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. 4 …17 The BEACON HILL Report .................................................................... 17 Concern About the Danger of a Soviet Surprise Attack ................ 19…
  • p. 13 Helen Hill Kleyla and Robert D. O'Hern. This 16-volume Top Secret Codeword study of…
  • p. 14 …view of the "other side of the hill." With the advent of dry film, it became…
  • p. 30 …Dulles The BEACON HILL Report In 1951 the Air Force sought even more assistance from scientists…
  • p. 31 …Their head quarters was located over a secretarial school on Beacon Hill, which soon became the…
  • p. 32 …et NOFOAN Chapter 1 document on 15 June 1952, the BEACON HILL Report advocated radical approaches…
  • p. 34 …Created in July 1953, the Intelligence Systems Panel (ISP) included several experts from the BEACON HILL…
  • p. 37 …sance needs ex.pressed in the BEACON HILL Report. Theoretically, he explained to the panel. any…
  • p. 41 …H. T. Friis R. Mettler A.G. Hill E. Purcell W. H. Radford E. H. Plesset…
  • p. 44 …members had been discussing since the BEACON HILL and Intelligence Systems Panel meetings. James Baker was…
  • p. 45 …Having participated in the BEACON HILL Study and the Intelligence Systems Panel, several Project Three members…
  • p. 344 …He headed the Beacon Hill Panel in 1952 and later became director of Lincoln Laboratories. PARANGOSKY…
  • p. 345 …of several advisory panels, including the BEACON HILL project. He helped Baker decide what cameras to…
  • p. 364 …BEACON HILL Report: Problems of Air Force Intelligence and Reconnaissance. Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 15 June…
  • p. 371 …Soviet Union 137 Beacon Hill 17-19. 21. 24, 3 1-32. 331-33'.! BEACON HILL…
362
Secret rllOFOAN
Index
Curtiss-Wright Corporation
328
Czechoslovakia
IOI
D ________
D-21 aircraft
291
Dalai Lama
216
Dallas. Texas
293
Damage Assessment Team
183
David Clark Company
62
Davis, Saville
18
Dayton. Ohio
4. 8
DC-6 aircraft
341
deep penetration overflights
316. 123
Defector Reception Center (DRC)
")
defectors
Defense. Department of
33. 61. 122. 145, 154, 161. 234,
236-237, 239, 267, 292-293. 301-302.
304. 310. 317
Defense. Deputy Secretary of
81, 127, 144. 161, 188, 207. 300. 309
Defense. Secretary of
161. 298
Defense Mobilization, Office of
17, 26
Science Advisory Committee
37
Del Rio, Texas
256, 198
Delta-rI camera
250
denied territory
174, 188. 190
Deputy Director of Central Intelligence (DDCI)
30. 36. 43. 327,329.88. 101, 122-123.
127, 139, 186-187, 201, 208-209, 223
Detachment A
94-95, !00-101, 106. 114, 116, 124-125,
139-140, 142-143, 181,316
Detachment B
113, 116, 120-121, 124-126, 133,
135, 139, 142-143. 152-153, 155-157.
164, 167, 181-182. 187. 316
Detachment C
133-134, 139, 143-144, 152, 157,
182, 211-212. 214-220. 224. 316
Detachment G
133. 181-182. 198-199. 211. 221-222.
230-233. 243. 248, 250-251, 254-257
Detachment H
225-226, 228-230. 232-237. 239-241,
243-246, 250-251, 255
Development. Deputy Chief of Staff for
7. 11. 17. 35
Development Planning. Office of
12
Development Projects Division (DPD)
157. 191
Development Projects Staff
40. 55-56, 132. 157, 191. 212,331
Dirty-Birds
128. 130. 135
Donovan. Allen F.
18. 21. 24-26. 29-31, 35. 260. 328
Donovan. James
183
Doolittle, James H.
61. 167. 328
Douglas Aircraft
339
DRAGON
2
DRAGON LADY
77
drivers
59
drone
291. 343
Dryden. Hugh
89, 182
DuBridge, Lee
26-27
8ecaet

Not linked to a story yet.

About this file

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.