W. Frank Furr, Jr. Colonel (Ret), USAF

The U-2 Dragon Lady spy plane came out of the Lockheed Skunk Works in 1955 and is still the premiere high altitude reconnaissance aircraft. For over 50 years, this Lady has provided vital intelligence which certainly influenced critical decisions by civilian and military leaders of the United States. Today a U-2 is airborne somewhere in the world 24 hours a day. Various enrichment lectures provide a history of this program through personal perspectives. Overviews of current capabilities and operations furnish audiences with an in-depth look into this infamous aircraft. Enlightening, first-hand stories enhance these presentations.

Reconnaissance operations are the key to military victories. Starting in WWI the importance of airborne reconnaissance was recognized by military commanders. As conflicts and crises continue, the demand for more and better intelligence increases, and nations develop enhanced capabilities. The world’s fastest airplane, the SR-71 Blackbird, was developed by the CIA and USAF as an over-flight spy plane after Francis Gary Powers was shot down in his U-2 in 1960. Today the emphasis is on satellites and unmanned vehicles like the Predator and Global Hawk aircraft and on smaller vehicles much like remote control toy airplanes. These capabilities are presented in enrichment lectures that span the history of airborne reconnaissance.

The Cuban Missile Crisis has been labeled as the closest the nuclear superpowers have ever come to using their arsenals. For over a two week period in May of 1962, President Kennedy and Chairman Khrushchev along with their trusted advisors negotiated and compromised on a settlement that lessened world tension and actually started the “hot line” communications concept between nations. How intelligence played its important role during this very tense period is a subject of an enlightening lecture.

During the war in Vietnam, Special Force units fought a secret war all over the region to gather intelligence of enemy activities and, more importantly, be in position to perform search and rescue missions deep within enemy territory. The Studies and Observations Group, or SOG, took on the most dangerous assignments, and they were supported from the air by special, covert teams. PRAIRIE FIRE was the code name for some of these operations. This enrichment lecture provides my first-hand knowledge as a Forward Air Controller of how these elite, US led reconnaissance teams were inserted and extracted from deep within hostile territories.

Intelligence operations have played very important roles in many crises from military operations to natural disasters. Today and into the future, requirements for intelligence and vital information will continue to increase and capabilities will continue to evolve to meet them. Operations to interdict illicit drugs demand real-time, actionable information. That same type of support is needed for broad area search and rescue missions. Military reconnaissance operations provide critical information in support of tragedies such as Hurricane Katrina and the earthquake in Haiti. Enrichment lectures designed to highlight and provide overviews of intelligence operations in specific areas or crises are available.

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With Europe already in war, President Roosevelt was in a difficult position of having pressure placed upon him for the USA to enter on the side of the UK and others and a nation that really did not seem to want to fight in another foreign war. The attack on Pearl Harbor by the Imperial Japanese Empire forced the US to declare war on not only Japan but also Germany. There continues to be curious debate about what intelligence was known about the attack and this presentation examines the various positions and facts. Did the President know of the attack before it happened?

From the Battle of the Atlantic and the land war in Europe and Africa to the Pacific Theater operations, intelligence operations played major roles in major battles such as Midway and the D-Day invasion. German U-boats seemed to have the upper hand in the Atlantic until the allies broke the military codes being used. The spies and saboteurs operating throughout Europe provided vital intelligence at great risk. Japanese codes were broken which provided Admiral Nimitz and other leaders the advantages they needed to turn back the advancing Japanese forces. These presentations highlight the intelligence operations that made the difference in the Allies winning this truly worldwide war.

This lecture will take a look at some of the various intelligence agencies operating around the world and some of the “007” equipment used by them. From using cell phones to satellites, countries are conducting espionage operations to find out the secrets of nations, industries, and individuals. This presentation will also take a look at several real spies and their stories.

The heart of intelligence operations is the ability to read someone else information without them knowing it. Codes have been used since ancient Egyptian times and the Code Breakers have always been trying to exploit them. The Germans and Japanese thought they had unbreakable codes and that belief was a major factor in their defeat. Today the internet uses SECURE coding to provide its users some comfort in buying goods and sending information across the WWW. This presentation looks at some of the interesting stories about breaking codes and concealing the fact that you are doing just that.

Throughout history, spying has been a means for governments to obtain information about other countries, organizations, or individuals. The information obtained is believed to be of vital interest to justify these activities. Enrichment lectures in this area highlight some of the spy agencies, techniques used, review case of espionage, and even look into activities at the US AREA 51, the super-SECRET military base north of Las Vegas.