FURTHER DETAILS ON DONATION OF U-2 TO AIR & SPACE MUSEUM

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP90B00170R000200230040-4
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: December 21, 2016
• Document Release Date: May 29, 2008
• Sequence Number: 40
• Publication Date: December 8, 1981
• Content Type: MEMO

Approved For Release 2008/05/29: CIA-RDP90B00170R000200230040-4
8th December, 1981
SUBJECT Further Details on Donation of U-2
to Air E Space Museum
My Memo of 3rd December to DDS$T,
"Prospective Declassification of
U-2 Hardware."
As further to the reference, I have confirmed the identity
of the U-2C located in Palmdale, which I would propose
selecting for the subject donation. It is Article 347, now
marked as military serial 566680, according to Fred Cavanaugh
of Lockheed. Cavanaugh says that it is extremely doubtful
that it could be flown without an expensive overhaul, and
understandably, Lockheed would like that expense to fall on
someone else.
There are two other U-2s on more-or-less public display.
One, Article 388, procured as a SAC aircraft, is at the Air
Force Museum at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base near Daytcn,
Ohio. No payload is associated with this machine. The other,
Article 389, also a SAC aircraft, is pedestal-mounted near
the gate at March Field, California. It was rebuilt from the
wreckage of the same aircraft and also has no payload features.
Only one of the early U-2s is still in service - Article 368 -
which is with the U-2R detachment at Beale AFB.
I was told yesterday by Jim Cherbonneaux of NASA's High
Altitude Laboratory at Ames in California that Article 388
above was trucked on flatbed trailers from the West Coast to
Wright-Patterson AFB, so that method might well be employed
to get Article 347 back to the Washington area. Cherbonneaux
confirms that NASA has one of the original "B" cameras from
the program, and that is in storage at Ames. An exhibition
at Air F Space Museum would be the first time that the air-
craft and its payload would be displayed together, minus the
various Elint systems of course.
Cavanaugh confirms that the wing and fuselage dollies,
specially built for the U-2, are in storage at Site 2, Palm-
dale and could easily be cleaned up for the trip back East.
I intend to discuss the matter of possible funding for the
trucking of the aircraft with Fred Durant of Air & Space later
this week, to see if they would be able to handle it within
their limited resources.. This need not mean that opportune
airlift has been discarded as a means of moving the bird, but
trucking would probably be more expeditious.
Approved For Release 2008/05/29: CIA-RDP90B00170R000200230040-4