Francis Gary Powers by his Lockheed U-2 Spy Plane  

  
U-2 pilot Francis Gary Powers, center, in Moscow’s Hall of Columns during
the opening of his espionage trial.

The U-2 incident occurred during the Cold War presidency of Dwight Eisenhower
and the leadership of Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev, when a United States
U-2 spy plane piloted by Francis Gary Powers (above) was shot down over the
airspace of the Soviet Union.

The U.S.government at first denied the plane’s purpose and mission, but then
was forced to admit its role as a covert surveillance aircraft when the Soviet
government produced the remains of the downed aircraft and it’s surviving
pilot along with photos of Russian military bases taken by Powers.

On August 17, 1960, Powers was convicted of espionage against the Soviet
Union and was sentenced to a total of 10 years, three years in imprisonment
followed by seven years of hard labor. On February 10, 1962, Powers was
exchanged along with American student Frederic Pryor in a spy swap for
Soviet KGB Colonel Vilyam Fisher.

U-2 wreckage captured in the Soviet Union

The above photos show workers on the structural framework of
the Empire State Building before its completion.

Empire State Building and the dirigible Graf Zeppelin, 1931

The Empire State Building is a 102-story landmark skyscraper in New
York City located at the intersection of Fifth Avenue and West 34th
Street.

Excavation of the site began on January 22, 1930, and construction
on the building itself started symbolically on March 17—St. Patrick’s
Day. It was officially opened on May 1, 1931 when U.S. President
Herbert Hoover turned on the building’s lights with the push of a
button from Washington, D.C. The building is currently undergoing
a $550 million renovation.
  

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