Background The Lockheed U-2, nicknamed “Dragon Lady”, is a single-engine, high-altitude aircraft flown by the United States Air Force and previously flown by the Central Intelligence Agency. It provides day and night, high-altitude (70,000 feet/21,000 metres), all-weather surveillance. The aircraft is also used for electronic sensor research and development, satellite calibration, and satellite data validation. The U-2 Flight Manual Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) U-2 Utility Flight Handbook, March 1, 1959 [259 Pages, 15.1MB] United States Air Force (USAF) In October of 2016, I filed a FOIA Request to the United States Air Force (USAF) for a copy of the most…
Author: John Greenewald
Background Kosmos 954 (Russian: Космос 954) was a reconnaissance satellite launched by the Soviet Union in 1977. A malfunction prevented safe separation of its onboard nuclear reactor; when the satellite reentered the Earth’s atmosphere the following year it scattered radioactive debris over northern Canada, prompting an extensive cleanup operation.The effort to recover radioactive material from the satellite was dubbed Operation Morning Light. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) documents on Operation Morning Light [7 Pages, 1.2MB] Department of the Air Force documents on Operation Morning Light [14 Pages, 410 kb] Department of the Air Force Historical Research Agency (AFHRA) documents on Operation…
Background The DoD OIG conducted this audit, the third in a series of audits on property accountability in support of OIR, to determine whether the Army had effective controls for processing and transferring ITEF equipment to the Iraqi government. The audit found that Army commands documented procedures for processing and transferring ITEF equipment to the Iraqi government. However, the 1st Theater Sustainment Command did not have effective controls to maintain complete visibility and accountability of the ITEF equipment in Kuwait and Iraq prior to transfer to the Iraqi government, and could not provide complete data for the quantity and dollar…
Background Since the breakup of the Soviet Union, we have witnessed the dissolution of an empire having over 40,000 nuclear weapons, over a thousand metric tons of nuclear materials, vast quantities of chemical and biological weapons materials, and thousands of missiles. This Cold War arsenal is spread across I I time zones and lacks the Cold War infrastructure that provided the control and financing necessary to assure that chains of command remain intact and nuclear weapons and materials remain securely beyond the reach of terrorists and weapons-proliferating states. This problem is compounded by the existence of thousands of weapons scientists…
Background On the morning of September 11, 2001, nearly 3,000 people were killed in a series of coordinated terrorist attacks in New York, Pennsylvania and Virginia. The attacks resulted in the creation of the Transportation Security Administration, designed to prevent similar attacks in the future. Driven by a desire to help our nation, tens of thousands of people joined TSA and committed themselves to strengthening our transportation systems while ensuring the freedom of movement for people and commerce. The Aviation and Transportation Security Act, passed by the 107th Congress and signed on November 19, 2001, established TSA. Through the Freedom…