US U2 spy plane shot down over USSR

Historical Context Note

Lucas Paul Richert (University of Saskatchewan)

The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 2.2.2.00: Post-1917 Writing and Culture in Russia, Ukraine and Belarus, 1917-present.
Vol. editors: Neil Cornwell (University of Bristol), Roman Koropeckyj (University of California, Los Angeles), Andrei Rogatchevski (UiT - The Arctic University of Norway)

Domains

Air Force

Dates

Date of occurrence 1960-05-01

Places

Russia (Location)
United States (Involved)

Resources

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On 1 May, a U-2 reconnaissance spy plane was shot down over the Soviet Union and its pilot, Gary Powers, was taken prisoner. The incident led to the cancellation of the Paris summit conference. Powers was convicted of espionage and sentenced to three years imprisonment and another seven years hard labour. However, Powers was returned to the United States after twenty-two months in prison as part of a swap between the U.S. and the Soviet Union.

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76 words

Citation: Richert, Lucas Paul. "US U2 spy plane shot down over USSR". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 01 October 2008 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/stopics.php?rec=true&UID=3363, accessed 08 May 2024.]

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