Poor old Gary Powers

Posted By Thomas E. Ricks Tuesday, May 4, 2010 - 2:07 PM Share

I defer to Pulitzer Prize-winning David "Dead Hand" Hoffman, the King of the Cold War Archives, but I was surprised to read in this account of Gary Powers' downing that the U.S. government concluded that he had actually descended in his U-2 and defected. The government analysts were mistaken because they were confused by another aircraft that the eager-beaver Reds mistakenly whacked at the same time.

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TYRTAIOS

9:44 PM ET

May 5, 2010

Good man - gone astray with the Agency

I wasn't going to comment on this, but I'm in a sharing mood. Many years ago I was asked, at the time, by a Soviet major (GRU) if I had ever seen Power's journal/diary? I said I wasn't aware he had kept one. The major replied, oh yes, and it's in the Smithsonian Museum - something else I had not been aware of. Some years later, when I went to look, I could never find any evidence of it?

Anyone have any clues? I have an interest in this and it would be helpful.

Incidentally, the mentioned GRU major also told me he had heard at least two MIGs had been shot down in the process of finally hitting Power's U-2. Which makes sense as the SA-2 was developed to attack multiple targets in close proximity.

Incidentally, it was always my understanding the Agency was more pissed that Powers didn't commit suicide and were upset that the Soviets now had our on board state-of-the-art cameras in hand - something they also felt Powers should have destroyed.

Some of us suspect people were looking for a reason to keep Powers muzzled, by keeping him aprehensive and thus in line, because he "may" have been a link in the information flow that showed the Eisenhower administration that there was in fact no missile gap.