Story and Photography By Jim Roberts
Conceived by Lockheed’s C. L. “Kelly” Johnson and built at his Skunk Works, the U-2 first flew in July 1955 and has served faithfully since. Not your grandfather’s spyplane, many of the current fleet are from a production run in the 1980s, and the original design has seen numerous improvements: The wingspan and fuselage were stretched, a new engine (the F118-GE-101, which also powers the B-2 stealth bomber) was installed in the 1990s, “steam gauges” were replaced by a 21st century glass cockpit, and the cabin has been strengthened to reduce cockpit altitude in cruise from 29,500 feet to 15,000 feet. Celebrating her 70th birthday at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh, the current-generation U-2S Dragon Lady will be on display all week in Boeing Plaza.
Only 1,117 pilots have qualified in the U-2, and each earns a “solo number” marking their accomplishment. Lt. Col. “GoGo” (rank and call sign only) is solo number 1019, and his U-2 landing on Sunday marked a homecoming for the Fond du Lac native. A graduate of the University of Wisconsin – Madison, GoGo entered the Air Force in 2009. Following assignments as a T-6 instructor pilot and a tour in the EC-130H Compass Call aircraft, he was selected for the U-2 program.
After five years in the U-2, he says his favorite thing about flying the Dragon Lady is “the solitude and the unique view you get on the world. Like flights at sunset when you can see the shadow of the sunset … the terminator … and actually watch nightfall happening.” As a former U-2 pilot myself, I couldn’t have said it better. He adds: “Every single time I strap into the jet it’s a privilege. I’m absolutely humbled that I get to fly the Dragon Lady to Oshkosh and have Oshkosh welcome me so graciously and allow me to share it with my family and friends.”
For me, the arrival of U-2 number 80-1076 marked a reunion with an airplane I last flew on July 16, 1986, and I think she’s aged better than I have. So from a personal perspective, I’d like to share some insights into the Dragon Lady:
How does the U-2 compete with satellites? The U-2 boasts some advantages over satellites: Dwell time and flexibility are its strong suits, making it able to loiter near a location for hours and then move to another area of interest when required. More versatile than a satellite, the U-2 is the “Mr. Potato Head” of reconnaissance aircraft, able to carry an interchangeable array of sensors in a package customized to the mission. And most importantly, there’s a pilot on board to make those on-the-spot decisions critical to mission success.
Why is the U-2 so difficult to land, and can you land without the chase car? To save weight and improve altitude capability, the U-2 features a single main landing gear strut with two tires, and a steerable tail wheel. As if that isn’t enough to complicate landing, the 105-foot-long wing just wants to keep flying, and the only acceptable way to land is tail wheel-first in a full stall, from about 2 feet above the runway. Peripheral vision and depth perception are limited from the pressure suit helmet, so for landing, another U-2 pilot in a chase car makes altitude callouts starting at 10 feet above the runway. And yes, you can land safely without the chase car. Pilots are trained for “no-voice” landings, in the event of an unplanned diversion. Bonus fact: There are replaceable metal skid plates on the bottom of each wingtip to absorb the impact when a wing drops after landing.
Does the maintenance crew have to catch the wingtips on landing? Definitely not; they’re good, but not that good! The U-2 features a spring-steel “pogo gear” under each wing that is used during taxi for takeoff. These “pogos” fall out on the runway as the wings rise during takeoff, and the maintenance crew plugs them back into the wings once the bird is fully stopped after landing.
What about that pressure suit? Blood boils at altitudes above 63,000 feet, so if cabin pressure fails, the suit is all that stands between you and the afterlife. At the normal 15,000-feet cabin altitude, the suit stays mostly deflated, mostly providing cooling airflow around the pilot. In the event of a rapid decompression, the suit fully inflates, the pilot does an impressive imitation of the Michelin Man, and life-saving pressure is maintained on the body until descent is possible. Bonus fact: The suits are manufactured by the David Clark Co. in Worcester, Massachusetts (yep, that David Clark), are custom fit to each pilot, and cost over a quarter of a million dollars each.
What’s the “coffin corner?” Let’s start from the ground up. After takeoff, the aircraft climbs at a constant indicated airspeed (IAS), while true airspeed (TAS) increases with altitude gained. As altitude and TAS increase, the programmed cruise Mach is reached, and the aircraft continues to climb at that Mach number, all while IAS gradually decreases in the thinning air.
Cruise is programmed for a speed where IAS won’t drop low enough to cause an aerodynamic stall, and TAS will not exceed the critical Mach number. If you stall, you’ve got your hands full trying to recover, and if critical Mach is exceeded, the aircraft can upset and go out of control. Typically, at the highest altitudes, there’s a window of about 10-20 knots between stall IAS and critical Mach; that’s the coffin corner. Bonus fact: Because the aircraft is such an efficient glider, pilots lower the landing gear when beginning descent. Even so, a normal descent usually takes over 40 minutes.
What does the future hold for this Cold War icon? U-2 retirement plans have been floated for several years, so the future remains cloudy. Lt. Colonel GoGo states, “We continue to do our mission, and will continue to provide that world-class reconnaissance until we are no longer asked to do that anymore.” In the meantime, the latest U-2 pilot, No. 1117, soloed in early July. Personally, I hope he has a long and stellar career in the Dragon Lady.
