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…
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Index
364
Evang, Vilhelm
142
EVEN STEVEN
256
Executive Branch
109
exotic fuels
263
F
F-100 fighter
71
F- I02 fighter
270
F- I04 fighter
10-1 I, 45, 329
F- I06 fighter
270, 284
F- I08A Rapier
285
F-111 tighter
312
Fairbanks. Alaska
134
- Fairchild K-19 aircraft
49
FAN SONG acquisition radar
234
Far East
3, 110, 133-134. 140, 144. 190,
197. 201. 216. 224, 233-234. 242-243.
301,305.316. 320, 332.
"Fast Move" operations
216
Federal Aviation Administrator
289
Federal procurement cycle
44
"ferret" equipment
3, 335
ferret flights
123
FFD-1
238
FFD-2
238-239
FFD-4,
282. 238
FICON
22
Field Activities, Deputy for
192
5412 Committee
188, 226
fighter
4, I0, 14, 22. 66, 74-75. I08, I 24,
146, 177. 182. 201. 214,312,317,
328-329
fighter conversion
22
Fili airframe plant
105
fillets
277, 288-289
film
I. 31-32, 49. 51-53, 55. 60, 100.
108, 114-115. 119-121. 145,153,179,
209, 215, 218. 221-222, 226. 235-236,
239,241,247, 249-250. 254, 281-282.
306, 310-311. 316. 330
film processing
60, 121. 247
film-transport system
55
Firewel Company
63
First Weather Reconnaissance Squadron,
Provisional (WRSP-1)
94
Fischer, C. W.
309
FISH
250. 263. 268-269, 312
FISH HAWK
249-250
Flickinger, Donald D.
62
FLIPTOP
198
"Flit"
62
Florida
198
flying boat
270
focal-length cameras
13
focal-length lenses
51
Seeret

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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.