Description:
At a remote location on the periphery of the Soviet, a MiG-23 intercepts a U.S. Air Force RC-135 "Rivet Joint" reconnaissance aircraft. The interceptor, known by the NATO code name Flogger, is armed to defend its sovereign airspace as the RC-135, equipped with various sensors, conducts an unarmed intelligence mission from international airspace. The artist, a retired colonel, served as a pilot and RC-135 aircraft commander with the 38th Strategic Reconnaissance Squadron, 55th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing, in the 1980s, logging 213 operational missions in sensitive airspace. He recalls, "We were aware of the history of Cold War reconnaissance missions, including classified data about the attacks, shoot-downs, and loss of over a hundred American airmen. The crews of the 55th Wing and other units were relentless in collecting vital intelligence for the national command authorities virtually 24 hours a day for decades, and continuing today. The sun never sets on the Fightin' Fifty-Fifth."
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