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.
“United Press”17 pages
294 Secret NOFOAN Chapter 6 yet needed. Agreeing with McCone's position, President Johnson said the issue should be reviewed again in February."' One additional argument in favor of surfacing the OXCART was the realization that the aircraft could not be used to fly undetected over the Soviet Union. By 1962 the United States had become aware of the effectiveness of a new Soviet radar system, codenamed TALL KING. The introduction of this computer-controlled radar undercut one of the basic premises of the OXCART program, the assumption that radar operators would not be able to track high-flying supersonic targets visually because of their small, nonpersistent radar returns. By coupling a computer to a radar, the Soviets could now weight the in dividual radar returns and identify those produced by high-flying, very fast objects.·' By February 1964 DCI McCone had become convinced that sur facing was necessary. Soviet development of the TALL KING radar system had eliminated his hope that OXCART would eventually be able to carry out its original intended purpose-overflights of the USSR. The final decision on the issue of surfacing the OXCART came at a National Security Council meeting on 29 February 1964, at which all of the participants supported the decision to surface. That same day President Johnson held a news conference at which he an nounced the successful development of an .. advanced experimental jet aircraft, the A-11. which has been tested in sustained flight at more than 2,000 miles per hour and at altitudes in excess of 70,000 feet.".~ President Johnson had spoken of the A- I I rather than the Agency's A-12, and the aircraft that was actually revealed to the pub lic was the Air Force's YF- l 2A interceptor. a project that had already been canceled. ➔' Following the President's announcement. two of "'John A. McCone. "Memorandum for the Record. Meeting with the President. Secretary McNamara. Mr. Bundy and DC!." 29 November 1963. DCI records (TS); OSA History. chap. 20. p. 73 (TS Codeword). "OSA History. chap. 20. pp. I-n-149 (TS Codeword). '' John A. McCone, Memorandum for the Record. "Discussion at the NSC Meeting. Attended by the President. all members and the four members of the President's personal staff. 29 February 1964," 2 March 1964. DC! records (S); Minnich, "OXCART Story," p. 14-erroneously identifies the date as 24 February-(S). " President Johnson ·s use of the designator A-11 at the press conference has sometimes been called an error, but Kelly Johnson wrote the President's press release and chose this designator for security reasons because it referred to the earlier version of the aircraft that lacked the radar-defeating modifi1.:ations of the A-12. Johnson, "Archangel log," 25 February 1964. 6eeret
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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.