US Spy Aircraft U-2 Dragon Lady Breaks Endurance Record and Highlights its Strategic Reach
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On July 31, 2025, a TU-2S Dragon Lady from the 9th Reconnaissance Wing took off from Beale Air Force Base, California, to carry out an unprecedented mission in the history of this aircraft. Seventy years after the accidental maiden flight of the first Lockheed U-2 in 1955, conducted by Tony LeVier over Groom Lake, the plane completed the longest flight ever recorded for this platform, flying over all 48 contiguous U.S. states.Follow Army Recognition on Google News at this link
A TU-2S Dragon Lady from the 9th Reconnaissance Wing lands at Beale Air Force Base, California, after completing the longest recorded flight in the aircraft’s history, covering more than 6,000 nautical miles over 14 hours, July 31–August 1, 2025. (Picture source: US DoD)
Known as a Cold War symbol, the U-2 remains an important asset for high-altitude intelligence, reconnaissance, and surveillance operations in support of U.S. national defense, as well as for disaster relief and search-and-rescue missions. Capable of operating above 70,000 feet and covering long distances, the aircraft on this occasion exceeded its previously established limits.
Designed for strategic intelligence missions, the U-2 is a high-altitude reconnaissance aircraft with a single engine and, in its standard configuration, a single seat. Its long, narrow wings give it glider-like characteristics and allow it to carry up to 5,000 pounds of sensors. It can collect electro-optical, infrared, multispectral, and synthetic aperture radar imagery, and also carries signals intelligence and measurement and signature intelligence (MASINT) systems. Except for film products, its data can be transmitted in near real time via ground or satellite links. Unarmed, it relies on operating at very high altitude and on its sensors’ ability to detect and avoid threats for protection. It is powered by a General Electric F118-101 turbofan engine designed for long-duration missions without aerial refueling, with a range exceeding 7,000 miles. Flying the U-2 is considered particularly demanding, especially during landing, which requires assistance from a chase car driven by another pilot. The TU-2S variant, used for training and special missions, accommodates two pilots.
Upon returning to Beale the following day, the aircraft had traveled more than 6,000 nautical miles in over 14 hours of flight, setting an endurance record for its category. Lieutenant Colonel John “JESTER” Mattson, commander of the 1st Reconnaissance Squadron, noted that this mission demonstrated the squadron’s ability to train aircrews to operate effectively across the electromagnetic spectrum in a changing operational environment while maintaining its core mission.
The two pilots selected for the mission, Cory “ULTRALORD” Bartholomew, flight safety officer and U-2 instructor pilot, and Lieutenant Colonel “JETHRO,” U-2 chief pilot and instructor, already held the record for the highest number of U-2 flight hours. Together, they formed the most experienced crew ever to share a U-2 cockpit. This flight fully used the aircraft’s operational range and pushed the pilots to their physiological limits. “ULTRALORD” had conceived the idea for such a mission eleven years earlier, convinced that the aircraft could achieve it, and considered the 70th anniversary the appropriate moment to demonstrate its capabilities.
The realization of this project required precise planning, from defining the route and identifying diversion airfields to accounting for winds, temperatures, and altitudes, while avoiding unauthorized airspace. This task fell to mission planner Stephen “SCOTCH” Johnson, who explained that the exceptional length of the flight involved unique constraints. The mission also served as the first test of the recently adopted 1st RS planning software on an operation of this complexity.
In addition to the pilots and the mission planner, the success of the operation depended on multiple teams, including the 9th Physiological Support Group, responsible for preparing and maintaining the pilots’ pressure suits, and the 9th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron, known as the “Dragon Keepers,” which services and prepares the U-2 fleet. The already strict precision required for any U-2 flight was heightened by the exceptional duration of this mission, requiring additional oversight and precautions to ensure the aircraft’s reliability.
The flight also had a commemorative dimension, marking 70 years of U-2 operations and honoring pilots who had lost their lives. Parts of the route were planned to pass over states where the families of these aviators reside, creating a symbolic link between the mission and the memory of those who served. Upon landing, “ULTRALORD” emphasized that such operations depend on collective effort, building on the work of previous generations.
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On July 31, 2025, a TU-2S Dragon Lady from the 9th Reconnaissance Wing took off from Beale Air Force Base, California, to carry out an unprecedented mission in the history of this aircraft. Seventy years after the accidental maiden flight of the first Lockheed U-2 in 1955, conducted by Tony LeVier over Groom Lake, the plane completed the longest flight ever recorded for this platform, flying over all 48 contiguous U.S. states.
Follow Army Recognition on Google News at this link
A TU-2S Dragon Lady from the 9th Reconnaissance Wing lands at Beale Air Force Base, California, after completing the longest recorded flight in the aircraft’s history, covering more than 6,000 nautical miles over 14 hours, July 31–August 1, 2025. (Picture source: US DoD)
Known as a Cold War symbol, the U-2 remains an important asset for high-altitude intelligence, reconnaissance, and surveillance operations in support of U.S. national defense, as well as for disaster relief and search-and-rescue missions. Capable of operating above 70,000 feet and covering long distances, the aircraft on this occasion exceeded its previously established limits.
Designed for strategic intelligence missions, the U-2 is a high-altitude reconnaissance aircraft with a single engine and, in its standard configuration, a single seat. Its long, narrow wings give it glider-like characteristics and allow it to carry up to 5,000 pounds of sensors. It can collect electro-optical, infrared, multispectral, and synthetic aperture radar imagery, and also carries signals intelligence and measurement and signature intelligence (MASINT) systems. Except for film products, its data can be transmitted in near real time via ground or satellite links. Unarmed, it relies on operating at very high altitude and on its sensors’ ability to detect and avoid threats for protection. It is powered by a General Electric F118-101 turbofan engine designed for long-duration missions without aerial refueling, with a range exceeding 7,000 miles. Flying the U-2 is considered particularly demanding, especially during landing, which requires assistance from a chase car driven by another pilot. The TU-2S variant, used for training and special missions, accommodates two pilots.
Upon returning to Beale the following day, the aircraft had traveled more than 6,000 nautical miles in over 14 hours of flight, setting an endurance record for its category. Lieutenant Colonel John “JESTER” Mattson, commander of the 1st Reconnaissance Squadron, noted that this mission demonstrated the squadron’s ability to train aircrews to operate effectively across the electromagnetic spectrum in a changing operational environment while maintaining its core mission.
The two pilots selected for the mission, Cory “ULTRALORD” Bartholomew, flight safety officer and U-2 instructor pilot, and Lieutenant Colonel “JETHRO,” U-2 chief pilot and instructor, already held the record for the highest number of U-2 flight hours. Together, they formed the most experienced crew ever to share a U-2 cockpit. This flight fully used the aircraft’s operational range and pushed the pilots to their physiological limits. “ULTRALORD” had conceived the idea for such a mission eleven years earlier, convinced that the aircraft could achieve it, and considered the 70th anniversary the appropriate moment to demonstrate its capabilities.
The realization of this project required precise planning, from defining the route and identifying diversion airfields to accounting for winds, temperatures, and altitudes, while avoiding unauthorized airspace. This task fell to mission planner Stephen “SCOTCH” Johnson, who explained that the exceptional length of the flight involved unique constraints. The mission also served as the first test of the recently adopted 1st RS planning software on an operation of this complexity.
In addition to the pilots and the mission planner, the success of the operation depended on multiple teams, including the 9th Physiological Support Group, responsible for preparing and maintaining the pilots’ pressure suits, and the 9th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron, known as the “Dragon Keepers,” which services and prepares the U-2 fleet. The already strict precision required for any U-2 flight was heightened by the exceptional duration of this mission, requiring additional oversight and precautions to ensure the aircraft’s reliability.
The flight also had a commemorative dimension, marking 70 years of U-2 operations and honoring pilots who had lost their lives. Parts of the route were planned to pass over states where the families of these aviators reside, creating a symbolic link between the mission and the memory of those who served. Upon landing, “ULTRALORD” emphasized that such operations depend on collective effort, building on the work of previous generations.
