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.

Open the PDF at page 403 Original source ↗

“Canberra”11 pages

  • p. 18 …This search soon led him to a British twin-engine medium bomber the Canberra-built by…
  • p. 19 …staff was the RB-57D in I 955, whose maximum altitude RAF Canberra Mark-PR3 Seeret
  • p. 22 …al titude performance of the 8-57 Canberra. By January 1954 all three firms had submitted…
  • p. 36 …The RAF equipped the new Canberra PR7 with Rolls Royce Avon-109 engines and gave it…
  • p. 37 …discuss the modi fications for high-alti tude flight being made to the US Canberra, the…
  • p. 80 …production was needed to power spedally configured Canberra RB-57Ds for the Air Force. The first…
  • p. 122 …a reconnaissance version of the twin-engine Canberra bomber, similar to the RAF overflight of Kapustin…
  • p. 130 …et N6fOFU~ Chapter 3 .9f British Canberra bombers at Akrotiri, Cyprus: The Anglo-French military buildup…
  • p. 175 …2 and an Air Force RB-57D Canberra. The two air craft cruised along the Soviet…
  • p. 372 …333 Canberra 5. 9. 23-24. 67. 109. 117, 162 Cannon. Clarence 88 Capp, A l…
  • p. 401 …146 Inspector General 61 oxygen mask 62 RB-57D Canberra 162 Third Air Force 89 US…
390
ieeret NOFORN
Index
WHALE TALE
247,249
Wheelon, Albert (Bud)
240, 287, 333
Wheelus AFB
121
White House
33, 43, 97, 109, ll 1-112, 120, 122.
128, 154, 172, 186, 189
Wienberg, Charles F. {Bud)
7, 11-12
Wiesbaden, Gennany
80, 95, 104-105, 108. l 14-ll5,
120-121
Wiesner, Jerome B.
37
Williams, John J.
185
Williamsport, Pennsylvania
222
Wilson. Charles
126
wind currents
87
wind tunnels
269
wing teeth
277
wings
5, 8. 1I. 23-25, 42, 45, 47, 66. 68.
72. 75-76, 80. 89, 95. 129, 148-149,
199. 242,248, 25!, 271. 274,277,
286, 312, 340
wiretaps
2
Wonsan Harbor
307
Worcester, Massachusetts
62
world press
85, 122
World Warr
l
World War II
1-2. 4, 7-8. 13, 15. 17. 22. 42,
49, 56, 62. 87, 95. 97, !24. 135,
214, 222, 232. 317, 322. 327-33!
Wright Air Development Command
4-5, 8, 12, 14, 18, 35, 73
Wright-Patterson
73
WRINGER
2
WS-461L
144-145
Wu-ch'ang. China
228
X
XF-104
(See Lockheed Day Fighter)
X-16
9. 13, 15. 26, 34-35
X-band radar pulses
335
X-rays
291
y
YAK-25RM
(See Mandrake)
YAK-26
(See Mandrake)
Yakov!ev
148
Yakovlev-25
148
Yale University
15
Yancey, William f.
75, 77-78
YC-97 Boeing Stratocruiser
13
Yerevan, Soviet Union
124
YF-!2A
285, 291, 294, 308
50z(See also AF-12)
Yokota AFB. Japan
134
Sec1et

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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.