The U-2 Incident
Russian People Viewing U-2 Spy Plane Wreckage. (Original Caption) This photo, officially released in Moscow, shows the Russian people viewing the wreckage of Turkey-based US U-2 reconnaissance plane shot down over Soviet territory May 1st. The pilot was identified as Francis Gary Powers, 30, of Albany, Georgia.
On May 1, 1960, Powers set off from an American base in Pakistan on a highly important mission; it was to be the United States’ first attempt to fly the entire length of the Soviet Union, taking various photographs and gathering intelligence along the way. The mission was seen as a risky one, and those risks proved to be very real when Powers’ aircraft was shot down by an S-75 Dvina missile. Powers ejected himself from the U-2 but didn’t have time to activate the aircraft’s self-destruct function. He was also equipped with a poisoned needle to commit suicide in case of capture but hoped he might be rescued, so he decided not to use it.