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

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Defense Research and Engineering, John Foster, liked the concept and
provided DOD funding for ORD to develop two versions of
AXILLARY, one with a radar-homer and one with a television recon­
naissance package. The radar homing system proved successful as
AXILLARY sought out and destroyed a radar during testing at China
Lake Naval Air Station. However, the end of US involvement in
Vietnam in early 1973 led to the cancellation of further DOD funding,
and AXILLARY was placed on the shelf. Melpar, Inc., continued to
work on the radar-homing version and eventually sold some
AXILLARY-type aircraft to [srael, which used them to destroy Syrian
radars in Lebanon in 1982.
PINE RIDGE
While work was still in progress on low-altitude, short-range recon­
naissance systems like AQUILINE and AXILLARY, CIA scientists
and engineers were also working on a high-altitude recoverable un­
manned reconnaissance vehicle with an extremely-low-radar cross
section that would enable it to fly undetected over hostile territory.
During the 1960s there had been a study conducted by the Teledyne
Ryan Aeronautical Company of San Diego on the construction of an
.unaetectable drone known as SANDY HOOK. This 44-foot long
drone would operate at 120,000 feet at Mach 0.9, with a range of
5,000 nautical miles. Its radar cross section 07zwould be 0.0 I square
meters. Project SANDY HOOK never advanced very far in develop­
ment; projected high costs and substantial technical risks led to its
cancellation in December I 969.
Some of the concepts in SANDY HOOK were carried over into a
new project known as PINE RIDGE, which was a proposal for an un­
manned reconnaissance vehicle with an even lower radar cross sec­
tion (0.001 square meter). Research on SANDY HOOK had indicated
that a radar cross section this low was attainable and would prevent
detection and tracking by existing radar defense systems. The PINE
RIDGE proposal called for a delta-shaped vehicle, approximately
17 feet long with a 21-foot wingspan. Two vertical stabilizers would
give the vehicle an overall height of three to four feet. An existing
Teledyne J- lO0-CA-100 Turbojet engine could have been used to
power the vehicle at Mach 0.9 at the operating altitude of 65,000 to
75,000 feet. Range was estimated at 3,300 nautical miles.
Despite interest within the CIA and the Air Force for an unde­
tectable reconnaissance vehicle, PINE RIDGE was never funded. In
January 1971 high-level representatives from DOD and CIA rejected
a proposal for a feasibility study to be conducted by Ryan Aircraft.
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Appendix E
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