I was stationed at Beale AFB from 66-68 with the 456th Avionics Maint. Squadron. The 9th Strategic Recon Wing's Sr-71 was a beautiful aircraft.
I worked on the KC-135 tankers and the BUFs. `
Posted on 06/21/2005 9:40:49 PM PDT by kristinn
WASHINGTON, June 21 - A U-2 spy plane crashed Tuesday night in Southwest Asia, the Defense Department announced, specifying an area where American aircraft support missions in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The crash is the first of a U-2 in that region. Military officials who have been briefed on the crash said early indications were that the plane crashed on landing at Al Dhafra Air Base in the United Arab Emirates, its home base. The were no indications of hostile fire, they said.
The cause of the crash and status of the pilot are not known, the Pentagon said.
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
Interesting bit about the U-2 chase cars in SW Asia: http://www.motortrend.com/features/performance/112_0506_camarou2chaser/
"There is a "Blackbird" on display at the new National Air and Space Museum near Dulles outside Washington, DC."
Also at the Strategic Air Command Museum in Ashland, Nebraska.
I've heard from my buddies at Beale AFB.
Thanks for the concern. Everyone that was with us (at an event) last year is OK. Not much info available yet on what actually happened.
ping to previous message.
No word on cause or pilot name yet.
All SR-71s are retired.
The SR-71s have all been retired. Last flight was back in late 1999.
It is very stealthy. Here is a written transcript of Dick Durbin's apology.
No. The TR-1 designation is now defunct. Has been for many years now. All operational U-2 are of the S model. U-2S for the single seater and TU-2S for the two-seat trainer. NASA operate the U-2 with the designation ER-2.
X ray of Hillary Clinton's heart follows;
I think the hesitancy to mention where the plane went down is interesting in light of the Scott Ritter al Jazeera article this week saying the war with Iran has already begun. Definitely not a conspiracy nut, just thought it was interesting.
You're passing on liberal pipe dreams. Scott made his comments last winter. Here's some of that post:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/1349596/posts?page=1
Posted on 02/23/2005 4:01:38 PM EST by Afghanistanmation
Left-wing websites are reporting that Scott Ritter, a (1) former U.N. Weapons inspector, (2) one-time arrestee for soliciting an underage girl on the Internet, and (3) recipient of $400,000 (from an associate of Saddam Hussein) used to finance an anti-Iraq war film, recently stated at an anti-war "talk" that the Bush Administration has authorized plans to "bomb" Iran in June 2005. Not surprising, the evil/mischievous/mystical "neo-conservatives" are thrilled with this idea and see it as an opportunity to further promote their idealistic agenda democratic reform in the Middle East. Additionally, Ritter put forth that the United States "cooked" the election results in Iraq last month to lessen the percentage gained by the Islamic-leaning United Iraqi Alliance. In an attempt to bolster his credibility, Ritter informed the crowd at his talk that a "Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist in a major metropolitan magazine" will soon corroborate his statements, a description that likely refers to the New Yorker's investigative journalist Seymour Hersh.
So what are the sources of Ritter's information? Like any respectable conspiracy theorist, he relies on shadowy "anonymous" government officials who are "involved in the processes." In all likelihood, this forthcoming piece by an unnamed Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist will substantiate Ritter's claims with additional mysterious government officials, which provides provocative headlines, but contributes little substantive information.
That is a GREAT article.
Thank you for sharing.
More Info....Some new stuff.... (even I didn't know)
U.S. Spy Plane Pilot Dies in Asia Crash
By PATRICK QUINN
BAGHDAD, Iraq - The pilot of a U.S. Air Force U-2 spy plane on a mission in support of American military operations in Afghanistan died in a crash Wednesday while returning to a base in the United Arab Emirates. The military refused to say where the aircraft went down.
U.S. Central Command said the crash occurred in "southwest Asia," a term that can be a substitute for the Middle East.
There has been heavy fighting in southern Afghanistan in recent days, with American fighter planes bombarding rebel hideouts with missiles and bombs, killing up to 76 insurgents in fighting Tuesday and Wednesday.
But the plane did not appear to have gone down there.
"There were no recent coalition air crashes in Afghanistan," said Lt. Col. Jerry O'Hara, a U.S. military spokesman in Afghanistan.
The U-2 is a reconnaissance plane that operates at an altitude of more than 70,000 feet and has been used in every major conflict the United States has fought since the aircraft was developed in the 1950's. Flying beyond the range of most surface-to-air missiles, it was famously shot down in 1960 over the Soviet Union.
The military did not immediately release the location or circumstances of the crash because it did not want to create problems for the nation where the plane went down. Officials also withheld the name of the pilot pending notification of relatives.
According to the military, the crash happened at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday EDT, which would be early Wednesday in the Middle East.
"The specific location is not releasable due to host nation sensitivities," U.S. Air Force Capt. David W. Small, a Central Command spokesman, said in an e-mail.
The e-mail indicated the plane went down in a country whose government is friendly to the United States.
"The site of the crash has been secured to ensure the safety of local citizens and the integrity of the site for investigation team members," a military announcement said.
The one potentially hostile nation in the region, Iran, denied that a U-2 had crashed on its territory. A Revolutionary Guards commander, Gen. Ali Reza Afshar, told The Associated Press he "was not aware" of any reports of a U-2 down in Iran.
In Washington, Lt. Col. Barry Venable, a Pentagon spokesman, said the plane had completed a mission related to Operation Enduring Freedom _ the code name for American operations in Afghanistan _ and crashed while returning to its base.
A U.S. security team was at the site of the crash, he said.
"The Airmen of the 380th Air Expeditionary Wing mourn the loss of a true American hero in the service of his country," said Col. Darryl Burke, the unit's wing commander.
The wing has been based at the al-Dhafra air base near Abu Dhabi, in the United Arab Emirates, since early 2002 in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. It flies various types of aircraft, including aerial refueling tankers and the Global Hawk _ a pilot-less plane about the size of a Boeing 737. Gen. Richard Myers, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, visited the wing in August.
Burke appointed an interim investigation board to determine the cause of the crash. It was not clear when the results of the investigation would be completed.
The U-2 has been used by the United States for decades, and the new model, the U-2S, entered service in 1994 _ 39 years after the first plane went into operation. There are just 36 in the world, 29 being used by the Air Force, five two-seat trainers and two used for high-flying NASA research.
The plane saw extensive use in both Afghanistan and Iraq, before, during and after the war.
In February 2003, then-Secretary of State Colin Powell said Iraq was violating a U.N. resolution by rejecting U-2 reconnaissance flights.
The planes also were used in the 1991 Gulf War, and employed with great success by U.N. weapons inspectors in Iraq in the 1990s to uncover advanced weapons development centers, which were later destroyed.
In January 2003, a U-2 crashed in South Korea. The pilot ejected to safety, but four Koreans on the ground were injured.
A U-2 was shot down May 1, 1960, over Soviet territory while photographing Soviet missile installations. After parachuting to safety, pilot Francis Gary Powers was captured and later convicted as a spy. He was held for almost two years before being traded for a KGB captive.
On the Net:
U.S. Air Force U-2: http://www.af.mil/factsheets/factsheet.asp?fsID129
Are you sure? Looks more like her reflection in a mirror.
I didn't know that. Maybe I'll check it out this weekend.
I was stationed at Beale AFB from 66-68 with the 456th Avionics Maint. Squadron. The 9th Strategic Recon Wing's Sr-71 was a beautiful aircraft.
I worked on the KC-135 tankers and the BUFs. `
VERY cool. I was on the phone with Beale earlier today.
Those guys are awesome. Some FReepers knew I had connections with U2 folk and gave me the names of loved ones who fly the Dragon Lady. I was able to find out all of them were safe.
Still haven't heard who it is or what happened.
On a related note, it's also humorous to read about the amazing surveillance feats people think aircraft like Global Hawk and Predator can perform just because they're UAVs. I've even heard military "experts" on the news channels spout nonsense about these ISR platforms. Obviously misinformed. There's plenty of open source info on all these US assets out there to be read. The so called military experts on the news channels really ought to get their facts straight before they shoot off their mouths about subjects they obviously know little about (or just be quiet).
I have been around U2 and SR71 pilots for a long time. I certainly hope I get more right than wrong.
Yes, the Press could do a better job. They could call me!
;-)
Don't tell anyone, but Alabama has as many battleships as the US Navy. Thrown in the North Carolina and the Texas, and at least 2 carriers, and the Confederate Navy may come close to ranking number 2 in the world. So it is no surprise that they have some high-tech aircraft sitting around.
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