U-2

First U-2 pilot recalls when the only U-2 pilot to fly over Moscow nearly died and crashed into Red Square after he almost bit his poison cyanide pill in half

First U-2 pilot recalls when the only U-2 pilot to fly over Moscow nearly died and crashed into Red Square after he almost bit his poison cyanide pill in half

Vito felt his throat go dry as he approached Moscow for the first time—who could blame him? So, he fished… Read More

4 weeks ago

Skunk Works Director Ben Rich recalls when CIA financed the A-12 Oxcart with secret funds and back-door payments to Lockheed with personal checks to Kelly Johnson for more than $1 million

‘Everything about the A-12 Oxcart program was dark alley, cloak and dagger. Even the way they financed the operation was… Read More

1 month ago

USAF to retire the U-2 in 2026. Until then the Dragon Lady will be used to benefit fifth-gen, sixth-gen platforms and to fly “traditional” ISR missions.

The USAF will retire the iconic U-2 spy plane in 2026. But until then, besides being used for ISR missions,… Read More

2 months ago

KC-135A Crew Chief recalls when his Stratotanker had to purge its tanks of the JP-4 to load JP-7 to refuel an SR-71 Blackbird (No KC-135Q was available)

The SR-71 Blackbird Mach 3+ spy plane could be refueled by standard Stratotankers in the event KC-135Qs were not available.… Read More

3 months ago

SR-71 pilot recalls when he and his RSO stole the jar with testicles of the (passed away) mascot of U-2 pilots and flew it at Mach 3+ (U-2 crews were proud of having flown the mascot’s testicles at 70,000 feet)

‘Since the U-2 guys were so proud that they had taken "Oscar" flying in the "Dragon Lady," we put a… Read More

3 months ago

The story of How the U-2 got its name: Test Pilot Tony LeVier flipped off Kelly Johnson, Johnson flipped off in return LeVier and yelled, “U-2” [You Too]!

‘Tony LeVier [the test pilot who flew the first flight of the U-2] was sitting at Bob Gilliland’s bar when… Read More

3 months ago

KC-97 Navigator tells the story of when his tanker refueled the then top-secret U-2 planes flying spy missions over Soviet Union

I was talking our first "hookup" down to us-- asked his altitude "classified", airspeed "classified" and finally "rate of descent"-… Read More

7 months ago

The story of the U-2 pilot that took part in O Club parties wearing fake bad teeth to joke about the ozone level effect on U-2 drivers

Buddy Brown (Buddy is not a nickname it’s his real name) was one of a handful of men in the… Read More

7 months ago

The weird story of when Kelly Johnson received a bag with $30 million in cash to pay for the first six CIA U-2 spy planes

The guy has on a fedora and a trench coat with a pink carnation in the lapel. Johnson says he… Read More

8 months ago

USAF U-2 Avionics Technician explains why S-300 and S-400 missile systems would not be able to shoot down the SR-71 Blackbird

Could the SR-71 Blackbird be shot down by missile systems such as Russia’s S-300 or S-400? The SR-71, unofficially known… Read More

10 months ago

Carmine Vito was the only U-2 pilot to fly over Moscow: five Soviet MiGs launched to intercept his flight got lost or collided

Several MiG fighters scrambled to intercept him, too. As with previous flights, the intercepts failed. Soviet fighters could not approach… Read More

10 months ago

U-2 Vs SR-71: former USAF Avionics Technician explains why the Dragon Lady still flies spy missions while the Blackbird had been retired

While the U-2 is still in active service today, the US Air Force (USAF) retired its fleet of SR-71s on… Read More

11 months ago

Former U-2 pilot tells the story of the Soviet submarine that almost fired a nuclear torpedo at a US Navy ship during the Cuban Missile Crisis

‘Now let me say something about that Cuban Missile Crisis. This is probably as close as this nation has ever… Read More

11 months ago

U-2 pilot describes how Carmine Vito, the only U-2 pilot to fly over Moscow, almost bit his poison cyanide pill in half while flying over Soviet Union

‘He started to suck on it. Luckily, he realized his mistake in a split second and spit it out in… Read More

1 year ago

The story of the French Air Force Mirage III that buzzed a U-2 flying at 65,000 ft on a mission to spy on France’s nuclear facilities

Equipped with the SEPR 841 rocket booster, the Mirage III literally soared into the skies, though not with the aim… Read More

1 year ago

How the iconic U-2 got its name: Test Pilot Tony LeVier gave Kelly Johnson the finger, Johnson returned giving LeVier the finger and yelled, “U-2”!

During the first flight at the Ranch, Kelly Johnson was on the radio telling Tony LeVier how to land the… Read More

1 year ago

U-2 flies last Optical Bar Camera mission, but Dragon Lady pilots will retain the knowledge and skills to employ the sensor

The Optical Bar Camera mission, which captures daylight acquisition of high-altitude photographs, will transition to forward operating locations supported by… Read More

1 year ago
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