Catholic Mingle Review
Although the U2 was not a missile, it was used for high altitude photographs of missile launches. We did not know what it was until after the Gary Powers incident with the crash in Russia.
In 1958 and 1959, U2s were stationed in Puerto Rico and were flown uprange to the Cape Canaveral area prior to a missile launch. After the launch, the U2 would fly back to Puerto Rico. We would track the U2 each direction and an Air Force officer would watch the track and give directions to the pilot.
Our plotting board showed a ground plot of the track and normally showed a plot of the altitude. During the U2 track, we had to tape back the altitude plotting arm to not show altitude. We were not allowed to know how high this airplane was flying.
What the security authorities apparently did not think of was that when the airplane went directly overhead, the range from the radar was nearly the same as altitude. We KNEW how high it was flying and could hardly believe what we saw. The only things we knew of that could go that high were missiles.
After the Gary Powers incident, we then were told what the U2s were. In 1960, I transferred uprange to be a technical writer. We worked in a building at Patrick Air Force Base and the U2s were moved uprange to Patrick AFB. We saw many takeoffs and landings there.
Instead of the typical landing gear, with a nose wheel and two main wheels, one under each wing, the U-2 uses a bicycle configuration, with the forward set of main wheels just behind the cockpit and the rear set of main wheels behind the engine. For taxiing two additional wheels, with a long strut, are placed in sockets on the wing tips. These wheels drop off during the takeoff roll.
In recent times, I have seen the U2 on TV and the two additional wheels for taxiing are called pogos and are now placed about midway from the fuselage to the wingtip, instead of at the wingtip.
During landing, as the speed drops after settling onto the runway, the U2 leans over and one wing tip skids on the runway until the airplane comes to a stop. The ground crew then installs the wing tip wheels and the plane can taxi.
Watching a U2 takeoff was fascinating. The U2 would taxi to the end of the runway with a jeep driving at each wing tip. As the U2 pilot revved the engine, a ground crew member in each jeep stood holding the wing tip, apparently to keep it from lifting and dropping the wing tip wheel.
When the pilot releases the brakes, the plane begins to move. The wing tips begin lifting and the wing tip wheels drop away. After only 100 feet or so, the plane lifts off the runway and almost immediately turns nearly straight up. The U2 climbs nearly straight up until it is almost out of sight.
Copyright © Jerry Blackerby 2009