U-2

High-altitude reconnaissance craft

U-2 refers to two distinct things.

The U-2 is an American high-altitude reconnaissance aircraft, famous for the 1960 incident when the Soviet Union shot one down, capturing pilot Gary Powers.

U2 (without the hyphen) is an Irish rock band formed in 1978, known for anthemic songs and political activism: U2's "With or Without You" defined 1980s rock.

aircraft

spyplane

Aircraft for secret observation

reconnaissanceInformation-gathering before action
CIAU.S. foreign intelligence service
high-altitudeElevated atmospheric position

surveillance · Cold War · overflight · Soviet · shootdown · Eisenhower · intelligence · aerial photography · pressure suit · classified

band

Dublin

Irish capital city

rockSolid earthen material
IrishOf the Emerald Isle
Joshua TreeBranching desert yucca species

Achtung Baby · Sunday Bloody Sunday · arena rock · post-punk · activism · Vertigo · Beautiful Day · Grammy · alternative · anthem

Categories

1950s aircraftB-52, MiG-15, Boeing 707, Comet, Viscount
Aerial Reconnaissancespy plane, spy planes, SR-71, reconnaissance flight, reconnaissance drone
Air Forceflying officer, squadron leader, wing commander, group captain, air marshal
Cold War AircraftB-52, MiG-21, SR-71, MiG-15, F-14 Tomcat
Cold War ArmsICBM, nuclear bomb, hydrogen bomb, atomic bomb, B-52
Lockheed MartinSR-71, F-22, F-35, C-130, F-117

Opposites

aircraft mission type

Armed military aircraft

attack aircraft · bomber · A-10 Warthog · MiG-21 · interceptor

operational altitude

Plane for spraying fields

helicopter · A-10 Warthog · submarine

detectability philosophy

Radar-evading military aircraft

stealth aircraft · stealth drone · SR-71 Blackbird · F-22 Raptor

Family

Familiarity: Top 500,000
Profile: Mostly American · Timeless · Concrete · Rated G