aviation

T

he U-2, nicknamed ‘Dragon Lady’,

is steeped in intrigue – after three

separate production runs it is still

gathering intelligence more than

six decades on from its  rst  ight in 1955.

It operates in direct support of national

command authorities and was previously

 own by the CIA and later the USAF. The

work of this legendary aircraft is still mostly

top secret.

In 1976, the 99th Strategic

Reconnaissance Squadron (99th SRS)

joined the 9th Strategic Reconnaissance

Wing (9th SRW) at Beale AFB, California. It

was (at the time) the sole U-2 operational

squadron, which then had nine of the

original 12 U-2R models, a handful of U-2Cs

and a pair of U-2CT two-seat trainers. The

99th became a sister squadron to the 1st

SRS (SR-71 Blackbird) and two KC-

tanker support squadrons, the 349th and

350th Air Refueling Squadrons.

THE GAUNTLET

Both the 99th and 1st were unique within

the USAF in many ways. They were the only

‘selectively manned’, ‘special duty’  ying

assignments of that time. This meant that

U-2 pilots who volunteered were selected

by the squadron using protocols dictated by

the most rigorous standards. Each applicant

needed a minimum of 2,500  ying hours

with 1,500 of those as a military pilot-in-

command in two different aircraft types, and

at least 1,000 hours on jets.

A pilot’s application, containing career

officer efficiency reports,  ying evaluations,

medical records and commander’s

recommendations were scrutinised by an

acceptance board of senior U-2 pilots in

the squadron. Those who passed muster

were invited out for a challenging two-week

interview process. On arrival they underwent

intense scrutiny from the wing staff,  ying

evaluation and medical review boards as well

as the small fraternity of U-2 pilots. Only if

these face-to-face evaluations were deemed

acceptable was the applicant offered up to

three  ights in one of the two U-2CTs, to

determine their suitability for long duration

high-altitude  ights in a con ned cockpit. This

version of the aircraft was nicknamed the

‘two-headed goat’. They were fabricated from

three crashed U-2Cs with the second cockpit

placed in the camera bay (‘Q-Bay’) behind

and elevated, giving the effect of growing a

second head. The goat reference stems from

these aircraft being painted white and also

referred to the difficulty in landing the U-

which, combined with the inexperience of

new pilots, occasionally led to them ending up

in the grass beside the runway: if the aircraft

departed the runway it was common to hear

“the two-headed goat has gone grazing”!

Pilots needed to have the ability to land

the universally recognised ‘most dangerous

aircraft in the world’ on its bicycle landing

gear after stalling at exactly 2ft (0.6m) above

the runway. The interview process would be

terminated when applicants stopped showing

progression in learning this challenging task.

Only if they proved adaptable were they then

subjected to a psychological evaluation,

followed by a day-long astronaut’s physical

that could eliminate a pilot. Having run the

gauntlet successfully to this point, and with

the critical acceptance of all the U-2 pilots

determine their suitability for long duration

Lt Col Rick Bishop (ret’d) recounts his odyssey within the top-secret

world of the U-2 and his time as command offi cer of the only operational

squadron of this unusual intelligence gathering aircraft.

18

DRAGON

U-2 SQUADRON

Aviation News incorporating Jets November 2018

DRAGON

U-2 SQUADRON COMMANDER

Main photo: A U-2R with an ASARS II nose and

Det 2 ‘Black Cat’ logo on the tail just prior to

touching down at Osan AB in South Korea.

Peter R Foster

Inset: A 99th SRS patch worn by pilots on their

standard issue  ight suits. Author’s Archives