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

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Chapter 5
pilots were still flying missions targeted against the People's Republic
of China, these missions did not overfly PRC territory. Increasingly,
Agency U-2s flew missions that did not involve intelligence collec­
tion requirements.
Support to Other Agencies
Beginning in 1964, the Agency conducted a program known as RED
DOT for the Department of Defense. RED DOT involved the devel­
opment and testing of various color, black and white, and infrared
films. emulsions. and processing techniques for use in manned and
unmanned high-altitude reconnaissance systems. From 1968 until
1974. Detachment G U-2s photographed areas within the United
States that were analagous to portions of the Soviet Union in order to
test films and techniques for spotting certain targets. This analogous
filming was particularly valuable in connection with agricultural areas
and nuclear test sites.
Some U-2 missions supported agencies outside the intelligence
community. In I968 and 1969, Detachment G U-2s flew high-altitude
photographic missions in conjunction with the Apollo VII and IX
spaceflights in response to a NASA request. These flights provided
photography of the western United States for comparison with the
photography taken by the Apollo crews. The Department of the
Interior also requested U-2 support in early 1969 to help determine
the extent of damage caused by a leak in an offshore oil well in
California's Santa Barbara Channel. After preliminary assessment of
the film at NPIC, the mission photography was given to the US
Geological Survey for further study.
Also in early 1969, Detachment G began providing coverage of
the western United States at the request of the Department of
Commerce. U-2s filmed the Sierra snowfield to aid hydrologists in
forecasting snowmelt and nooding potentials. Later that year,
Detachment G supported the Office of Emergency Preparedness by
photographing 6 l .000 square miles of the southern United States as
part of a Hurricane Baseline Survey. These photographs could be used
for future damage assessment following a major hurricane. A subse­
quent mission in fiscal year 1971 continued the Hurricane Baseline
Survey by photographing the Gulf Coast. When a major earthquake
struck the Los Angeles area on 9 February 1971, Detachment G U-2s
flew four sorties to obtain damage-assessment photos. 70
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