Operation Overflight: The U-2 Spy Pilot Tells His Story for the First Time

by Francis Gary Powers, Curt Gentry, with Curt Gentry Powers, Francis Gary

Book Overview

The true story that inspired the feature film Bridge of Spies In this new edition of his classic 1970 memoir about the notorious U-2 incident, pilot Francis Gary Powers reveals the full story of what... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0030830451
• ISBN13: 9780030830457
• Release Date: January 1970
• Publisher: Holt McDougal
• Length: 375 Pages
• Weight: 1.60 lbs.

Customer Reviews

Gary Powers ...A small town American....

The book is a great reading however it was no accident that little is said about his boyhood home town. Gary was from Pound, Virginia a town so small you can hold your breath from one end to the other. Very quaint and wonderfull people. Its located on the boarder of Virginia and Kentucky state lines. My family and I were from this area and are well familuar with it. The CIA most likely saw him as a dedicated man that they could mold as they needed and yet still keep him and others on a "need to know basis" only. Thank God they did! Russia new it all the time. Most likely the shock wave resonating on the minamalist wing of the U2 was all it took. A milisecond later he was transformed from his cacoon like cockpits safety to being injected into a near zero atmosphear, subzero climate. He would have been killed instantly "which most likely Gary and others knew however the stars lined up and he was spared by a hairs breath. The book is definately a need to have if you enjoy reading about American war strugles and hero's as Gary Powers was.

The U-2 Incident with Francis Gary Powers:

The Flt of the U-2 is a most inspiring book. I sat on the edge of my seat while reading it and finished it in one sitting wishing there was more to read, but happy that the Russians got their "just day in court" and finally Francis Gary Powers was exchanged for Rudolph Abel. Such a high flying plane, to be shot out of the skies, is unreal to me - what went wrong? No matter what Powers' wrote, we will never know the complete truth, will we? Thank God he came home safe, as he *almost* gave his life for his country. A well done book and may he rest in peace as his son recounts his father's service to his country. God Bless. Trish Schiesser, whose brother SSGT Phil Noland served in the USAFSecurity Service during the time Powers took off and went missing in Russia. A fine, well written book. I am glad it is out again.

An espionage reader

Enjoyed it immensely. A hard to put down, revealing look at this historical, military, political event of the 1960's. Covering some of Power's CIA training, U2 overflights, downing & capture, Russian trial(farse), imprisonment, possible Oswald & other defectors connection to the U2 shoot down, repatriation through a trade of a pro Russian, US held spy and some of Power's life afterwards.

Riveting memoir and prison diary

On 1-May, 1960, CIA U-2 pilot Francis Gary Powers was shot down over the USSR and spent two years in a Soviet prison. Eighteen years later, he was permitted to publish his own story. The two excellent preceeding reviews cover the crucial historical and political aspect of the U-2 story -- particularly how Mr. Powers was made a scapegoat for the embarassment of the US. I highly recommend this memoir of a courageous and loyal American. I also recommend it for Mr. Powers' personal story, told engagingly in his own unassuming but elegant words. How he survived being downed by a SAM, how he strove to manipulate his interrogation to protect American secrets. How he carried himself at his showcase espionage trial, and how he endured his incarceration. Not too surprisingly, he narrates with less rancor for his Soviet captors than for his own US government. And the American press, which reviled him as a coward and accused him of treaon. And, as if he didn't have enough hardship, his faithless, alcoholic wife, who all but abandoned him! It was only through the efforts of his father that he obtained his early release. Ironically, his treatment on return home was much crueler than anything he experienced in Russia. But throughout his ordeal, Gary Powers' steadfast devotion to his country never wavered. I found his memoir inspirational and riveting. I've seen the wreckage of his U-2 spy plane, still on exhibit in the "Cold War" area of the Moscow Central Armed Forces Museum. And I've made the drive to Vladimir, location of the prison in which he kept his diary. I believe "Operation Overflight" is going to be released in paperback soon, after years out of print. If so, I hope it will include more of the technical and personal information which was too sensitive for publication in 1970.

The Third Point

With respect to the "Cold War" we usually know the official versions from both the government of the USA and of the USSR. Powers book is extremely interesting because it gives you a private account of somebody that was deeply involved in the U-2 Cold War incident: a third point of view. A point of view that has no "agenda" to push through.Powers description of his life in prison had for me an almost spiritual meaning. After reading what he went through, I felt grateful for what I have. He mentions, for example, that in prison work is cherished: he and his cell mate fought to have the privilege of cleaning their cell.On the other hand, his actual experience in jail was very different from what you see in the movies. There was no violence, no torture, no conspiracy to escape. In almost two years he had a chance to speak with only one other prisoner: his cell mate. It was the most boring experience imaginable, so much so that some prisoners lost their minds.It is difficult not to feel contempt for Dwight Eisenhower who after ordering the flight completely abandoned Powers to his fate. Eisenhower cared much more for his "prestige" than for any person but in the end his prestige went down the drain anyway when his involvement in the U-2 affair was finally known.Another player that has dramatically dropped in stature for me is Robert Kennedy. His callousness is hard to believe. After all the suffering Powers went through in the USSR for doing his duty for the CIA, R. Kennedy was willing to try him for treason with the only purpose of advancing his political career! The politics surrounding this event are sickening: JFK had invited Powers to meet him at the White House but at the last moment the offer was withdrawn.In the end, no president or high level politician did anything to obtain Powers'release from the USSR. It was his father whom he had to thank for his release.Obviously, the CIA did not want this book to be published and 8 years had to pass before it finally saw the light.I fully recommend the book as it gives you an insight as to how history is really made by real people, in real places, performing real duties.