Me, My Father, and the U-2, Dragon Lady

A U-2 "Dragon Lady" over Beale Air Force Base

Dad and I began writing a book together. It was more of a means of reconnecting with my father rather than a real attempt at a marketable product.

Dad had been “career Air Force” and I, and my sisters, had been born on, or near, an air force base. As a result I will always have a love/hate relationship with this branch of service.

I love it because it made my father a real life hero. I hate it because it was a lousy life for a kid. We moved every two years so you could never have real friends.

Dad flew 36 missions over Europe as a gunner in the ball-turret of a B-17 named “You’ve Had It.”

Dad's WWII B-17, "You've Had It"

He did two tours of Vietnam as a photo-interpreter during the worst years of the conflict. He would analyze photographs, some of which were taken by the infamous U-2 spy plane. He would use the photos to identify enemy installations, movements and targets.

Dad in Vietnam

Years later, in a hell-hole called Grand Forks Air Force Base, North Dakota, Dad worked in a secretive cave protected by a huge vault door in a secure area of the flight-line. This was the period of the Mutually Assured Destruction (MAD) theory of cold war politics. Dad put together strike packages for the nuclear-armed B-52 bombers that were kept in the air 24/7 to be able to strike Russia, should they attack us first. Most of the reconnaissance photos Dad used during this period were also provided by the U-2 “Dragon Lady”.

B-52 at Grand Forks AFB, North Dakota

Sometime in 1999, after I had matured enough to stop blaming Dad for my childhood difficulties, I sat him down and told him how I really felt about him.

I told him he had always been my hero. I explained that no matter which air force base we were on, no kid’s father could claim to be braver than my Dad. I bragged about my father because his actions made me feel special. He was the greatest hero I’ve ever known, and he was my father.

I wanted a closer relationship with my father, but he lived 2000 miles away. I came up with the idea of a working on a book together because this would create a continuous dialogue between us, via email and phone calls. The story line would have to be built around Dad’s expertise and experiences. I could draw on his knowledge and it would add realism to the story.

The story we agreed on was about a young U-2 pilot who was shot down over Somalia and was subsequently captured by a local Islamic warlord. She would be rescued with the unconventional use of modern technology and psychological warfare.

The heroine of the story was the U-2 pilot. During my research on the subject I quickly learned that there was little information on the pilots of these strange aircraft. I wondered about the possibility of being able to interview a current U-2 pilot and started making phone calls. The calls led me to Beale Air Force Base. 

Coincidentally Beale AFB is a short 3 hour drive from where I live. The public information officer said the only way I could get approval to interview a U-2 pilot was through the Pentagon. She more or less said, “and good luck with THAT!”.

I spoke with Dad and he said, “What the hell, let’s try the Pentagon!”  This began another round of frustrating phone calls. I finally got in touch with a not-so-encouraging officer who gave me the details on how to make the application. There would be an evaluation of the benefit to the air force, background checks, yadda, yadda, yadda. We were informed that the process might take some time – and, that few such requests were approved.

Months went by and Dad and I continued to work on the book. A dear friend of mine also contributed with the typing and editing. Finally, one day I see in my email box a communication from the Pentagon. I was expecting disappointment.

“Dear Mr. Welch,” it began, “Your request to visit and interview a U-2 pilot at
Beale Air Force Base, CA has been assigned Case #99-396 and is approved.”

The Email from the Pentagon (click on the image to read)

Holy crap! Dad and I were going to Beale Air Force Base to interview a U-2 pilot – together! It would be the coolest father and son thing we had ever done. 

I called Dad and told him the good news. He immediately started talking  about making plans to fly down. We also talked about what a great military honor it was to have this opportunity. 

I was ecstatic not only because of the opportunity to visit Beale, but also because it meant my Dad would come and spend time with me.

I contacted Beale in the hopes that this interview would happen in the very near future. I was to be disappointed by delay after delay. Months and months dragged on with one problem or another with the arrangements at Beale. 

The delays finally drove me to writing a very strongly worded email in which I copied the Pentagon. A few days later the public relations officer called to say the interview had been scheduled for the following month,September 2001, and gave me the date and time. I called Dad and he booked a flight.

This was finally happening and I was thoroughly excited!
 
September 11, 2001 ended the dream of Dad and I visiting Beale AFB and interviewing the U-2 pilot. At the time, considering the magnitude of the 9/11 tragedy, my disappointment was trivial. Yet, it still hurt me deeply.
 
World events, and my disappointment, made it hard for me to remain enthusiastic about the book. It was a struggle for me to write. I also lost the support and guidance of my friend who had been helping with the editing.  The book languished. A few years later my Dad died and the book along with him. We never made it to Beale.
 
Two weeks ago I was to revisit this sad part of my past. My engineering partner asked me the strangest question. He says, “Gary, how would you like to go to Beale Air Force Base?” I looked at him because I was sure I mis-heard. What?
 
“We have a project there and I need you to go take a look at it. Will you do it?” I could feel the emotions swelling in my heart as I answered, “Of course I will!”.  I was thinking that I had some unfinished business there.
 
The day came to visit Beale AFB. I put on Dad’s leather flying jacket. The jacket had the nose art from his B-17 painted on the back. I knew there was little chance of actually seeing a U-2 today so I tried to put that out of my mind.

Dad's Flying Jacket 

I made the 3 hour drive and was passed through the security gate. I was early for my meeting, so I pulled 
the car into an adjacent parking lot for a few moments of reflection.

As I climbed out of my car I realized I was right next to the runway. The early morning yellow light reflecting off of the billowing clouds made for a spectacular sight. It was then I heard a jet engine spooling up. A few seconds later an all-black, sleek, T-38 Talon leapt off the runway and climbed into the blue sky above. The mighty roar of those twin jet engines brought back memories of air force life from a long time ago.

The All-black T-38 Talon from Beale AFB

I started crying as I thought about Dad. I put my hand on his embroidered name on his jacket and said out loud, “Well Dad, we finally made it to Beale.”
 
As if out of a Hollywood script, I immediately heard the sound of another jet engine winding up. 

With tears now streaming down my cheek, I’m thinking, “It couldn’t be…?”.

She rose off the tarmac like a ghostly shadow. It was the U-2 Dragon Lady roaring into the sky!

I had a hard time believing my eyes. Yet there is no mistaking the long wings, the rounded nose and the jet-black color of the U-2 Dragon Lady. She soared off the runway and seemed to momentarily hang in space above me. Then she climbed slowly into the sky where the eery-looking jet-black spy plane was swallowed by a stark-white cloud.   

It's sounds like a story I made up, or embellished, but this is exactly the way it happened. The sight of that beautiful, ugly, U-2 soaring over my head with tears pouring from my eyes will never be forgotten. A lifetime of emotions swirled through my mind. My father never home, the isolation of air force life for a child, my lonely mother, and my father, the greatest war hero ever.

It is the U-2 aircraft that will always connect me with my father, Master Sergeant Martin Derek Welch. Although he is gone now, he is still my hero and I will always be proud of him.

We finally made it to Beale Air Force Base, Dad.

My Father, war hero, 
and Mom