Description: DIRECT DOWNLOADS AVAILABLE FOR PUBLICATIONS ONLY Do you prefer a permanent digital download rather than a mailed physical CD/DVD? Request this by message to me with the CONTACT SELLER button and I will provide a permanent download link for all items and refund all shipping costs. COMBINING SHIPPING COSTS Are you purchasing multiple items? I will: a) combine all invoices before payment and charge shipping equivalent to one item, or b) refund all shipping costs in excess of one item after payment. jefffj Store SquareTrade © AP6.0 All derivative (i.e. change in media; by compilation) work from this underlying U.S. Government public domain/public release data is COPYRIGHT © GOVPUBS All marked APPROVED FOR PUBLIC RELEASE - DISTRIBUTION UNLIMITED. $3 First Class Shipping in U.S. and International Air Post. Public domain military manual; not copied from another CD-ROM product. See reduced quality page examples. OVERVIEW Lockheed U-2, nicknamed "Dragon Lady", is a single-engine, very high-altitude reconnaissance aircraft operated by the United States Air Force (USAF) and previously flown by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). It provides day and night, very high-altitude (70,000 feet / 21,000 meters), all-weather intelligence gathering. The aircraft is also used for electronic sensor research and development, satellite calibration, and satellite data validation. In the early 1950s, with Cold War tensions on the rise, the U.S. military desired better strategic reconnaissance to help determine Soviet capabilities and intentions. The existing reconnaissance aircraft, primarily bombers converted for reconnaissance duty, were vulnerable to anti-aircraft artillery, missiles, and fighters. It was thought an aircraft that could fly at 70,000 feet (21,000 m) would be beyond the reach of Soviet fighters, missiles, and even radar. This would allow overflights (knowingly violating Soviet airspace) to take aerial photographs. Under the code name "Bald Eagle", the Air Force gave contracts to Bell Aircraft, Martin Aircraft, and Fairchild Engine and Airplane to develop proposals for the new reconnaissance aircraft. Officials at Lockheed Aircraft Corporation heard about the project and asked aeronautical engineer Clarence "Kelly" Johnson to come up with a design. Johnson was a brilliant designer, responsible for the P-38, and the P-80. He was also known for completing projects ahead of schedule, working in a separate division of the company jokingly called the Skunk Works. Johnson's design, called the CL-282, married long glider-like wings to the fuselage of another of his designs, the Lockheed F-104 Starfighter. To save weight, his initial design did not have conventional landing gear, taking off from a dolly and landing on skids. The design was rejected by the Air Force, but caught the attention of several civilians on the review panel, notably Edwin Land, the father of instant photography. Land proposed to CIA director Allen Dulles that his agency should fund and operate this aircraft. After a meeting with President Eisenhower, Lockheed received a $22.5 million contract for the first 20 aircraft. It was renamed the U-2, with the "U" referring to the deliberately vague designation "utility". The CIA assigned the cryptonym "AQUATONE" to the project, with the Air Force using the name "OILSTONE" for their support to the CIA.
Price: 12.99 USD
Location: Springfield, Ohio
End Time: 2023-10-01T17:30:28.000Z
Shipping Cost: 3 USD
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Restocking Fee: No
Return shipping will be paid by: Buyer
All returns accepted: Returns Accepted
Item must be returned within: 60 Days
Refund will be given as: Money back or replacement (buyer's choice)
