Documents / Official release

CIA-UAP-003, The Central Intelligence Agency and Overhead Reconnaissance; The U-2 and OXCART Programs, 1954-1974

Central Intelligence Agency · 1954 · 406 pages · text from the file's own layer

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.

  • p. 6 …215 U-2 Support for DDP Operations in Tibet....................................... 216 U-2Cs for Detachment C....................... .................... ... ....................... 217…
  • p. 170 …Detachment C mainly collected high-altitude weather data, although it also flew two missions over Tibet…
  • p. 229 …U-2 Support for DDP Operations in Tibet The consolidation of all Agency air activities under…
  • p. 231 …it carried no film Lhasa, Tibet, November 1959 and did not have a full load of…
  • p. 232 …Flights by Detachment C U-2s over Tibet and western China contin ued during the first…
  • p. 245 …Khli when it staged four sorties over Tibet from 29 September to l O November 1963…
  • p. 398 …301-302, 304, 307 Thule, Greenland 172 Tibet 157, 216, 219, 232 99 TIME STEP 172…
325
APPENDIX A
Acronyms
AEC
AFB
AFDAP
AMO
ARC
ARDC
ASPIC
ATIC
BSAP
BUORL
COMINT
COMIREX
COMOR
DB
DCI
DCID
DDCI
DOI
DDP
DDS&T
DPD
DPS
ECM
EG&G
ELINT
FCRC
HASP
IAC
IAS
ICBM
IR
ISP
JRC
MATS
Atomic Energy Commission
Air Force Base
Air Force office symbol for the Assistant for
Development Planning under the Deputy Chief
of Staff for Development
Air/Maritime Division
Ad Hoc Requirements Committee
Air Research and Development Command
(USAF)
Asian Photographic Interpretation Center
Air Technical Intelligence Center (USAF)
Boston Scientific Advisory Panel
Boston University Optical Research Laboratory
Communications Intelligence
Committee on Imagery Requirements and
Exploitation
Committee on Overhead Reconnaissance
"Dirty Bird"
Director of Central Intelligence
Director of Central Intelligence Directive
Deputy Director of Central Intelligence
Deputy Director for Intelligence
Deputy Director (or Directorate) for Plans
Deputy Director for Science and Technology
Development Projects Division
Development Projects Staff
Electronic Countermeasures
Edgerton, Germeshausen & Grier, Incorporated
Electronic Intelligence
Federally Controlled Research Center
High-Altitude Air Sampling Program
Intelligence Advisory Committee
Indicated air speed
Intelligence community
Intercontinental ballistic missile
Infrared
Intelligence Systems Panel (USAF)
Joint Reconnaissance Center
Military Air Transport Service (USAF)
11,soFet NOFORN
Appendix A
See,et
IC

Not linked to a story yet.

About this file

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.