The Central Intelligence Agency and Overhead Reconnaissance; the U-2 and Oxcart Programs, 1954-1974

Approved for Release: 2013/06/25 --- Secret NOFORN Chapter 2 84 --- [figure] --- THE IMPACT OF THE AIR FORCE PROJECT GENETRIX BALLOONS While the Agency was making its final preparations for U-2 overflights, the Air Force started a reconnaissance project that would cause considerable protest around the world and threaten the existence of the U-2 overflight program before it even began. Project GENETRIX involved the use of camera-carrying balloons to obtain high-altitude photography of Eastern Europe, the Soviet Union, and --- Approved for Release: 2013/06/25