Powers Down: The 60th Anniversary Of The U-2 Spy Plane Incident

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All RFE/RL sites Search site logo site logo All RFE/RL websites Follow RFE/RL on Google Search site logo site logo Previous Next Breaking News Photo Galleries Powers Down: The 60th Anniversary Of The U-2 Spy Plane Incident May 01, 2020 07:47 CET
  • By Kateryna Oliynyk and
  • Stuart Greer
Sixty years ago, Soviet Air Defense Forces shot down a U.S. spy plane piloted by Francis Gary Powers as he was on a photographic-reconnaissance mission deep inside the U.S.S.R. The single-seat U-2 aircraft was hit by a surface-to-air missile on May 1, 1960, and crashed near what is today Yekaterinburg. Powers parachuted to safety but was captured and sentenced to 10 years in prison. The incident caused an international furor and Powers was later exchanged for Soviet spy Rudolf Abel in 1962. It was the last time the United States used a U-2 spy plane over the Soviet Union as satellites performed the same function after 1961.
After U.S. pilot Francis Gary Powers was shot down over the Soviet Union, the United States tried to cover up his spying mission. NASA issued a press release claiming the U-2 aircraft was conducting weather research and that it had strayed off course after the pilot reported difficulties with his oxygen equipment. To bolster the cover-up, a U-2 plane was quickly painted with NASA markings and a fictitious serial number. It was put on display for the news media on May 6, 1960, at the NASA Flight Research Center at Edwards Air Force Base. 
1 After U.S. pilot Francis Gary Powers was shot down over the Soviet Union, the United States tried to cover up his spying mission. NASA issued a press release claiming the U-2 aircraft was conducting weather research and that it had strayed off course after the pilot reported difficulties with his oxygen equipment. To bolster the cover-up, a U-2 plane was quickly painted with NASA markings and a fictitious serial number. It was put on display for the news media on May 6, 1960, at the NASA Flight Research Center at Edwards Air Force Base.
Powers' mission was to photograph secret Soviet military installations, including the cosmodromes in Baikonur and Plesetsk. He took off on May 1 from a military base in northern Pakistan and was supposed to land in Norway. Shortly after flying over Mayak, a facility for processing plutonium near Chelyabinsk, Powers was shot down by a surface-to-air missile.
2 Powers' mission was to photograph secret Soviet military installations, including the cosmodromes in Baikonur and Plesetsk. He took off on May 1 from a military base in northern Pakistan and was supposed to land in Norway. Shortly after flying over Mayak, a facility for processing plutonium near Chelyabinsk, Powers was shot down by a surface-to-air missile.
Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev shakes his fist and demands an apology from the United States at a news conference on May 18, 1960, in Paris. The U.S. spy plane was shot down about two weeks before a summit of East-West leaders in the French capital. The meeting between Khrushchev, U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower, French President Charles de Gaulle, and British Prime Minister Harold Macmillan collapsed and led to an increase in Cold War tensions.
3 Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev shakes his fist and demands an apology from the United States at a news conference on May 18, 1960, in Paris. The U.S. spy plane was shot down about two weeks before a summit of East-West leaders in the French capital. The meeting between Khrushchev, U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower, French President Charles de Gaulle, and British Prime Minister Harold Macmillan collapsed and led to an increase in Cold War tensions.
Three months after being shot down, Powers (right) appeared in the dock of the Supreme Court of the U.S.S.R. and was tried by the Soviet Military Board on August 19, 1960. Powers was a Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) officer. He was convicted of espionage and sentenced to 10 years in prison.
4 Three months after being shot down, Powers (right) appeared in the dock of the Supreme Court of the U.S.S.R. and was tried by the Soviet Military Board on August 19, 1960. Powers was a Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) officer. He was convicted of espionage and sentenced to 10 years in prison.
Soviet authorities put what they said was the wreckage of the downed U-2 spy plane on display at an exhibit in Moscow's Gorky Park. Powers was forced to inspect the debris.
5 Soviet authorities put what they said was the wreckage of the downed U-2 spy plane on display at an exhibit in Moscow's Gorky Park. Powers was forced to inspect the debris.
The Soviet public inspects photos of Powers. The photos were on display at an exhibit in Moscow's Gorky Park on May 11, 1960.
6 The Soviet public inspects photos of Powers. The photos were on display at an exhibit in Moscow's Gorky Park on May 11, 1960.
Khrushchev examines the wreckage from the U-2 spy plane.
7 Khrushchev examines the wreckage from the U-2 spy plane.
During his trial, Powers' helmet, pressure suit, and parachute were presented as physical evidence that he was a U.S. spy.
8 During his trial, Powers' helmet, pressure suit, and parachute were presented as physical evidence that he was a U.S. spy.
Powers' equipment on display at his trial in August 1960.
9 Powers' equipment on display at his trial in August 1960.
People look at photos from Powers' trial on a TASS information board.
10 People look at photos from Powers' trial on a TASS information board.
The Hall of Columns in Moscow's House of Unions was the ornate setting for Powers' trial.
11 The Hall of Columns in Moscow's House of Unions was the ornate setting for Powers' trial.
Powers walks into the hall to hear the Soviet prosecutor's speech during an open session of his trial in August 1960.
12 Powers walks into the hall to hear the Soviet prosecutor's speech during an open session of his trial in August 1960.
A Moscow policeman watches a crowd gathered outside the House of Unions in Moscow on August 17, 1960, for the opening of the espionage trial.
13 A Moscow policeman watches a crowd gathered outside the House of Unions in Moscow on August 17, 1960, for the opening of the espionage trial.
Muscovites gather in front of the House of Unions in Moscow on August 18, 1960, waiting for a glimpse of members of the Powers family as they arrive for the second day of hearings.
14 Muscovites gather in front of the House of Unions in Moscow on August 18, 1960, waiting for a glimpse of members of the Powers family as they arrive for the second day of hearings.
Powers' wife, Barbara (left), is accompanied by her lawyer, Alexander Parker, and her mother, Monteen Brown, as she arrives for her husband's trial.
15 Powers' wife, Barbara (left), is accompanied by her lawyer, Alexander Parker, and her mother, Monteen Brown, as she arrives for her husband's trial.
Powers sits in the dock in the Hall of Columns. Immediately in front of Powers is his defense counsel, Mikhail Griniev. In the foreground at left are the judges: three high-ranking Soviet officers. Just in front of their bench is equipment said to have been carried by Powers in his plane.
16 Powers sits in the dock in the Hall of Columns. Immediately in front of Powers is his defense counsel, Mikhail Griniev. In the foreground at left are the judges: three high-ranking Soviet officers. Just in front of their bench is equipment said to have been carried by Powers in his plane.
Powers (right) listens to the verdict being read on August 20, 1960. Powers pleaded guilty and was convicted. He was handed a 10-year sentence and was expected to serve the first three years in jail and the remainder in a labor camp.  
17 Powers (right) listens to the verdict being read on August 20, 1960. Powers pleaded guilty and was convicted. He was handed a 10-year sentence and was expected to serve the first three years in jail and the remainder in a labor camp.
Powers did not serve his full 10-year sentence. Brooklyn attorney James B. Donovan (center) played a big role in freeing Powers. The influential lawyer negotiated a swap for convicted Soviet spy Rudolf Abel in 1962.
18 Powers did not serve his full 10-year sentence. Brooklyn attorney James B. Donovan (center) played a big role in freeing Powers. The influential lawyer negotiated a swap for convicted Soviet spy Rudolf Abel in 1962.
Rudolf Abel (center) was arrested in August 1957 and later convicted of being a Soviet spy. Abel had been a nine-year resident of Brooklyn, New York, where he had posed as an artist. On February 10, 1962, Abel was secretly exchanged for Powers on the Glienicke bridge between West Berlin and Potsdam.
19 Rudolf Abel (center) was arrested in August 1957 and later convicted of being a Soviet spy. Abel had been a nine-year resident of Brooklyn, New York, where he had posed as an artist. On February 10, 1962, Abel was secretly exchanged for Powers on the Glienicke bridge between West Berlin and Potsdam.
The Glienicke bridge between West Berlin and East Germany where the exchange took place. The spy swap inspired the 2015 film Bridge Of Spies, directed by Steven Spielberg.
20

The Glienicke bridge between West Berlin and East Germany where the exchange took place. The spy swap inspired the 2015 film Bridge Of Spies, directed by Steven Spielberg.
A smiling Powers in Washington, D.C., on February 11, 1962, three hours after his return to the United States.
21 A smiling Powers in Washington, D.C., on February 11, 1962, three hours after his return to the United States.
Powers (left) testifies before the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee in Washington on March 6, 1962.
22 Powers (left) testifies before the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee in Washington on March 6, 1962.
After returning to the United States, Powers worked as a test pilot at Lockheed from 1962 to 1970. He later became a helicopter pilot and traffic reporter for KNBC News in Los Angeles. Here, Powers files a traffic report for the radio station in 1973.
23 After returning to the United States, Powers worked as a test pilot at Lockheed from 1962 to 1970. He later became a helicopter pilot and traffic reporter for KNBC News in Los Angeles. Here, Powers files a traffic report for the radio station in 1973.
Powers and his cameraman died on August 1, 1977, when their news helicopter crashed. They were covering local bushfires for KNBC when the chopper that Powers was piloting plunged into a field.
24 Powers and his cameraman died on August 1, 1977, when their news helicopter crashed. They were covering local bushfires for KNBC when the chopper that Powers was piloting plunged into a field.
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Kateryna Oliynyk

Kateryna Oliynyk is a digital-media coordinator for RFE/RL.

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Stuart Greer

Stuart Greer is a multimedia editor for RFE/RL. With 25 years of experience as a broadcast journalist, he has reported from more than 30 countries covering a wide range of topics, including the conflicts in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Georgia, disasters in the Philippines and Hungary, international summits, and the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics. Before joining RFE/RL in 2015, he was European bureau chief and foreign correspondent for Canada's Global News in London.

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