Evening star., 1960-09-23

=
father his U-2 plane was not
shot down by a Soviet rocket
at $1,000 feet.
The 31-year-old flyer also re-
affirmed his determination to
return home when he finishes
his sentence for espionage here
and expressed the hope that
he would not have to serve the
entire 10 years of his sentence.
Powers said in the letter he
believes his plane was destroyed
by the shock wave of an eX-
plosion in the rear 'or maybe
on the right"
Saw Orange Burst
The flyer testified at the
opening of his trial August II
that he was at $4,000 feet on
his May Day flight across the
Soviet Union when he saw an
orange burst and his plane went
out Of control, forcing him to
bail out.
The Russians say the U-2
was downed by a single ROCKET
and that their rockets can down
intruder planes from any
height, even those far beyond
reach of ordinary antiaircraft
artillery.
Powers views appeared in an
open letter addressed to the
editor Of the New York Times
which was published in a Rus
sian translation by the Soviet
Communist Party newspaper
Prayda.
Controversial Feature
Apparently the imprisoned
Powers had been shown an in
terivew from New York in
which his father was quoted
as saying his son had told him
the U-2 was not shot down by
a Soviet rocket at record
height.
(Oliver Powers told a news
conference in New York
August 25 he believes his
sons Jet was not shot down,
adding "he did not say [how
it was downedl, in court or
out Of court" However, the.
elder Powers quoted the pilot
as saying If were shot
down there would have been
a hollow explosion behind
me and an orange flash
flash around me-" This diff
fered somewhat from Powers
trial testimony. The prisoner
told the Moscow court he
heard a hollow-sounding ex-
plOsion behind "and l could
see an orange-colored light"
(Sol Curry of Norton, Va,
adviser to the elder Powers,
said in New York today Mr..
Powers "never quoted his son
on how the plane did get
shot down. He might have
expressed his opinion
well, that's his opinion and
his son may have another
opinion.
Whether the U-2 was shot
down by a Soviet rocket has
been one of the most contro-
versial features of the Powers
case. Many Western air au-
thorities believe an engine
failure forced the plane down
within range Of regular anti
aircraft guns.
Powers. in his letter written
from an unidentified prison,
, denied this contention. s
The pilot was quoted: ZAP.
gparently my father misundef-
iistood my answers when I was
: on trial. I would like to re-
move this misunderstanding
and say that although 1 did
{ not see what caused the ex-
plosion, I am sure my plane
did not blow up by itself.
n Felt Explosion
u "All the indicators which
register the performance of
the engine were in good order
until the very moment Of the
explosion, which felt and
heard. I also saw an orange
flash when I looked out of the
cabin. I am not sure but I
think that the explosion was
in the rear Of the plane or
maybe on the right side.
Il didn't feel any blow or
anything on the fuSelage OF
the plane. This is the reason
why I think that the destruc-
tion of the plane was caused
by the shock wave Of an ex-
ploSion and I can only guess
what happened after that.
Il think that the tail of the
plane was first blown off, caus-
ing the plane to nose down, as
a result of which the wings
fell off. The cabin and other
parts started to fall topsy-turvy
and I couldn't use the catapult
because of the acceleration.
Il at last managed to get out
of the plane at the height of
$4,000 feet or below. I mention
this heights because my para
chute opened automatically and
it was set to open at this height.
1t opened Immediately after I
left the plane. I was at the
maximum height when the ex-
ploSion occurred, as I proved
in court. That happened at the
height of $4,000 feet. l am
sure that my father misunder-
stood my words during the trial
and if that is SO, perhaps there
are other people who also mis-
understood me.
Il hope that this letter will
remove any misunderstanding
on this question. My father