U-2 Dragon Lady Video Gallery

The U-2 spy plane flies at the edge of space above 95 percent of Earth's atmosphere, enabling it to skirt normal anti-aircraft missiles.The first U-2 was hand-built in 1952 by Lockheed engineers and went into service in 1955, making surveillance flights over the Soviet Union.
The aircraft was completed within eight months and exceeded expectations. It had a flight radius of 3000 nautical miles, and a maximum safe altitude of 70,000 feet, 20,000 feet higher than Russian interceptors, making the U2 the most difficult plane to engage at the time.