Adler Berriman Seal better known as Barry Seal, was a United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 drug smuggler and aircraft pilot who flew covert flights for the Central Intelligence Agency

Central Intelligence Agency

The Central Intelligence Agency is a civilian intelligence agency of the United States government. It is an executive agency and reports directly to the Director of National Intelligence, responsible for providing national security intelligence assessment to senior United States policymakers...

 and the Medellín Cartel

Medellín Cartel

The Medellín Cartel was an organized network of "drug suppliers and smugglers" originating in the city of Medellín, Colombia. The drug cartel operated in Colombia, Bolivia, Peru, Central America, the United States, as well as Canada and Europe throughout the 1970s and 1980s. It was founded and...

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Seal was born in Baton Rouge, Louisiana

Baton Rouge, Louisiana

Baton Rouge is the capital of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is located in East Baton Rouge Parish and is the second-largest city in the state.Baton Rouge is a major industrial, petrochemical, medical, and research center of the American South...

 and began flying at the age of 15. In 1955, he received his pilot's license at the age of 16 and joined the Civil Air Patrol

Civil Air Patrol

Civil Air Patrol is a Congressionally chartered, federally supported, non-profit corporation that serves as the official civilian auxiliary of the United States Air Force . CAP is a volunteer organization with an aviation-minded membership that includes people from all backgrounds, lifestyles, and...

 (CAP), whose members at the time also included Lee Harvey Oswald

Lee Harvey Oswald

Lee Harvey Oswald was, according to four government investigations,These were investigations by: the Federal Bureau of Investigation , the Warren Commission , the House Select Committee on Assassinations , and the Dallas Police Department. the sniper who assassinated John F...

 and David Ferrie

David Ferrie

David William Ferrie was a pilot who was alleged to have been involved in a conspiracy to assassinate President John F. Kennedy. New Orleans District Attorney Jim Garrison later claimed to have proven Ferrie's involvement and that he knew Lee Harvey Oswald. Ferrie denied such involvement.-Early...

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Seal was later linked through a dated photograph to Operation 40

Operation 40

Operation 40 was a Central Intelligence Agency-sponsored undercover operation in the early 1960s, which was active in the United States and the Caribbean , Central America, and Mexico. It was created by President Dwight D. Eisenhower in March 1960, after the January 1959 Cuban Revolution, and was...

, a covert CIA operation whose members included; Tosh Plumlee, Frank Sturgis

Frank Sturgis

Frank Anthony Sturgis , born Frank Angelo Fiorini, was one of the Watergate burglars.-Early Life and Military Service:...

, future CIA Director Porter Goss and anti-Castro

Fidel Castro

Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz is a Cuban revolutionary and politician, having held the position of Prime Minister of Cuba from 1959 to 1976, and then President from 1976 to 2008. He also served as the First Secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba from the party's foundation in 1961 until 2011...

 operatives involved in the Bay of Pigs Invasion

Bay of Pigs Invasion

The Bay of Pigs Invasion was an unsuccessful action by a CIA-trained force of Cuban exiles to invade southern Cuba, with support and encouragement from the US government, in an attempt to overthrow the Cuban government of Fidel Castro. The invasion was launched in April 1961, less than three months...

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He also joined US Army Special Forces to continue flight training.