-COLD WAR-

MURMANSK MISSION - for CFS1 - freeware

During the so-called "Cold War" many covered aerial operations were made by the Western Allies with the use of various types of aircraft, flying along the borders of the Warsaw Pact states and also overflying very deeply over the Soviet Empire to pick-up interesting information about the military installations and the industrial factories of these countries. On the Eastern side, apart from trying to intercept the Allied "ferret" aircraft, the USSR performed many long range flights to control the US Navy ships and carriers all around the world, mainly with the "Bear" recce-bomber aircraft. As in conventional wars, there were many air battles, with many military aircraft shot down with his brave pilots and unfortunately hundred of victims, also passengers of civil aircraft. An official history of this period doesn't yet exists and till for some time it will be very difficult to have information on these secret missions

BRIEF HISTORICAL NOTES ON THE MISSION: Three USAF RB-47E of the 91st SRW took off at 07:00 from Fairford AB (UK) on the 8 May 1954. After a flight refueling on the North Sea (see map) and before entering the Soviet air space, two of them would return to the base while the third (Com. Harold "Hal" R.Austin, co-pilot Carl Holt and nav. Vance Heavilin) continued the flight to take pictures of the Soviet airbases and to scan the radio-radar comm. in the Murmansk-Arkangelsk area, with the return leg overflying Finland. The flight had also the task to control the presence of a new fighter, the MiG-17, with greater speed and ceiling as regards of the MiG-15. The RB-47E was intercepted over Murmansk and also over Arkangelsk area and suffered light damage to the left wing, the main fuselage tank and to the radios equipment from a shot of a MiG-17, but succeeded in landing at Fairford.