Francis Gary Powers with a model of the U-2.

Francis "Frank" Gary Powers (August 17, 1929 – August 1, 1977) Capt. USAF; was an American pilot whose U-2 spy plane was shot down while over the Soviet Union, thus causing the U-2 Crisis of 1960. Image File history File links Francis-Gary-Powers_model_nasm. ... Image File history File links Francis-Gary-Powers_model_nasm. ... August 17 is the 229th day of the year (230th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1929 (MCMXXIX) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... August 1 is the 213th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (214th in leap years), with 152 days remaining. ... For the album by Ash, see 1977 (album). ... Captain is a nautical term, an organizational title, and a rank in various uniformed organizations. ... The United States Air Force (USAF) is the aerial-warfare branch of the United States armed forces and one of the seven uniformed services. ... For other uses, see Aviator (disambiguation). ... The Lockheed U-2, nicknamed Dragon Lady, is a single-seat, single-engine, high-altitude aircraft flown by the United States Air Force. ... The U–2 Crisis of 1960 occurred when an American U–2 spy plane was shot down over the Soviet Union. ...

He was born in Jenkins, Kentucky and was raised in Pound, Virginia, on the Virginia-Kentucky border. After graduating from Milligan College in Eastern Tennessee, Gary was commissioned in the United States Air Force in 1950. Upon completing his training (52-H) he was assigned to the 468th Strategic Fighter Squadron at Turner Air Force Base, Georgia as an F-84 Thunderjet pilot. He was assigned to operations in the Korean War, but (according to his son) was recruited by the CIA because of his outstanding record in single engine jet aircraft, soon after recovering from an illness. He left the Air Force with the rank of captain in 1956, to join the CIA U-2 program. Jenkins is a city located in Letcher County, Kentucky. ... Pound is a town located in Wise County, Virginia. ... Official language(s) English Capital Richmond Largest city Virginia Beach Area  Ranked 35th  - Total 42,793 sq mi (110,862 km²)  - Width 200 miles (320 km)  - Length 430 miles (690 km)  - % water 7. ... Official language(s) English[1] Capital Frankfort Largest city Louisville Area  Ranked 37th  - Total 40,444 sq mi (104,749 km²)  - Width 140 miles (225 km)  - Length 379 miles (610 km)  - % water 1. ... Milligan College is a church-related liberal arts college founded in 1866 located in Milligan College, Tennessee. ... Official language(s) English Capital Nashville Largest city Memphis Largest metro area Nashville Area  Ranked 36th  - Total 42,169 sq mi (109,247 km²)  - Width 120 miles (195 km)  - Length 440 miles (710 km)  - % water 2. ... The United States Air Force (USAF) is the aerial-warfare branch of the United States armed forces and one of the seven uniformed services. ... 1950 (MCML) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... Turner AFB, 3 January 1964 Turner Air Base is a former United States Air Force base near Albany, Georgia. ... The Republic Aviation F-84 Thunderjet was an American-built turbojet fighter-bomber aircraft. ... Combatants United Nations:  Republic of Korea,  Australia,  Belgium,  Luxembourg,  Canada,  Colombia,  Ethiopia,  France,  Greece,  Luxembourg,  Netherlands,  New Zealand,  Philippines,  South Africa,  Thailand,  Turkey,  United Kingdom,  United States Medical staff:  Denmark,  Australia,  Italy,  Norway,  Sweden Communist states:  Democratic People’s Republic of Korea,  Peoples Republic of China,  Soviet Union Commanders... The CIA Seal The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) is an American intelligence agency, responsible for obtaining and analyzing information about foreign governments, corporations, and individuals, and reporting such information to the various branches of the U.S. Government. ... Jet aircraft are aircraft with jet engines. ... Captain is a nautical term, an organizational title, and a rank in various uniformed organizations. ... 1956 (MCMLVI) was a leap year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Lockheed U-2, nicknamed Dragon Lady, is a single-seat, single-engine, high-altitude aircraft flown by the United States Air Force. ...

U-2 pilots carried out espionage missions over hostile countries including the Soviet Union, systematically photographing military installations and other important intelligence targets. Powers' U-2, which was stationed at Incirlik Air Base, Turkey, was shot down by a surface-to-air missile on May 1, 1960 over Sverdlovsk; he was convicted of espionage against the Soviet Union and sentenced to three years imprisonment and seven years of hard labor. However, on February 10, 1962, twenty-one months after his capture, he was exchanged along with American student Frederic Pryor in a spy swap for Soviet KGB Colonel Vilyam Fisher (aka Rudolf Abel) at the Glienicke Bridge in Potsdam, Germany. Espionage (spying) is a practice of obtaining information about an organization or a society that is considered secret or confidential without the permission of the holder of the information. ... The İncirlik Air Base, an important regional storage center in NATOs Southern Region is located in İncirlik, 12 km east of Adana, Turkeys fourth largest city, and 56 km from the Mediterranean Sea (, ). Its ICAO airport code is LTAG. The airbase has a United States Air Force (USAF... Akash Missile Firing French Air Force Crotale battery Bendix Rim-8 Talos surface to air missile of the US Navy A surface-to-air missile (SAM) is a missile designed to be launched from the ground to destroy aircraft. ... May 1 is the 121st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (122nd in leap years). ... 1960 (MCMLX) was a leap year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1960 calendar). ... Snow-covered statue of Sverdlov in Yekaterinburg Yekaterinburgs Church on the Blood built on the spot where the Tsar and his family were executed. ... Hard Labor is the eleventh album by American rock band Three Dog Night, released in 1974 (see 1974 in music). ... February 10 is the 41st day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1962 (MCMLXII) was a common year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1962 calendar). ... The KGB emblem and motto: The sword and the shield KGB (transliteration of КГБ) is the Russian-language abbreviation for Committee for State Security, (Russian: ; Komitet Gosudarstvennoy Bezopasnosti). ... Colonel (IPA: or ) is a military rank of a commissioned officer, with the corresponding ranks existing in nearly every country in the world. ... Col. ... The famous Glienicke bridge in Berlin, used for exchange of spies during the Cold War View from Potsdam through Jungfernsee The Glienicke bridge is a bridge in Berlin which spans the Havel River to connect the cities of Berlin and Potsdam. ... Potsdam is the capital city of the federal state of Brandenburg in Germany. ...

Wooden U-2 model - one of two used by Powers when he testified to the Senate Committee. The wings and tail are detachable to demonstrate the aircraft's breakup upon impact.

On his return to the U.S., Powers was criticized for having failed to activate his aircraft's self-destruct charge to destroy the camera, photographic film, and related classified parts of his aircraft before capture. In addition, others criticized him for deciding not to use an optional CIA-issued suicide pin. This pin, which was concealed in a hollowed out silver dollar, could be used to avoid pain and suffering in case of torture. After being debriefed extensively by the CIA, Lockheed, and the USAF, on March 6, 1962 he appeared before a Senate Armed Services Select Committee hearing chaired by Senator Richard Russell and including Senators Prescott Bush and Barry Goldwater, Sr. During the proceeding it was determined that Powers followed orders, did not divulge any critical information to the Soviets, and conducted himself "as a fine young man under dangerous circumstances." Model of U2 flown by Gary Powers. ... Model of U2 flown by Gary Powers. ... A self-destruct is a mechanism which causes a device to destroy itself under a predefined set of circumstances. ... Large format camera lens. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... A typical classified document. ... Suicide (from Latin sui caedere, to kill oneself) is the willful act of killing oneself. ... Dollar coins have been minted in the United States in both gold and silver versions. ... Torture is defined by the United Nations Convention Against Torture as any act by which severe pain or suffering, whether physical or mental, is intentionally inflicted on a person for such purposes as obtaining from him or a third person information or a confession, punishing him for an act he... March 6 is the 65th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (66th in Leap years). ... 1962 (MCMLXII) was a common year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1962 calendar). ... Richard Russell, Jr. ... Prescott Sheldon Bush (May 15, 1895 — October 8, 1972) was a United States Senator from Connecticut and a Wall Street executive banker with Brown Brothers Harriman. ... Barry Morris Goldwater (January 1, 1909 – May 29, 1998[1]) was a five-term United States Senator from Arizona (1953–1965, 1969–87) and the Republican Partys nominee for President in the 1964 election. ...

After his return, Powers worked for Lockheed as a test pilot from 1963 to 1970. In 1970, he co-wrote a book about the Incident, called Operation Overflight: A Memoir of the U-2 Incident. He died in a helicopter crash in Los Angeles on August 1, 1977, while working as a helicopter reporter for television station KNBC. The crash of his helicopter was apparently caused by a malfunctioning fuel gauge which had been repaired without his knowledge. Survived by his wife Sue, and two children Dee and Francis Gary Jr., he was buried in Arlington National Cemetery. The Lockheed SR-71, remarkably advanced for its time and unsurpassed in many areas of performance The Lockheed U-2 first flew in 1955 providing much needed intelligence on Soviet bloc countries Lockheed Corporation was an aerospace company founded in 1912 which merged with Martin Marietta in 1995 to form... 1963 (MCMLXIII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (the link is to a full 1963 calendar). ... 1970 (MCMLXX) was a common year starting on Thursday. ... The Bell 206 of Canadian Helicopters Robinson Helicopter Company (USA) R44, a four seat development of the R22 A helicopter is an aircraft which is lifted and propelled by one or more horizontal rotors consisting of two or more rotor blades. ... Nickname: City of Angels Location within Los Angeles County in the state of California Coordinates: State California County Los Angeles County Incorporated April 4, 1850 Government  - Type mayor-council  - Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa (D)  - City Attorney Rocky Delgadillo  - Governing body City Council Area  - City  465. ... August 1 is the 213th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (214th in leap years), with 152 days remaining. ... For the album by Ash, see 1977 (album). ... KNBC, NBC4, is the NBC-owned and operated station in Los Angeles and the networks West Coast flagship. ... A fuel gauge (or gas gauge) is an instrument used to indicate the level of fuel contained in a tank. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ...

In 1998, information was declassified revealing that Powers' fateful mission had actually been a joint USAF/CIA operation. In 2000, on the 40th anniversary of Powers being shot down, his family was finally presented with his posthumously awarded Prisoner of War Medal, Distinguished Flying Cross and National Defense Service Medal. 1998 (MCMXCVIII) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year of the Ocean [1]. // Coated in ice, power and telephone lines sag and often break, resulting in power outages. ... 2000 (MM) was a leap year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Prisoner of War Medal The Prisoner of War Medal was authorized by Congress and signed into law by President Ronald Reagan in 1986. ... The Distinguished Flying Cross. ... The National Defense Service Medal is a military decoration of the United States military and was the brainchild of President Dwight D. Eisenhower. ...

When asked how high he was flying on May 1, 1960, he would often reply, "not high enough." May 1 is the 121st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (122nd in leap years). ... 1960 (MCMLX) was a leap year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1960 calendar). ...

Cultural references

• Francis Gary Powers was mentioned several times in the 1991 film Final Approach starring James Sikking (Hill Street Blues) and Hector Elizondo (Pretty Woman).
• Francis Gary Powers was portrayed by Lee Majors in a 1976 movie, Francis Gary Powers: The True Story of the U-2 Spy Incident that dramatized the incident of 1960.
• Francis Gary Powers was the subject of the song "Ballad Of Francis Powers (There's a Star Spangled Banner Waving Somewhere)" recorded by Red River Dave (Dave McEnery) in 1960.

1991 (MCMXCI) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... James Barrie Sikking (born March 5, 1934 in Los Angeles, California, USA) is an American actor who is best known for his role as Lt. ... Hill Street Blues was a serial police drama that first aired on NBC in 1981 and ran for 146 episodes on primetime into 1987. ... Hector Elizondo (born December 22, 1936 in New York City) is a Puerto Rican-American actor. ... Pretty Woman is an American romantic comedy motion picture that was one of the top films at the box office in 1990. ... Lee Majors as Steve Austin, The Six Million Dollar Man Lee Majors (born Harvey Lee Yeary on April 23, 1939 in Wyandotte, Michigan) is an American actor, best known for playing the part of Steve Austin, a former astronaut with bionic limbs, in the television series The Six Million Dollar... One of the most popular war songs, written during World War II is Paul Roberts and Shelby Carnells (Bob Miller) Theres A Star-Spangled Banner Waving Somewhere. ...

External links

• CIA FOIA documents on Gary Powers
• Transcripts of the Soviet court trial (in Russian)

Further reading

• Nigel West, Seven Spies Who Changed the World. London: Secker & Warburg, 1991 (hard cover). London: Mandarin, 1992 (paperback).
• Francis Gary Powers, Curt Gentry, Operation Overflight. Hodder & Stoughton Ltd, 1971 (hard cover) ISBN 978-0340148235. Potomac Book, 2002 (paperback) ISBN 978-1574884227.