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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.

Open the PDF at page 348 Original source ↗

“The Advance”34 pages

  • p. 6 …255 The Phaseout of the Office of Special Activities ........ ................... 257 0 ) Chapter 6 The U-2…
  • p. 7 …319 Advances in Technology............................................... ........................... 320 Cooperation With the Air Force ............................................................. 321 Impact of the Overhead Reconnaissance…
  • p. 22 …retired from the Air Force to become the assistant director of Lockheed's Advanced Development Program…
  • p. 24 11 / Chapter 1 gravity (g's) instead of the military specification strengLh of 5.33 g…
  • p. 32 …lithium deuteride, a tech nology more advanced than the heavy water method used by US '' BEACON…
  • p. 33 …between the developed and undeveloped nations. This aggressive Soviet foreign policy. combined with advances in nuclear…
  • p. 58 …secrecy in the new project, Kelly Johnson placed it in Lockheed's Advanced Development facility at…
  • p. 65 …His software algorithms made it possible to model lens designs and determine in advance the effects…
  • p. 76 …seen on pilot Francis Gary Powers) advanced gear for the U-2 pilots. David Clark expert…
  • p. 111 …of Soviet advances in long-range bombers and missiles. The initial sighting of the new Soviet…
  • p. 114 …Adenauer be informed in advance of US plans to overfly the Soviet Union from bases in…
  • p. 174 …concentrating on developing the more advanced solid-fueled missiles rather than increasing the num ber of…
  • p. 183 …if the Soviet SAMs received sufficient advanced warning, they posed a major threat to the U…
  • p. 191 …the cover story that had been prepared and distributed in advance of the mission. The first…
  • p. 206 …In 1965 the head of OSA received a new title, Director of Special Activities. The Office…
  • p. 235 …STPOLLY added the more advanced Lockheed P3A in 1963. Between 1955 and 1967, when the CIA…
  • p. 249 …The Defense Department feared that the loss of this device with its highly advanced traveling-wave…
  • p. 250 …Chapter 5 Advanced ECM Equipment for Detachment H Demand for overhead photography of the PRC continued…
  • p. 252 …In addition, the Project TACKLE U-2s began receiving even more advanced ECM • 60 equipment. •• Mission…
  • p. 265 …but some was the result of technological advances. The ini tial order for eight of the…
  • p. 266 …This camera was actually a very advanced version of the original B camera with a new…
  • p. 282 …aircraft from the small inventory of its most advanced bomber. Even had the B-588 program…
  • p. 295 …In fact, it was an advanced version of the highly reliable B camera developed for the…
  • p. 296 …Prospective pilots had to be qualified in the most advanced fighters and be emotionally stable and…
  • p. 307 …advanced experimental jet aircraft, the A-11. which has been tested in sustained flight at more…
  • p. 310 …It was now time to find work for the most advanced aircraft ever conceived and built…
  • p. 321 …advanced aircraft ever .built was to be put out to pasture. The aban donment of the…
  • p. 325 …when the OXCART program ended in the summer of 1968, no mcire advanced successor was wait…
  • p. 326 …The most advanced aircraft of the 20th century had become an anachronism before it was ever…
  • p. 333 …ADVANCES IN TECHNOLOGY One very important byproduct of the CIA's manned reconnaissance program was the…
  • p. 334 …the end of the usefulness of the world's most advanced aircraft; its offspring, the SR…
  • p. 335 …Thus, the CIA sponsored the development of the world's most advanced aircraft-the OXCART-and…
  • p. 352 …They believed that recent advances in the minia turization of electronic technology would make possible the…
  • p. 356 343 Defense Research and Engineering, John Foster, liked the concept and provided DOD funding for ORD…
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Sec, et NOfiOF\l'fJ
Appendix C
APPENDIX C
Electronic Devices Carried by the U-2
From the beginning the U-2 was envisioned as more than a camera
platform. In fact, the U-2 would ultimately carry only five types of
photographic equipment but more than 20 different types of electronic
devices, some for collecting electronic intelligence (ELINT), others
("ferret" equipment) for gathering intelligence on foreign radars, and
a few for self-protection--electronic countermeasures to defeat en
emy missile-control radars.
The various electronic, countermeasures and intelligence-gather
ing systems designed for the U-2 received designations using Roman
numerals-Systems I through XXII. The first seven devices were
built by the Ramo-Wooldridge firm, now part of the TRW
Corporation. System-I used S- and X-band ELINT receivers to collect
ground-controlled intercept and air defense signals. Weighing only
7. 7 kilograms, this system was aboard all U-2s from I 955 through
1959. System-IL a communications and navigation system. never
worked properly and was canceled. System-III. a 16-kilogram VHF
recorder for communications intelligence (COMINT), was never used
and was transferred to the Navy in 1958. System-IV, a ferret device
that recorded electromagnetic energy in the 150- to 4,000-MHz range
was used on 16 missions between 1957 and 1959, when it was given
to the Air Force. System-V was similar to System-I but covered nine
wave bands. The device was so heav·y that U-2s using it could not
carry a camera system. System-V was used on only three missions
and was replaced by the lighter weight System-VI that covered the P-,
L-, S-, and X-band frequencies and could be used with either the A or
B camera. System-VI was used from 1959 through 1966.
The growing need for data on Soviet missile development led to
a contract with the firm of Haller-Raymond-Brown (HRB) to build a
missile-telemetry intercept system as quickly as possible. The result
ing device (System-VII) could record up to 12 minutes of data from
six simultaneous frequencies. This unit first saw service on 9 June
1959 and was used on another 22 missions during the next year.
Following modifications to make System-VII suitable for use by the
Navy, the designation was changed to System-VIII.
System-IX was an electronic-countermeasures (ECM) device for
generating false-angle information in response to X-band radar pulses
from surface-to-air missile radars. Also known as the Mark-30. the
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Official release, from the pursue collection. The PDF is mirrored here; the original link is above. 406 pages are in the text index: search them above, or from the library's search.