Last updated on: 28 June 2003
U-2 timeline of Events, 1980's

- 31 Nov 1980
U-2 #6714 crashed near Oroville, CA; USAF Pilot: Edward Beaumont
survived
- 24 Apr 1980
U-2R #10333 crashes at Akroitiri, Cyprus; USAF Pilot: Richard
W. Snow survives
- 15 Jul 1980
Public Roll-out of TR-1A #80-1066
- 1 Aug 1980
First flight of TR-1A, Lockheed Test Pilot: Ken Weir
- 5 Oct 1980
U-2R #10340 crashed at Osan AB, Korea: USAF Pilot: Cleveland H.
Wallace survived
- Mar.1981
British Government announces TR-1A will be based at RAF Alconbury assigned
to 17 RW
- 11 May 1981
First flight of TR-1A #1063(N706NA); Lockheed Test Pilot: Art
Peterson (delivered to NASA as ER-2)
- 10 Jun 1981
ER-2 N706NA(TR-1A #1063) delivered to NASA, Ames Research Center,
Moffet NAS, CA; NASA Pilot: Marty Knutson
- 15 Sep 1981
TR-1A delivered to 9th SRW, Beale AFB, CA
- 1 Oct 1981
95th Reconnaissance Squadron is organized
- 1 Dec 1981
TR-1A #1067 First flight; Lockheed Test Pilot: Art Peterson
(used as Lockheed test aircraft at Palmdale, CA)
- 13 Jul 1982
- 18 Oct 1982
TR-1A #1070 First flight; Lockheed Test Pilot: Ken Weir (reconfigured
later to C-Span III config.)
- 12 Feb 1983
First TR-1A #1068 flown from Beale AFB, CA to RAF Alconbury (6,000mi
in 14 hours)
- 23 Feb 1983
U-2R #1064 First flight; Lockheed Test Pilot: Art Peterson
- 25 Mar 1983
TR-1A #1064 delivered to 9th SRW, Beale AFB, CA
- 23 May 1983
TR-1A #1065 delivered to 9th SRW, Beale AFB, CA
- 25 Jul 1983
First flight of U-2R #1071; Lockheed Test Pilot: Ken Weir
- 17 Aug 1983
U-2R #1071 delivered to 9th SRW, Beale AFB, CA(now converted to C-Span
III configuration)
- 21 May 1984
U-2R #10333 crashed(see 24 Apr 1980) at Osan AB, Korea; USAF Pilot:
Dave Bonzi survived
- 18 Jul 1984
TR-1A #1072 crashed at Beale AFB, CA: USAF Pilot: Todd Hubbard
survived
- Sep 1984
PLSS(see Jul 1977) begins full-scale test flights at Beale AFB, CA
- 8 Oct 1984
U-2R #1075 crashes at Osan AB, Korea; USAF Pilot: Thomas Dettmer
survived
- Mar 1985
ASARS-2 sensors arrive for TR-1A
- Mar 1985
17 RW receives 3 more TR-1As
- 9 Jul 1985
First operational mission for ASARS-2 equipped TR-1A; flown by Col. John
Sanders (95 RW Commander) from RAF Alconbury
- 16 Jul 1985
17 RW flies first mission w/both SIGINT and ASARS-2 functioning, beginning
of IOT&E; phase
- Aug-Sep 1987
NASA ER-2 makes 12 flights over Antartica to look for holes in Ozone layer
- Jun 1987
NASA retires last of U-2Cs N708NA(#6681)(now on display at Ames Research
Center, Moffet NAS, CA)
- Nov 1987
U-2CT #6953 crashes at Beale AFB, CA; USAF Pilot: Bill Gilbert
survived(now on display at Edwards AFB, CA)
- 9 Dec 1987
TR-1A #1084 crashes at RAF Alconbury, UK; USAF Pilot: Stormy Boudreaux
survives. And now the rest of the story from Stormy:
I was taxiing back to park after a “low sortie”. A road
was being constructed ninety degrees to the taxi-way. A tractor (which had
a badly slipping clutch) had been inadvertently left in gear while the tractor’s
PTO was being used to run a jack-hammer. The jack-hammer operation
caused the tractors engine to rev-up, eventually the clutch heated up enough
to positively engage, and the unmanned tractor was on its way with the jack-hammer
operator in trail. I came to a stop when it looked like the tractor was
going to pass about 75 to 100 yards in front of me from left to right. But
the tractor ran into several piles of gravel and construction debris and
gradually it turned directly towards me. Due to the narrowness of the taxiway
and the softness of the grass infield, all I could do was watch and communicate
my problem to the tower. I shut the throttle off when the tractor was 30
– 40 yards away and obviously not going to miss. Just before the tractor
impacted the left wing I released the brakes. The wing was significantly
damaged, beyond local repair. So 084 was disassembled and put on board a
C-5 and flown back to Palmdale for repairs. (SB)
- 24 May 1988
U-2R #10337 crashes again(see 16 May 1975) at Patrick AFB, FL; USAF
Pilot: Alan E. Crawford survived
- May 1988
USAF Awards Lockheed a contract to demonstrate and flight test a General
Electric prototype F118-GE-101 turbo-fan engine,(variation of F101-GE-F29)
in the U-2R (UEFTP)
- 25 May 1988
TR-1A #1080 crashes at Beale AFB, CA; USAF Pilot: Robert A. Rowe
survived
- Dec 1988
NASA ER-2 deployed to Stavanger, Norway to look for holes in Ozone layer
over North Pole
- 17/18 Apr 1989
NASA Pilots: Jerry Hoyt & Ron Williams set "Time
to Climb" records for class in U-2C #6682(NASA: N709NA)
- 26 Apr 1989
U-2C #6682 flown to Robbins AFB, GA to be put on display by NASA
pilot: Doyle Krumrey
- 23 May 1989
First flight of re-engined U-2R #80-1090,(new designation U-2S) 12
months after contract signing. Lockheed Test Pilot: Ken Weir (UEFTP)

You can also link to the:
1950's
1960's
1970's
1990's
2000's & Credits

Submissions, Questions? Additions, Comments, please email John
Back to the main U-2 page
To the main SR-71 page