On this day in 1960,

U.S.S.R. Shoots Down U.S. U-2 Spy Plane Flown By Gary Powers

On this day in 1960, the Soviet Union shot down a U.S. spy plane over Russia.  The CIA told Republican President and former general Dwight Eisenhower that the Soviets did not possess anti-aircraft weapons sophisticated enough to reach the high-altitude plane but, if they did, the plane would self-destruct and the pilot would kill himself.  As a result, the U.S. initially said the plane was a weather plane, had wandered off course, and crashed.  Soviet leader Khrushchev responded by not only displaying the wreckage but also pilot Powers.  At a later major summit of the super powers, Khrushchev blasted the U.S., prompting Eisenhower to walk out.  Eisenhower privately called the “stupid U-2 mess” one of the worst episodes of his presidency.  Powers spent about two years in a Soviet prison before being exchanged for a Soviet spy.