Remembering the Dragon Lady: The U-2 Spy Plane: Memoirs of the Men Who Made the Legend
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Linus L. Lee
Alfred V. Chapin Jr.
James D. Sala
Scott G. Smith
James A. Qualls
Roger L. Cooper
Patrick J. Halloran
Frank L. Stuart
James A. Black
Edward C. Perdue
Roger H. Herman
Bobbie G. Gardiner
Marvin W. Doering
Nathan J. Adams
Hayden C. Curry
Forrest W. Wilson
Roy L. St. Martin
James R. Bedford Jr.
Rudolph Anderson Jr.
John T. McElveen
Edward B. Dixon
Harry Cordes
Robert D. Pine
Earl S. Lewis
Wesley E. McFadden
Cozier S. Kline
1958
Donald R. James
Austin J. Russell
Adrian W. Acebedo
John W. MacArthur, RAF
David E. Dowling, RAF
Michael G. Bradley, RAF
Christopher H. Walker, RAF
Robert T. Robinson, RAF
William T. Rodenbach
Robert M. Wood
Robert A. Ginther
Paul L. Haughland
Kenneth R. Van Zandt
Horace B. Reeves
Richard J. Callahan
Buddy L. Brown
John B. Boynton
Andrew J. Bratton Jr.
1959
Ronald E. Hedrick
Harold E. Melbratten
Gerald E. McIlmoyle
William R. Stickman
Richard W. Rauch
Floyd B. Kifer
Shih Chu (Gimo) Yang, ROCAF
Huai Sheng Chen, ROCAF
Tai Yu (Tiger) Wang, ROCAF
Chih Yao Hua, ROCAF
Hsi Chun Hua, ROCAF
T. J. Jackson, Jr.
Charles B. Stratton
Robert J. Schueler
Robert M. Powell
Robert E. Hall
Kenneth R. McCaslin
Jack Carr
Elsworth A. Powell
Junior B. Reed
Raleigh B. Myers
1960
Robert F. Wilke
Robert C. Spencer
Donald A. Crowe
Rex R. Knaak
Anthony Martinez
Henry McManus
David B. Gammons
William W. Wilcox
Leo J. Stewart Jr.
Robert L. Primrose
Edward H. Hill
Joe G. Hyde Jr.
David L. Ray
Clifford H. Beeler
1961
Charles W. Maultsby
Ivan B. Webster, RAF
Charles Taylor, RAF
Charles W. Kern
William E. Lawson III
George M. Bull
Donald N. Webster
Eddie E. Dunagan
John A. DesPortes
Daniel W. Schmarr
John W. Wall
Richard M. Bouchard
1962
Arthur K. Leatherwood
James K. Rogers
Donald R. McClain
Clair A. McCombs
Edmund P. Smart
1963
Victor L. Milam
Ward G. Graham
Chang-di Yeh, ROCAF
Lee Nan (Terry) Ping, ROCAF
Julius H. Baughn
Ronald D. Stromberg
Teh Pei Liang, ROCAF
Shi Chuen (Johnny) Wang, ROCAF
Kenneth F. Somers
Eugene J. O'Sullivan Jr.
1964
Li Yi (Jack) Chang, ROCAF
Hui Chia Yang, ROCAF
Martin E. Bee, RAF
Basil W. Dodd, RAF
Chen Wen (Pete) Wang, ROCAF
Shih Hi (Steve) Sheng, ROCAF
Tse Shi (Charlie) Wu, ROCAF
Theodore J. Paader
John W. Fenimore
1965
Liu Jet (Terry) Chuang, ROCAF
Yu Ching (Mickey) Chang, ROCAF
Jen Liang (Spike) Chuang, ROCAF
Thomas C. McMurtry
Kenneth C. Diehl
Jerry M. Davis
George H. Worley
Arnold L. Strasheim
William B. Copeman
Keith H. Spaulding
Earle K. Smith Jr.
Leslie A. Powell
John D. Amundson
Edward L. Rose
Donald R. Wright
1966
Bob Birkett
Bob Hickman
Harold Swanson
Andy Fan Hug Ti, ROCAF
Billy Chang Hseih, ROCAF
Jim Hoover
Lonnie Liss
Marion C. Mixon
Jim Whitehead
Dave Patton
Sam Swart
Don Aitro
Les White
Richard Woodhull
1967
Tom Hwang Ling Pei, ROCAF
Richard Cloke, RAF
Harry Drew, RAF
Jerry Chipman
Karl A. Larue
Franklin D. Ott
Roy D. Burcham
Bill Park
Art Peterson
Dale L. Kellam
John Shen Chung Li, ROCAF
Tom Wang Tao, ROCAF
1968
Frederick M. Bankis
George V. Freeze
James J. Phielix
Curtis L. Behrend
Gardner D. Krumrey
Ronald R. Williams
Kenneth L. Chisholm
Raphael S. Samay
Jerry R. Wagnon
Stanley A. Lawrence
Lee Po (David) Wei, ROCAF
Denny Huang, ROCAF
Mory Tsai, ROCAF
Mike Chu, ROCAF
Chris I, ROCAF
The Ranch
Known to early trainees as Groom Lake, Area 51, Watertown or The Ranch, this remote desolate area in the Nevada desert was the secret training location for the new U-2 aircraft. Pilots and support personnel were flown from nearby March AFB, California to spend 60 to 90 days TDY learning the new aircraft and all its associated operations. Each weekend a shuttle to March AFB was available for anyone who wanted to leave The Ranch for a bit of relaxation. The site was far from any well-traveled highway and was not depicted on any map preventing a casual observer from stumbling upon the training site. The photos that follow offer a glimpse of the operation.
Trailers were temporary living quarters for Air Force personnel at The Ranch. Photo courtesy of Lockheed Martin Co.
Dining hall at The Ranch. Photo courtesy of Lockheed Martin Co.
Mission planning and tracking. Photo courtesy of Lockheed Martin Co.
Pre-mission briefing. Photo courtesy of Lockheed Martin Co.
U-2 #66708 in flight at altitude. Photo courtesy of Lockheed Martin Co.
Wings of a U-2 have been disassembled and are awaiting transport in a C-124. Photo courtesy of Lockheed Martin Co.
A U-2 fuselage is loaded inside a C-124 for transport. Photo courtesy of Lockheed Martin Co.
Control tower at The Ranch. Photo courtesy of Lockheed Martin Co.
Maintenance operations at The Ranch. Photo courtesy of Lockheed Martin Co.
Technicians work with the camera equipment in the Q Bay below the cockpit. Photo courtesy of Lockheed Martin Co.
Drag chute deployed at touchdown. Photo courtesy of TD-Barnes.com
Flight planning and navigation prior to flight. Photo courtesy of TD-Barnes.com
Inside the control tower with shuttle aircraft in background. Photo courtesy of TD-Barnes.com
Flight line, hangars and control tower. Photo courtesy of TD-Barnes.com
Physiological Support technician checking pilots’ flight equipment, including the helmets. Photo courtesy of TD-Barnes.com
A view of the instruments as the pilot would see it. Photo courtesy of TD-Barnes.com<
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Dragon Lady under construction at the Lockheed plant. Photo courtesy of TD-Barnes.com
The Ranch in the 1960s. Photo courtesy of TD-Barnes.com
Reassembly of the U-2 after it arrived at The Ranch. Photo courtesy of TD-Barnes.com
Security check for passengers boarding the shuttle to and from The Ranch on weekends. Photo courtesy of TD-Barnes.com
Fire truck in front of the control tower. Photo courtesy of TD-Barnes.com
Removal of U-2 tail section for engine maintenance. Photo courtesy of TD-Barnes.com
Drift sight covers installed after flight. Photo courtesy of TD-Barnes.com
Technician checks camera. Photo courtesy of Lockheed Martin Co.
Hangar where photo operations were conducted. Dark room and camera maintenance were below the balcony at the end of the hangar. Photo courtesy of TD-Barnes.com
Chase car follows a U-2 after landing. Photo courtesy of TD-Barnes.com
Anthony P. (Tony) Bevacqua
Yuba City, California
Wife: Marilyn
My Time at the Ranch
After graduating from Aviation Cadets at James Connally AFB, Waco, Texas, I attended F-84 fighter training in 1954 at Laughlin AFB, Texas and Luke AFB, Arizona. I reported to the 508th Strategic Fighter Wing (SFW) and the 468th Strategic Fighter Squadron (SFS) at Turner AFB, Georgia. At the time I came into the squadron, the 508th SFW was transitioning from the Republic F-84G (straight wing) to the Republic F-84F (swept wing) aircraft.
A year later, three other lieutenants, Francis Gary (Frank) Powers, Victor Milam and Wes Upchurch, and I rented a house together in the town of Albany, Georgia just outside the main gate of Turner AFB. I was new to the Air Force, quite naïve and truly “wet behind the ears.” Not long after my joining the group my roomy, Frank Powers, disappeared; I mean he just vanished with no explanation, no forwarding address, no phone number, no message to the three of us. I learned later he had resigned from the Air Force. The next time I heard anything about Frank was when I arrived at the training site for the mystery airplane.
Back in those days, TOP SECRET meant just that, TOP SECRET. No one leaked anything to the press or news media. I was completely unaware that Kelly Johnson of the Lockheed Aircraft Company had received the “go ahead” to build the TOP SECRET U-2 spy plane. I had never even heard of Kelly Johnson. The U-2 made its maiden flight only 18 months later on August 1, 1955, just a few weeks before I was promoted to First Lieutenant.
When the Strategic Air Command decided in 1956 to close down its fighter operations, we were all wondering where that left us, where we were going to be assigned and what we were going to fly. Without knowing how or why, I was offered this unique opportunity to fly a mystery airplane. Even mission and the base were part of the big mystery. To this day, I cannot believe some of us signed up for this “pig in a poke.” I believe we signed up because this mystery program was more attractive than the prospect of going to bombers or other multi-engine planes or possibly even a Tactical Air Command base that no one liked. As I saw it, the choices then were bombers or this weird program—I chose weird! Maybe that said something about my personality.
Once I agreed and signed on to the program, I was administered an oath that required everything I heard or saw to be treated as TOP SECRET. That meant I couldn't talk about my work to my compatriots in the squadron, my wife or any of my family. Those of us who accepted the challenge looked at each other and at least thought, “I don't know anything to tell!”
Almost overnight we became a small cadre within the Wing that had this mysterious assignment. We were then sent to New Haven, Connecticut, to the Berger Brothers Company, manufacturer of brassieres and corsets. At that time, the Bergers and the David Clark Company of Worcester, Massachusetts were making pressure suits. In the basement of a cavernous building, each of us was fitted with two high altitude pressure suits. We carried our new pressure suits in hand, and went to Wright Patterson AFB, Ohio and Carswell AFB, Texas where we tested the suits in the high altitude pressure chambers. At the Wright Patterson and Carswell pressure chambers, we were informed that we had to pre-breathe 100 percent oxygen to prevent the bends in the event the cockpit lost pressure. I can tell you two hours is a very long time to just sit and breathe.
Now we knew three things: One, it was TOP SECRET; two, a pressure suit was required as the airplane would be flying over 50,000 feet altitude; and three, we had to pre-breathe 100 percent oxygen prior to flight.
As 1956 neared its end, we volunteers were being informed of various aspects of the U-2 program in miniscule bits and pieces. We now knew we were going to be stationed at Laughlin AFB, Del Rio, Texas. No one knew much about Del Rio except that it was 155 miles west of San Antonio and located on our country's border with Mexico. I had been there for T-33 gunnery training in 1954. Housing at Laughlin and Del Rio was almost non-existent and what was available was sub-standard.
On February 21, 1957 orders released me from duty at Turner AFB and assigned me to Laughlin AFB. The orders read “Aprx 75 days TDY e/r at Los Angeles Area, Calif CIPCP purpose to estb an opr cadre in connection with a clas proj.” I was further ordered to report to March AFB, Riverside, California on March 18, 1957 and to report to Laughlin, June 1, 1957.
I was told from officers at March AFB I would get further instructions on the training phase in the airplane I would be flying. I still didn't know the name of the airplane or even what it looked like. Since my assignment to March AFB was temporary duty (TDY), I was not authorized by the Air Force to move household goods or family there. My wife went to live with her parents in Phoenix, Arizona.
When I arrived at March AFB, I learned I would be undergoing flight training out in the desert somewhere. Now, how much more mysterious could it get? Our schedule for the training entailed being flown in a C-47 from March AFB about noon on Mondays to the training site and returned to March AFB early afternoon on Fridays. I was happy with the arrangement because it meant I could commute to Phoenix and be with my wife on weekends. Another trainee, Mike Styer, and I teamed up to make that commute. In the mid-1950s, the Interstate Highway system was still a dream. What we traveled on was mostly a two-lane asphalt road through the mountains and desert to Phoenix.
In late February 1957, I went TDY to March AFB/Groom Lake. After we departed March AFB, we got our first glimpse of Groom Lake, commonly known to the trainees as “The Ranch”. On the ground at The Ranch my impression was that it was desolate country, truly cut off from civilization. The site was far from any well-traveled highway and was not depicted on any map preventing a casual observer from stumbling upon the training site. There were no nearby towns, no roads. There was only a large multipurpose building where we took our meals, played pool and cards and watched movies. Groups of four pilots were crowded into one Airstream trailer located adjacent to the flight line. Ground school lasted seven to ten working days prior to the first flight and was held in a trailer or Quonset hut. Everything on that field was new since it was strictly a dry lake prior to it becoming a training base.
My first U-2 flight was on March 14, 1957. The first couple of flights were low altitude sans pressure suit; in fact, many of us wore Levis and street shoes while flying. The pressure suit came later. On the third flight, after several touch and go landings on the lake bed, I made landings on the 6,000 foot paved runway. On my first paved runway landing after a nice two-point landing, the left wing tip immediately hit the runway and the bird turned 45 degrees left even though I had full right rudder. The Mobile Control Officer was God at the time, and even though I added power, wings leveled off, aircraft pointed down the runway, I was told to shut down the engine. I did as I was told and the bird veered to the left again and went off the runway, crossed a tiny creek, and ripped the landing gear off. After the investigation of this incident I learned that particular bird had a history of this problem but no pilot did more than verbally mention the problem. It was verified, I was vindicated and I lost no time in training. I hear
d the Mobile Control Supervisor was hit with an error due to faulty judgment – better him than me.
Pat Halloran and Tony Bevacqua at Eielson AFB, Alaska, for Operation Toy Soldier.
Major General Montgomery awarding the Distinguished Flying Cross to Anthony Bevacqua, May 23, 1958.
Anthony Bevacqua, July 1, 1965.
Tony and Marilyn Bevacqua, 2002.
I flamed out three times on my first flight. We flew over desolate areas with almost no emergency fields within gliding distance, so I stayed on course, glided down as fast as parameters allowed, restarted, climbed back up to altitude and continued the mission. Two more times, the same thing occurred. I returned to The Ranch two minutes early. The problem was traced to the Cobra fuel control and it was soon replaced on all the engines with a modified unit.
New ideas were always popping up during training. One of those brilliant ideas was that if we would cover our face shield with red plastic while we were pre-breathing and in the cockpit, we could see more clearly. For some reason, this idea didn't last beyond The Ranch because most of our high altitude flights were made at night.
I flew the U-2 from March 14, 1957 until my last flight in June 1965. I was reassigned to Air Command and Staff College at Maxwell AFB, Alabama. My first reaction after learning of the reassignment was to try to remain in the U-2 cockpit, but the upper level brass held their ground and off I went to school. Soon after arriving at Maxwell, I felt relief. I really enjoyed the school and being at home with my family without the worry of TDYs. It almost felt like a vacation after those eight action-filled years in the cockpit.