Ike and the Spy Planes
Fifty one years ago this month, President Dwight D. Eisenhower, in the last months of his Presidency, found himself with some egg on his face when the US was caught spying on the Soviet Union. The incident came to a head when the U-2 Spy Plane piloted by Francis Gary Powers was shot down over Soviet airspace. Powers was captured, but the Soviets kept mum on this until they were able to catch Eisenhower in a lie about the incident.
After World War II, the Soviets developed both atomic weapons and missiles capable of delivering them any place in the world. President Eisenhower’s policies for waging the Cold War against communism were all framed with this threat in mind. Ike’s challenge was to contain the communist states without causing another war, weakening the U.S. economy, or destroying the civil liberties that he showcased ad the key asset of a democratic government.
In 1955, Lockheed Aircraft had produced the U-2, an airplane that had broken the world’s altitude record (65,889 feet), and by the spring of 1956 it was ready to fly some missions. President Eisenhower reserved for himself the authorization for U-2 flights over Soviet territory. He was assured by his intelligence advisors that no radar or missile in the USSR could reach the aircraft above 70,000 feet. Eisenhower first offered the Soviets the option of having what he called “Open Skies,” which would allow the two nations would have mutual aerial inspection rights. Soviet aircraft could fly over the United States for reconnaissance purposes and American aircraft could do likewise in Soviet airspace. Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev publicly rejected this proposal.
The first flights began in July, 1956. Soviet radar could detect the flights, but Soviet interceptor aircraft couldn’t gain enough altitude to intercept them. Khrushchev immediately protested the intrusions, but he couldn’t prove that the airplanes belonged to the United States and he wouldn’t admit that his planes and missiles were unable to shoot down the intruders. The intelligence gained by Edwin Land’s cameras was so spectacular that the CIA and Air Force put continuous pressure on the White House to authorize more flights.
Eisenhower had a summit meeting scheduled for the spring of 1960 in Paris, and he hoped that the United States, the Soviet Union, France, and Great Britain would agree to ban atmospheric testing of nuclear bombs. At home, he and his administration were under attack in that election year for allowing a “missile gap” to develop between the USSR and the United States. Ike knew that wasn’t true, but he – like Khrushchev – couldn’t say anything in public.
By 1960 the Soviets had developed SAM missiles that could reach above 65,000 feet. Their accuracy was not good, however, so the CIA decided that the risk of a SAM actually hitting the U-2 was minimal. The CIA and military intelligence knew that the Soviets were about to deploy their first generation of intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBM’s) and the Americans wanted U-2 pictures of the facilities and missiles before they were installed underground or camouflaged. Eisenhower approved two more U-2 flights for the month of April. On April 9, 1960 the first flight was successful and no protests were heard from Moscow. Weather problems delayed the second flight until May 1, when the CIA launched the plane piloted by Francis Gary Powers from a secret base in Peshawar, Pakistan.
The next day Khrushchev announced that an American spy plane had been shot down over Sverdlovsk in central Russia. Washington immediately issued a press release denying that the plane was spying and claiming that the pilot of a U-2 weather plane suffered oxygen problems, became unconscious, and inadvertently flew into Soviet air space on autopilot. Two days later Khrushchev announced that the pilot had been captured alive, and the Kremlin displayed parts of the plane, the cameras, and Powers’ flight suit to the international press.
Eisenhower decided that no more lies would be published over his name. The President confirmed that he had ordered the U-2 flights over a three-year period in order to protect the United States from a surprise attack. A few days later, on May 16, 1960, Khrushchev used the opening session of the summit meeting in Paris to demand that Eisenhower personally apologize for the overflights and agree to a list of other Soviet demands. The President refused to apologize for defending his country and the meeting ended at its opening.
On August 17, 1960, Powers was convicted of espionage against the Soviet Union and was sentenced to a total of 10 years, three years in imprisonment followed by seven years of hard labor. He was held in Vladimir Central Prison, 100 miles east of Moscow. The prison contains a small museum with an exhibit on Powers, who allegedly developed a good rapport with Russian prisoners there. Some pieces of the plane and Gary Powers' uniform are on display at the Monino Airbase museum, close to Moscow.
On February 10, 1962, Powers was exchanged along with American student Frederic Pryor in a well publicized spy swap for Soviet KGB Colonel Vilyam Fisher (aka Rudolf Abel), a Soviet colonel who was caught by the FBI and put in jail for espionage, at the Glienicke Bridge in Berlin, Germany.
Following is a YouTube video regarding the incident:
After World War II, the Soviets developed both atomic weapons and missiles capable of delivering them any place in the world. President Eisenhower’s policies for waging the Cold War against communism were all framed with this threat in mind. Ike’s challenge was to contain the communist states without causing another war, weakening the U.S. economy, or destroying the civil liberties that he showcased ad the key asset of a democratic government.
In 1955, Lockheed Aircraft had produced the U-2, an airplane that had broken the world’s altitude record (65,889 feet), and by the spring of 1956 it was ready to fly some missions. President Eisenhower reserved for himself the authorization for U-2 flights over Soviet territory. He was assured by his intelligence advisors that no radar or missile in the USSR could reach the aircraft above 70,000 feet. Eisenhower first offered the Soviets the option of having what he called “Open Skies,” which would allow the two nations would have mutual aerial inspection rights. Soviet aircraft could fly over the United States for reconnaissance purposes and American aircraft could do likewise in Soviet airspace. Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev publicly rejected this proposal.
The first flights began in July, 1956. Soviet radar could detect the flights, but Soviet interceptor aircraft couldn’t gain enough altitude to intercept them. Khrushchev immediately protested the intrusions, but he couldn’t prove that the airplanes belonged to the United States and he wouldn’t admit that his planes and missiles were unable to shoot down the intruders. The intelligence gained by Edwin Land’s cameras was so spectacular that the CIA and Air Force put continuous pressure on the White House to authorize more flights.
Eisenhower had a summit meeting scheduled for the spring of 1960 in Paris, and he hoped that the United States, the Soviet Union, France, and Great Britain would agree to ban atmospheric testing of nuclear bombs. At home, he and his administration were under attack in that election year for allowing a “missile gap” to develop between the USSR and the United States. Ike knew that wasn’t true, but he – like Khrushchev – couldn’t say anything in public.
By 1960 the Soviets had developed SAM missiles that could reach above 65,000 feet. Their accuracy was not good, however, so the CIA decided that the risk of a SAM actually hitting the U-2 was minimal. The CIA and military intelligence knew that the Soviets were about to deploy their first generation of intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBM’s) and the Americans wanted U-2 pictures of the facilities and missiles before they were installed underground or camouflaged. Eisenhower approved two more U-2 flights for the month of April. On April 9, 1960 the first flight was successful and no protests were heard from Moscow. Weather problems delayed the second flight until May 1, when the CIA launched the plane piloted by Francis Gary Powers from a secret base in Peshawar, Pakistan.
The next day Khrushchev announced that an American spy plane had been shot down over Sverdlovsk in central Russia. Washington immediately issued a press release denying that the plane was spying and claiming that the pilot of a U-2 weather plane suffered oxygen problems, became unconscious, and inadvertently flew into Soviet air space on autopilot. Two days later Khrushchev announced that the pilot had been captured alive, and the Kremlin displayed parts of the plane, the cameras, and Powers’ flight suit to the international press.
Eisenhower decided that no more lies would be published over his name. The President confirmed that he had ordered the U-2 flights over a three-year period in order to protect the United States from a surprise attack. A few days later, on May 16, 1960, Khrushchev used the opening session of the summit meeting in Paris to demand that Eisenhower personally apologize for the overflights and agree to a list of other Soviet demands. The President refused to apologize for defending his country and the meeting ended at its opening.
On August 17, 1960, Powers was convicted of espionage against the Soviet Union and was sentenced to a total of 10 years, three years in imprisonment followed by seven years of hard labor. He was held in Vladimir Central Prison, 100 miles east of Moscow. The prison contains a small museum with an exhibit on Powers, who allegedly developed a good rapport with Russian prisoners there. Some pieces of the plane and Gary Powers' uniform are on display at the Monino Airbase museum, close to Moscow.
On February 10, 1962, Powers was exchanged along with American student Frederic Pryor in a well publicized spy swap for Soviet KGB Colonel Vilyam Fisher (aka Rudolf Abel), a Soviet colonel who was caught by the FBI and put in jail for espionage, at the Glienicke Bridge in Berlin, Germany.
Following is a YouTube video regarding the incident: