The Bionic Wiki
Register
Advertisement
The Bionic Wiki
Flag of Katara

Flag of Katara.

Katara (or possibly Ktara) was a fictional so-called "new African nation", proximate to Nairobi, Kenya and the fictional nation of Mgunda. They were having regular border clashes with Mgunda.

A treaty signed by the major powers forbade military assistance to the country. Josh Perkins once crashed his reconaissance plane in the country, necessitating his rescue by Steve Austin, lest the United States be deemed to have violated that treaty.

The part of the country in which Perkins crashed his plane was described by Oscar Goldman as "part mountainous, part mesa". (Little Orphan Airplane

Katara and Mgunda copy

Map of Katara and Mgunda (Speculative)

Known Katarans[]

Kataran Jeep

Kataran soldier (note the flag of Katara on the jeep)

Deconstructed[]

  • Katara  is a relatively rare example of a wholly fictional country on The Six Million Dollar Man. Given its proximity to Kenya, the description of "part mountainous, part mesa", and the fact that there is an intervening country (Mgunda) between it and Kenya, it would seem to be an analogue for the real-life Malawi.
  • Katara and Mgunda are wholly fictional countries with names similar in sound to many African nations proximal to Kenya.  For instance, Rwanda, Uganda, Burundi, Malawi and Tanzania.  These nations have been involved in various border disputes.  In particular, Rwanda and Uganda have endured conflict over at least two disputed regions, the Gicumbi Disctrict and the Kabale District.
  • In the 1970's, Idi Amin Dada of Uganda was one of the most recognizable East African leaders in American news coverage.  The writers of the episode may have been inspired by news of Uganda's human rights violations and its alliances with the Soviet Union.  The United States closed its embassy in Kampala, Uganda in 1973.
Advertisement