The Central Intelligence Agency and Overhead Reconnaissance; The U-2 and OXCART Programs, 1954-1974

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116
Secret NOPOAN
Chapter 3
October 1956. This unit's timely and accurate information enabled the
PARAMOUNT Committee to predict the joint Israeli-British-French
attack on Egypt three days before it took place.
On I I September, Detachment A pilot Jacob Kratt overflew the
French Mediterranean naval base at Toulon. He brought back imagery
revealing that France was loading troopships at Toulon. During the
rest of the month, Detachment A pilots flew another eight missions
over the Middle East. By this time, the new Detachment B in Turkey
was ready for operations, and it was better positioned to provide cov­
erage of the Middle East. Detachment B began flying missions in
September and soon became the primary detachment for Middle East
overflights, conducting nine out of the IO such missions flown in
October . ..s
Detachment B's first U-2 flight, on 11 September 1956, made
passes over Turkey, Cyprus, and Rhodes. The next flight, more than
two weeks later, covered much the same ground but flew as far west
as Malta, Sicily, and Crete. Both were "special" missions aimed at
maintaining surveillance of the British and French fleets and forces as
they prepared for the attack on Egypt. Meanwhile, Detachment A pi­
lots flew four missions in the Western Mediterranean.
During this period, the PARAMOUNT Committee's photo­
interpreters developed the new science of "tent-ology"-counting the
tents of British forces on the islands of Cyprus and Malta to deter­
mine the number of troops deployed. The photointerpreters used
changes in the number of tents to determine that the British forces
were beginning to move toward the beaches, where they were eventu­
ally lightered to offshore troopships."
Noting the U-2 activity in the Middle East, President Eisenhower
wrote in his diary on 15 October 1956: "Our high-flying reconnais­
sance planes have shown that Israel has obtained some 60 of the
French Mystere pursuit planes, when there had been reported the
transfer of only 24...
50 Other U-2 photographs revealed the presence
"' OSA History. chap. 19. annex 120. "CIA U-2 Missions Flown. 1956-1968." pp. 1-2 (TS
Codeword).
" Lundahl and Brugioni interview (TS Codeword).
'" Dwight D. Eisenhower Diary. 15 October 1956. DDEL.