Page 8 - Edwards AFB Desert Wings 8-28-15
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Desert Wings August 28, 2015
8 www.aerotechnews.com/edwardsafb facebook.com/EdwardsDesertWings
DRAGON LADY, from 1 8SLORWVULJKWRXWRIÀLJKWWUDLQ- When that’s done, the Lockheed $LU)RUFHSKRWRJUDSKE\$LUPDQVW&ODVV%REE\&XPPLQJV
ing. Trained pilots from all differ- SLORWVZLOOÀ\LWRQDFRXSOHVRUWLHV
On Oct. 14, 1962, Maj. Richard ent backgrounds must put in some to make sure it’s good, and once $ELJSDUWRIWKH8¶VORQJHYLW\LVWUDFHGEDFNKHUHWRWKHKLJKGHVHUW$OO
time before applying to become a they sign it off, I’ll go fly it and U-2s are sent to U.S. Air Force Plant 42 in Palmdale, Calif., to undergo
S. Heyser took off from Edwards 8SLORW8SLORWVFDQEH¿JKWHU buy it back for the Air Force and maintenance, upgrades and refurbishing.
pilots, tanker pilots and/or helicop- UHWXUQLWWRWKHÀHHW´
AFB in a U-2C borrowed from ter pilots.
U-2s are home based at the 9th
the CIA and flew to the Gulf of -HWKURKDVEHHQÀ\LQJ8VIRU Reconnaissance Wing at Beale Air
about nine years and remembered Force Base, Calif., but are rotated
Mexico. He then made a photo- ZKHQKH¿UVWGHFLGHGWRDSSO\WR to operational detachments world-
become a U-2 pilot. wide. U-2 pilots are trained at
reconnaissance run over Cuba. %HDOHXVLQJ¿YHWZRVHDWDLUFUDIW
“At the time it looked really ex- designated as TU-2S before de-
The photos revealed the presence citing, it looked completely differ- ploying for operational missions.
ent than any other airframe in the
of Russian medium-range strategic Air Force and it was an opportu- Built in complete secrecy by
nity to be a part of a more select Kelly Johnson and Lockheed
missiles and launchers, which were group; so it’s been a lot of fun.” Skunk Works, the original U-2A
first flew in August 1955. Early
sent to Washington, D.C., thus ig- A big part of the U-2’s longev- flights over the Soviet Union in
ity is traced back here to the high the late 1950s provided the presi-
niting The Cuban Missile Crisis. desert. According to Jethro, all dent and other U.S. decision mak-
5RXWLQHO\ÀRZQDWDOWLWXGHVRYHU U-2s are sent to Plant 42 to un- ers with key intelligence on Soviet
dergo maintenance, upgrades and military capability. As mentioned,
70,000 feet, the U-2 pilot must refurbishing. an Edwards AFB U-2 photo-
graphed the buildup of Soviet of-
wear a full pressure suit similar “Our main job is sensor test; fensive nuclear missiles in Cuba,
we test out any sensor that Lock- touching off the Cuban Missile
to those worn by astronauts. The heed, or whoever, wants to put on Crisis. In more recent times, the
the jet,” said Jethro. “As the pro- U-2 has provided intelligence dur-
low-altitude handling character- JUDPRI¿FHEX\VQHZVHQVRUVDQG ing operations in Korea, the Bal-
equipment for the U-2, our job is to kans, Afghanistan and Iraq. When
istics of the aircraft and bicycle- PDNHVXUHLW¶VSURSHUO\¿WWHGDQG requested, the U-2 also provides
operates properly before we send peacetime reconnaissance in sup-
type landing gear require precise LWLQWRWKH¿HOG´ SRUWRIGLVDVWHUUHOLHIIURPÀRRGV
earthquakes, and forest fires as
control inputs during landing; for- The U-2 program at Plant 42 well as search and rescue opera-
also conducts depot maintenance, tions.
ward visibility is also limited due which the Air Force has a contract
with Lockheed Martin to complete. Editor’s note: Information in-
to the extended aircraft nose and cluded in this article provided
³WDLOGUDJJHU´FRQ¿JXUDWLRQ7KHVH “Every six to seven years each courtesy of the Air Force Test Cen-
[U-2] is brought in. The wings are WHU+LVWRU\2I¿FH
characteristics combine to earn the taken off, the engines and all the
electronics pulled out; it’s com-
U-2 a widely accepted title as the pletely stripped of paint; every-
PRVWGLI¿FXOWDLUFUDIWLQWKHZRUOG thing is gone through and repaired
WRÀ\ and completely put back together.
“The uniqueness of the aircraft,
its difficulty to fly, and the fact
that all the pilots are interviewed
and hand-selected, is extremely
unique,” said Maj. Jethro, U-2
ÀLJKWWHVWFRPPDQGHUDQGJRYHUQ-
PHQWÀLJKWUHSUHVHQWDWLYHIRUWKH
program depot maintenance con-
tract for Lockheed Martin at Air
Force Plant 42 in Palmdale, Calif.
“The biggest difference when you
FRPHWRÀ\8VLVWKHVSDFHVXLW
$OORIRXUÀLJKWVDERYHDUH
performed in the full pressure suit
and makes things just a little more
GLI¿FXOW´
Air Force pilots cannot become
A mobile chase car
pursues a TU-2S
Dragon Lady at
%HDOH$LU)RUFH
%DVH&DOLI-DQ
2014. Mobile chase
cars accelerate
to speeds more
than 100 mph to
guide the aircraft
during takeoffs and
landings.
$LU)RUFHSKRWRJUDSKE\$LUPDQVW&ODVV%REE\&XPPLQJV
