Summary of Michael R. Beschloss's Mayday

By IRB Media

Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book. Book Preview:

#1 In South Asia, it was Sunday, the first of May. Inside the well-guarded hangar at Peshawar, two hours after midnight, Francis Gary Powers rose from his cot and prepared for his mission. He would fly 3,788 miles north to Bodö, Norway, bisecting the Soviet land mass at the Urals.

#2 The U-2 was so fragile that when one was buzzed by two curious Canadian jets over West Germany, it broke up amid the shock waves. The plane’s black skin and the pilot’s silver suit were both unmarked.

#3 Powers was a modest man who did not consider himself a spy, but he was flying an American plane over the Soviet Union without permission. He was just a pilot, but his actions were considered espionage.

#4 Powers was a very sweet man, but he was also very shy. He was always the first pilot to land on the moon, and he was jealous of the astronauts who got to do so first.

• Language: English
• Publisher: IRB Media
• Release date: Jul 30, 2022
• ISBN: 9798822556294

IRB Media

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Insights on Michael R. Beschloss's Mayday

Contents

Insights from Chapter 1

Insights from Chapter 2

Insights from Chapter 3

Insights from Chapter 4

Insights from Chapter 5

Insights from Chapter 6

Insights from Chapter 7

Insights from Chapter 8

Insights from Chapter 9

Insights from Chapter 10

Insights from Chapter 11

Insights from Chapter 12

Insights from Chapter 13

Insights from Chapter 14

Insights from Chapter 1

#1

In South Asia, it was Sunday, the first of May. Inside the well-guarded hangar at Peshawar, two hours after midnight, Francis Gary Powers rose from his cot and prepared for his mission. He would fly 3,788 miles north to Bodö, Norway, bisecting the Soviet land mass at the Urals.

#2

The U-2 was so fragile that when one was buzzed by two curious Canadian jets over West Germany, it broke up amid the shock waves. The plane’s black skin and the pilot’s silver suit were both unmarked.

#3

Powers was a modest man who did not consider himself a spy, but he was flying an American plane over the Soviet Union without permission. He was just a pilot, but his actions were considered espionage.

#4

Powers was a very sweet man, but he was also very shy. He was always the first pilot to land on the moon, and he was jealous of the astronauts who got to do so first.

#5

In 1955, Powers was approached by the CIA about a special mission. He would fly a new plane that rose higher than any before, and his main mission would be to fly over Russia. He would be paid more money, but would have to leave his wife for 18 months.

#6

In 1957, the CIA placed Barbara as a clerk-stenographer for an Air Force captain in Athens. In the spring of 1957, anti-American rioters turned over cars and raped women on Athens streets. The CIA was wary that Barbara might fall into a situation that would threaten the U-2 program’s cover.

#7

On May 1, 1960, Powers flew a U-2 over the Soviet Union. He was able to broadcast two clicks, which was code for proceed as planned. The radio could not be used to notify colleagues in Pakistan, which would alert the Russians.

#8

Powers’s plane was shot down by the Soviets, but he continued on and landed in Sverdlovsk, where he saw a policeman try to stop a woman from applauding.

#9

The U-2 had set off alarms all over the southern Soviet Union. The Sverdlovsk anti-aircraft unit flinched and ran to battle stations. The commander gave his order: Destroy the enemy plane! As Powers later recalled, he heard a dull thump. The plane convulsed and an orange flash lit the cockpit and sky.

#10

Powers’s mission was to fly over the Soviet Union and drop poison pins on their anti-aircraft units. He was able to do so, and the all-clear siren sounded when he landed. The men were ecstatic.

#11

Powers was the pilot of the U-2 plane that was shot down over Russia in 1960. He was captured and taken to Sverdlovsk, where he was questioned by Soviet officials. He was told to tell his captors everything, because they would get it out of him anyway.

#12

The U-2 incident happened two weeks before the summit, and it was almost impossible to conceal American wreckage and a live pilot, even if Khrushchev wished. The wonderful news