comrades were facing a second trial on espionage charges.
The accused were tried and convicted. Some were sentenced to death, others to life imprisonment, and others to 20- and 10-year terms. The charges alleged that they were carrying out orders and directives from the leadership of the illegal Communist Party of Greece within the armed forces.
Two years after the airmen’s conviction, Konstantinos Karamanlis stated that he had known of the innocence of the condemned from the beginning. He granted them amnesty… Yet two lives had already been lost.