British pilots flew U-2 missions over Soviet Union

[viking9]

RAF officers flew spying missions over the Soviet Union at the height of the Cold War, it was revealed yesterday. After decades of secrecy, the CIA declassified documents that show British pilots were involved in the U-2 flights in 1959 and 1960. They gathered vital intelligence which the head of the American agency said he regarded as worth 'a million dollars'.

Until now the Ministry of Defence has neither confirmed nor denied the participation of the RAF in the controversial missions, a position it will no longer be able to maintain. The first U-2 flights over the Soviet Union started in July 1956, but despite the valuable information gathered, President Dwight Eisenhower was concerned about the ramifications of such a flagrant breach of Russian air space if they were discovered.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2396001/The-RAFs-secret-spies-Declassified-CIA-documents-reveal-British-pilots-flew-U2-missions-Soviet-Union-Cold-War.html#ixzz2cDRCb0Iz