The Black Cats of Osan: U-2 Spy Plane Escapades and Calamities in Korea

The U-2's extrasensory intelligence-gathering sensors intercept and redistribute mountains of information to a highly classified ground site in Korea, providing top-secret intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) products to the highest levels of command authority within the United States. The Dragon Lady has been in continuous service for nearly 70 years and has always been considered a National Asset, with technology so sophisticated that it outlasted its replacement decades ago. Lt. Col. (Ret.) Rick Bishop, a former U-2 pilot, takes the reader deep into the Black World of non-satellite ISR to reveal how a small detachment of 100 hand-selected personnel with only eight pilots and two aircraft became the most reliable and productive air force unit to ever utilise the Dragon Lady. The success of Det 2 can only be attributed to the professional pride of the close-knit brotherhood known as the Black Cats of Osan.

Format: Hardback
Length: 288 pages
Publication date: 15 July 2023
Publisher: Casemate Publishers

The U-2's extrasensory intelligence-gathering sensors operate in the darkness at the edge of the Earth's atmosphere, intercepting and redistributing vast amounts of information to a highly classified ground site at Osan Air Base, Korea. From there, top-secret intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) products are distributed to the highest levels of command authority within the United States. Despite its age, the Dragon Lady has been considered a National Asset due to its advanced technology, outlasting its replacement, the SR-71, decades ago. Lt. Col. (Ret.) Rick Bishop, a former U-2 pilot, delves into the Black World of non-satellite ISR to reveal how a small detachment of 100 hand-selected personnel, with only eight pilots and two aircraft, became the most reliable and productive air force unit to ever utilize the Dragon Lady. As second-in-command of Detachment 2 (Det 2) of the 9th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing during the mid-1980s, Rick kept a detailed journal of the daily operations that routinely launched pilots on high-altitude solo missions lasting at least nine hours. Wearing full-pressure suits, these missions took a physiological toll on each pilot, who upon return had to coax the Lady, known for her treacherous landing characteristics, safely back on to the ground along with the often-priceless intelligence-gathering sensors. Although the pilots were the pointy end of the spear, this is also the story of the missions that could not be accomplished without the dedicated effort from enlisted personnel and civilian company tech reps to keep the maintenance-intensive platform in the air. Along with Physiological Support Division personnel, the Dragon Lady's maintenance crew included civilian company tech reps who worked tirelessly to keep the platform operational. Their efforts were critical in ensuring that the Dragon Lady remained a vital asset to the United States Air Force.

Weight: 546g
Dimension: 160 x 236 x 26 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781636243535