Lockheed U-2 Dragon Lady

WarbirdTech #16

by Dennis R. Jenkins

The U-2 made the Lockheed Skunk Works. Although Lockheed's Clarence L. "Kelly" Johnson was already an established aircraft designer, and what is now known as Skunk Works had conceived and built the XP-80 Shooting Star and XF-104 Starfighter prototypes, it was the CIA's decision to let Lockheed design and build the U-2 that cemented Skink Works' reputation. Much of the U-2's history and current operations remains classified. But the aircraft has been in constant service for over 40 years, and numerous details have made their way into the public domain. The aircraft continues to provide remarkable service even though its demise was predicted 30 years ago when spy satellites became the intelligence community's technology of choice. Interestingly, the Dragon Lady has long outlived its heir apparent, the Mach 3+ A-12 Blackbird, another Kelly Johnson design.

102 pages, Paperback

First published June 4, 1998