It was the cover U-2 "cover story" in 1960 http://www.jamesshuggins.com/h/u-2a/...ers_e-5442.htm

The tradition continues. What WAS Nasa's experimental research plane doing at a US military base in Africa? | Daily Mail Online

Wish I was back in pressure suit again. Sounds like a challenging mission.

 

Why do you say that?

The sheer amount of flying hrs required to map a whole country or other factors?

Always enjoy seeing your posts, high altitude aviation is incredibly fascinating to me.

 

Tonight find a small home closet and put an uncomfortable chair inside. Put on a snowmobile suit or scuba dry suit and find a fish bowl, straw and jar of liver baby food. Place a small black and white TV in the closet and show the screen pattern test continually. Sit down, place the bowl over your head and sit there for seven hours. When hungry slip the straw into the liver baby food jar and inside the bowl over your head. Enjoy. Finally at the five hour point p*ss down your leg as your regret having too much coffee yesterday Don't pay attention when the attack warning receivers go off as you know it's a friendly country down there. Pay attention to the small "coffin" corner you are in.

Actually it's hard to stay awake since the systems operator in the back seat is doing most of the mission stuff. He has the challenge.