{"product_id":"may-day-eisenhower-kruschev-and-the-u-2-affair","title":"May-Day: Eisenhower, Kruschev and the U-2 Affair","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Michael R. Beschloss\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eRelease Date:\u003c\/b\u003e 01-01-1968\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eDetails:\u003c\/b\u003e Francis Gary Powers, discharged from the USAF in '56 as a captain, joined CIA's U-2 program. U-2s flew at over 70,000', invulnerable to Soviet anti-aircraft weapons, taking high-resolution photos from the stratosphere of military \u0026amp; other sites. Soviet intelligence had been aware of them since '56, but lacked counter-measures 'til '60. Powers’ U-2, which departed from a military airbase in Peshawar, Pakistan \u0026amp; may have received support from the US Air Station at Badaber, was shot down over Sverdlovsk by an S-75 Dvina Surface to Air missile on 5\/1\/60. He was unable to activate a self-destruct mechanism \u0026amp; unwilling to commit suicide before parachuting. Eight S-75 missiles had been launched. The 1st had hit. One hit a MiG-19 intercepter unable to attain sufficient altitude. Pilot Sergey Safronov crashed in a forest rather than bail out \u0026amp; risk crashing into Degtyarsk. A unarmed Su-9 in transit was directed to ram. It failed because of speed differences. When the US government learned of the disappearance, it issued a cover statement claiming a weather pilot had crashed after oxygen difficulties. What CIA didn't realize was that the plane crashed almost intact. Powers was interrogated by the KGB for months before confessing \u0026amp; apologizing. The incident set back talks between Khrushchev \u0026amp; Eisenhower. On 8\/17\/60, he was convicted of espionage \u0026amp; sentenced to 3 years imprisonment \u0026amp; 7 years hard labor. He was held east of Moscow in Vladimirsky Central Prison--now containing a small museum with an exhibit on him--\u0026amp; allegedly got on with prisoners there. On 2\/10\/62, he was exchanged along with American student Frederic Pryor in a publicised spy swap for Soviet KGB Colonel Vilyam Fisher (aka Rudolf Abel), a Soviet colonel who was caught by the FBI \u0026amp; jailed for espionage, at Berlin's Glienicke Bridge.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguages:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding:\u003c\/b\u003e hardcover\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eItem Condition:\u003c\/b\u003e New\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Silk Road Store","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51748705763629,"sku":"0000006231","price":16.96,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0753\/5853\/5981\/files\/91-2Fx7zn-L.jpg?v=1768393311","url":"https:\/\/silkroadstore.us\/products\/may-day-eisenhower-kruschev-and-the-u-2-affair","provider":"Silk Road Store","version":"1.0","type":"link"}