One day I happen to be standing on the flightline up at area 51 with Hervey Stockman. This is the same guy that I wrote about flying P-39s at Kingman- gunnery school, WWII, later flew P-51s in Europe. Hervey says, see that hill over there?
I say, Yes sir I do. It was a Big black volcanic hill just off the flightline.
Hervey says, when we were up here flying U-2s, we would get up about 4am.
We had our high-altitude breKfast, then a physical, then we suited up in our pressure suits.
Then we breathed pure O2 for I think an hour.
Then we were assisted by our life support techs out to the bird.
It would be pre-lighted and running. The other guy had gotten up and done all that.
Then you get strapped and ready to go. Then somebody, usually a Lockheed guy would give you the shut it down signal. Something was wrong. Mission is cancelled.
Then Hervey would go back to life support and take off his suit.
Wearing only boots and under wear, he would run to the top of the hill, screaming all the way.
It would only be about 7am, and he had little to do until 4am the next day.
Roll the calendar forward. Hervey and I are both retired from the AF. I am down at a local bookstore.
I see a magazine , special issue on the U-2. Start leaving through it.
It says that Capt. Hervey Stockman flew the first U-2 USSR overflight mission. I knew he was early in the U-2 but did not know that he was the first.
So I called him to tell him that his name was declassified and released. That kind of surprised me. When he called me back, he still didn't want to talk about it.
Later on, Hervey flew F-4s over in SEA. Spent several years up in Hanoi.
Up in Hanoi he met some nice Navy boys and got to be good friends with John McCain.
Hervey recently departed this realm.
Hand Salute!
Hervey Stockman, Fighter Pilot, American Hero
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