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. 12 later, at press conferences in February and July 1. 964, President Lyndon B. Johnson revealed the…
  • p. 40 …and meetings with every major unit of the US defense and intelligence establish ments. After receiving…
  • p. 98 …The Soviet Union sent strongly worded protest notes to the United States and the nations from…
  • p. 102 …not only press releases and the public Line to be taken, but also the suspension of…
  • p. 107 …in the United Kingdom. At about the ' Ibid.. pp. 17-18 (TS Codeword). ' Press Release of…
  • p. 112 …at a press conference that the Soviet Union might be ahead of the United States in…
  • p. 125 …Dial Press. 1982), pp. 45-47. '' Lundahl and Brugioni interview (TS Codeword). ~eeret
  • p. 167 …By 1957 cooperation be tween the United Kingdom and the United States had expanded to include…
  • p. 174 …Defense Department officials pressed President Eisenhower to authorize renewed overflights to gather up-to-date in…
  • p. 183 …On the 9 April overflight, the U-2 's ELINT-collection unit (System VI) indicated Soviet…
  • p. 195 …in the press about the presence of "spyplanes" on Japanese territory, asked the United States to…
  • p. 198 …DCI records (S). " United States Congress. Senate. Foreign Relations Committee. £recutive Sessions of tlze Sencae Foreign…
  • p. 307 …By 1962 the United States had become aware of the effectiveness of a new Soviet radar…
  • p. 315 …To preserve the secrecy of the OXCART program, the Air Force informed the press that an…
  • p. 328 …at times when the press and Congress alleged that the United States was falling behind the…
  • p. 362 …Smithsonian Institute Press, l 985. Khrushchev. Nikita S. Khrushchev Remembers: The Last Testament. Boston: Little, Brown…
  • p. 401 …United Kingdom (See Great Britain) United Kingdom Requirements Committee 154 United Nations 20 United Press International…
357
article 345A
79
article 346
80
article 347
104
article 349
219
article 354
80
article 357
80
article 360
175,217
article number
59
articles
20, 59, 99,216
Ashford, Douglas E.
30
Asia
135, 190,198,211,216,221,
230,233, 300-301, 310,319
Asian Photographic Interpretation
229
aspheric lens
53
ASPIC
229
Aswan Dam
112
atmosphere
278, 25, 152, 182,215
atmospheric testing
147
atomic bomb
19
Atomic Energy Commission
56, 133, 182, 241-242, 274
atomic energy facilities
233
ATR (Air Transport Rating)
187
Atsugi, Japan
134, 215, 218
autopilot
76, 341-342
Aviation Week
216
AXILLARY
342
Ayer, Frederick, Jr.
14-15, 36,327
B
B model camera
53
B-17 bomber
222
B-26 bomber
214
B-36 bomber
22, 50
B-47 bomber
72
B-52 bomber
20, 111, 291, 3 12
B-57 bomber
5, 8-9, 13, 15, 24, 35, 72
B-58 bomber
262, 269-270, 273
B-58 "Hustler" bomber
262
B-58A bomber
269
B-588 "Super Hustler"
262
B-58B bomber
263. 269
B-70 bomber
279. 293
BACKFIN
167
"badlands"
71
Baikal, Lake
128
Baird. Walter
56
Baird Associates
56
Baker, James G.
18, 21-25, 29-31. 46, 50-56,
108,253,282.327, 332-333
Balkhash, Lake
138, 139
ballistic missiles
2,201,206,299,318
See1et NOF8RN
Index
Saeret

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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.