It is packed with the latest surveillance technology but U2 'Dragon Lady' spy planes need a good old-fashioned car to help them land on the runway. This is because the plane offers 'extremely limited visibility' when landing.
A video released by the United States Air Force explains the role of the 'mobile officers' who talk the pilot down from 10-foot above the runway. You can see the video at the top of this article.
U2 spy planes have been based at RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire and have recently been joined by huge B52 Stratofortress bombers. A number of pre-planned exercises have been carried out in the Arctic and across Europe.
But the presence of USAF and RAF aircraft in the skies have also been adding to the Nato deterrent following Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The video shows interviews with USAF captains who are with the 99 Expeditionary Reconnaissance Squadron.
It also explains the need for two pilots for every flight of the planes. According to the U.S. Air Force the U-2 has the “widely accepted title as the most difficult aircraft in the world to fly."
Routinely flown at altitudes over 70,000 feet, the U-2 pilot must wear a full pressure suit similar to those worn by astronauts. A second pilot is needed in case the pilot becomes ill or some incident means they are unable to fly.
There has been renewed interest in military flights by the USAF and the RAF since Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Most of the flights are pre-planned and not directly linked to the conflict.
The U2 history
Built in complete secrecy by Kelly Johnson and the Lockheed Skunk Works, the original U-2A first flew in August 1955, the USAF says. Early flights over the Soviet Union in the late 1950s provided the president and other U.S. decision makers with key intelligence on Soviet military capability.
In October 1962, the U-2 photographed the buildup of Soviet offensive nuclear missiles in Cuba, touching off the Cuban Missile Crisis. In more recent times, the U-2 has provided intelligence during operations in Korea, the Balkans, Afghanistan, and Iraq.
When requested, the U-2 also provides peacetime reconnaissance in support of disaster relief from floods, earthquakes, and forest fires as well as search and rescue operations.
U-2s are home based at the 9th Reconnaissance Wing, Beale Air Force Base, California, but are rotated to operational detachments worldwide. U-2 pilots are trained at Beale using five two-seat aircraft designated as TU-2S before deploying for operational missions.
Primary function : high-altitude reconnaissance
Contractor : Lockheed Martin Aeronautics
Thrust : 17,000 pounds
Wingspan : 105 feet (32 meters)
Length : 63 feet (19.2 meters)
Height : 16 feet (4.8 meters)
Weight : 16,000 pounds
Fuel capacity : 2,950 gallons
Payload : 5,000 pounds
Speed : 410 mph
Range: more than 7,000 miles (6,090 nautical miles)
Ceiling : above 70,000 feet (21,212+ meters)
Crew : one (two in trainer models)
Unit cost : classified
Initial operating capability : 1956
Inventory : active force, 33 (5 two-seat trainers and two ER-2s operated by NASA); Reserve, 0; ANG, 0
