![]() Based at El Centro, California, he conducted numerous flights over the Colorado Desert using a Navy P-2V Neptune. Over the next few years, Fulton refined the air and ground equipment for the pickup system. Believing that the program could best be handled by the military, de Florez put Fulton in touch with the Office of Naval Research (ONR), where he obtained a development contract from ONR's Air Programs Division. Successful at last, Fulton took photographs and sent them to Admiral Luis de Florez, who had become the director of technical research at the CIA. Using a weather balloon, nylon line, and weights of 10 to 15 pounds (4.5 to 6.8 kg), Fulton made numerous pickup attempts as he sought to develop a reliable procedure. An aircraft, usually a C-47 Skytrain, trailed a grappling hook that engaged the line, which was attached to the person to be retrieved.ĭevelopment of the recovery system Įxperiments with the recovery system began in 1950 by the CIA and Air Force. The earlier system did not use a balloon, but a line stretched between a pair of poles set in the ground on either side of the person to be retrieved. It was an evolution from a similar system that was used during World War II by American and British forces to retrieve both personnel and downed assault gliders following airborne operations. This system was developed by inventor Robert Edison Fulton, Jr., for the CIA in the early 1950s. Recovery kits were designed for one- and two-man retrievals. Red flags on the lift line guide the pilot during daylight recoveries lights on the lift line are used for night recoveries. An MC-130E engages the line with its V-shaped yoke and the person is reeled on board. It involves using an overall-type harness and a self-inflating balloon with an attached lift line. The Fulton surface-to-air recovery system ( STARS) is a system used by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), United States Air Force, and United States Navy for retrieving individuals on the ground using aircraft such as the MC-130E Combat Talon I and B-17 Flying Fortress. The Fulton system in use The Fulton system in use from below
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |