American Experience - Spy in the Sky
List Price: $19.95
Prices subject to change.
You Pay Only: $17.99
You Save: $1.96 (10%)Prices subject to change.
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Binding: DVD
EAN: 9781593750732
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, DVD-Video, NTSC
ISBN: 1593750730
Label: WGBH Boston
Manufacturer: WGBH Boston
Number Of Items: 1
Publisher: WGBH Boston
Region Code: 1
Release Date: September 02, 2003
Running Time: 60 minutes
Sales Rank: 77753
Studio: WGBH Boston
Theatrical Release Date: April 18, 2005
Related Items:
- American Experience: The Berlin Airlift
- American Experience - Transcontinental Railroad
- American Experience - Victory in the Pacific
- The Fall of Saigon
- American Experience: The Great Transatlantic Cable
- see more
Editorial Review:
Description:
The extraordinary spy plane that defused a Cold War arms race and ignited the 'U-2 affair.'
Cold War. New weapons. The threat of World War III. In this high stakes game, how would the U.S. president play his hand?
Despite Russian claims of nuclear superiority, the question remained, ''what do they really have?'' If Russia's boasts were true, their Bison bombers put the U.S. within nuclear range for the first time. In 1955, President Dwight Eisenhower launched an espionage mission like no other — requiring a spy plane that could fly without detection. Here is the true story of the U-2 and how a determined team turned his vision into reality. Led by brilliant master designer Kelly Johnson, the top-secret project began at the Lockheed Skunk Works. In their own words, crew members describe building and testing the ''dirty bird,'' a spy plane that could soar to the edge of earth's atmosphere.
After grueling preparation and fatal failures, the U-2 flew its first mission in 1956. U-2 photos revealed Russia's bluff, ending fears of a ''bomber gap.'' Despite being caught on Russian radar, the U-2 continued its surveillance. But on May 1, 1960, luck ran out. U-2 pilot Francis Gary Powers was shot down and captured while trying to photograph a Russian transcontinental missile base. The notorious ''U-2 affair'' that followed shattered the trust between Eisenhower and Soviet Premier Khrushchev. Although the U.S. was forced to end U-2 missions over Russia, the U-2 continued to fly, providing U.S. intelligence into the 1990s.
From the Cold War to the Gulf War, the U-2 saga is one of the greatest spy stories of all time.
Special DVD features include: link to the American Experience Web site and closed captions.
On one DVD5 disc. Region coding: All regions. Audio: Dolby stereo. Screen format: 4x3 full frame.
Average Rating: 

Rating:
- Effective Blend of Cold War History and Aviation TechnologyNext to NOVA - "Supersonic Spies," this is one of the best aviation documentaries ever produced by ... Read More
Browse for similar items by category:
- Documentary - Genres - DVD - Video - General
- History - Documentary - Genres - DVD - Video - General AAS
- Military & War - Documentary - Genres - DVD - Video - Military History
- Military & War - Documentary - Genres - DVD - Video - General
- Military & War - Documentary - Genres - DVD - Video - General AAS
Copyright ©2003, Mark Carey.
