Lockheed U-2 Dragon Lady High-Altitude Aircraft Family
The Lockheed U-2 Dragon Lady is a single-engine, high-altitude aircraft family developed for long-endurance reconnaissance. The original U-2A first flew in 1955 and entered service in 1956; the enlarged U-2R, TR-1, modernized U-2S, and NASA ER-2 carried the design into military surveillance, disaster-response support, atmospheric research, and Earth-science missions. Its glider-like wing and bicycle landing gear make the family aerodynamically and operationally distinctive.
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Identity
- Aliases
- U-2 Dragon LadyLockheed U-2SU-2STU-2SU-2RTR-1ANASA ER-2
- Family Name
- Lockheed U-2
- Full Name
- Lockheed U-2 Dragon Lady High-Altitude Aircraft Family
- Roles
- militaryresearchreconnaissanceearth_observation
- Status
- active
- Type
- aircraft
Details
- Aircraft Specs
- Configuration
- fixed_wing
- Operating Modes
- land
- Takeoff Landing Capabilities
- conventional
- Description
- The Lockheed U-2 Dragon Lady is a single-engine, high-altitude aircraft family developed for long-endurance reconnaissance. The original U-2A first flew in 1955 and entered service in 1956; the enlarged U-2R, TR-1, modernized U-2S, and NASA ER-2 carried the design into military surveillance, disaster-response support, atmospheric research, and Earth-science missions. Its glider-like wing and bicycle landing gear make the family aerodynamically and operationally distinctive.
- First Flight Year
- 1,955
- Manufacturer
- Propulsion Configurations
- Entries
- Count
- 1
- Placement
- fuselage
- Propulsion System
- Role
- main
- Stage
- airframe
- Variant Notes
- One General Electric F118-GE-101 (official Air Force shorthand F118-101), rated at 17,000 pounds of thrust.
- Name
- U-2S and TU-2S
- Notes
- Modernized U-2S and TU-2S aircraft only. Earlier U-2 variants used different powerplants and are not represented by this configuration.
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Assets & Meta
- Creation Time
- July 29, 2026 at 22:23:44 UTC
- Updated Time
- August 1, 2026 at 16:14:21 UTC