A U-2 reconnaissance plane takes off from Beale Air Force Base in 2000 near Marysville, Calif. Although the plane is perhaps best known for being shot down over the Soviet Union in 1960 and the subsequent capture of pilot Francis Gary Powers, the U-2 continues to play a critical role in national security today, hunting Al Qaeda forces in the Middle East. The aging cold warrior once slated for retirement in 2015 may fight on into the next decade. (Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press)
South Korean President Lee Myung-Bak, left, walks past a U-2 spy plane as he visits the Air Force headquarters in Osan, south of Seoul, in 2009. (Dong-A Ilbo / Agence France-Presse)
A U-2 spy plane is displayed at the Lockheed Advanced Development Co. in Palmdale in 1994. (Boris Yaro / Los Angeles Times)
