Documents / Official release
This is a Secret History Staff monograph by Gregory W. Pedlow and Donald E. Welzenbach of the Central Intelligence Agency, published in 1992. It gives a history of the CIA's manned overhead reconnaissance program from 1954 to 1974, covering the development and operation of the U-2 and the A-12 OXCART aircraft. It covers overflights of the Soviet Union, the 1960 downing of Francis Gary Powers, and later operations. One section is titled "U-2s, UFOs, and Operation BLUE BOOK."
From the source:Release of 2026-06-12 This CIA History Staff document chronicles the complete history of the U-2 and OXCART (A-12) high-altitude reconnaissance aircraft programs from 1954 to 1974, detailing their development, operations over the Soviet Union and other targets worldwide, the famous downing of Francis Gary Powers in 1960, organizational reforms following that incident, and the eventual transfer of operations from CIA to Air Force control. A more redacted version of this document has been available on CIA's public website.
“Burbank”10 pages
224 Sec.et NOFORN Chapter 5 -SeeFet wanted the Nationalists to be allowed to begin operations, reluctantly agreed to wait until conditions were favorable.'"' The situation changed radically in May 1960 after the loss of Powers' U-2 de stroyed the existing cover story for U-2 operations. Now there was no longer any reason not to use the Nationalist pilots. In addition, the Agency soon found itself in need of a base of operations in the Far East after Detachment C had to leave Japan. During discussions with Nationalist officials on 6 May 1960, the CIA's Chief of Station in Taipei, Ray Cline, raised the possibility of assigning U-2s to the Chinese Air Force. Two weeks later, Gen. Chiang Ching-kuo, head of the National Security Bureau, approached Cline informally to propose that the U-2 aircraft based in Japan be moved to Taiwan. This was followed three days later by an official offer on behalf of General Chiang's father, Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek. President Eisenhower learned of Nationalist China's pro posal on 18 June. Several weeks later, Richard Bissell suggested that two U-2s be turned over to the Nationalists for use in overflying the mainland. The project would be conducted along the lines of Project STPOLLY. 35 On 26 August l 960, President Eisenhower and the State Department approved Bissell 's proposal to tum U-2s over to the Nationalist Chinese rather than move an American detachment to Taiwan. Using Nationalist pilots for overflights had the advantage of providing complete deniability for the United States, even if an air craft was lost over hostile territory. The U-2s would belong to Nationalist China and would have Nationalist pilots, and there was no overt US involvement with the overflights. In reality, however, the United States would maintain strict control over the missions to be flown. 36 On 7 December l 960, two U-2s were officially licensed for ex port to Nationalist China as part of a new effort codenamed TACKLE. These planes came from the Agency's U-2 inventory and arrived in '" Andrew J. Russo, Low-Level Technical Reconnaissance Over Mainland China ( 1955-1966) (draft), Clandestine Services Historical Program, CSHP-2.348 (CIA: History Staff, 1972) (S). '' OSA History. chap. 17, pp. 1-7 (TS Codeword). '• Ibid., chap. 17. pp. 12-13, 44 (TS Codeword).
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Official release, from the pursue collection. The PDF is mirrored here; the original link is under it. 406 pages are in the text index: search them above, or from the library's search.