#11 and #21: The U2 has only center line landing gear, with no permanently attached gear out at the end of those long, flexible wings. When the pilot taxis out for takeoff, the aircraft does have small wheels on short struts which are temporarily attached out at the wing tips. They're attached in such a way that they will both drop off (on the runway) upon takeoff.
I may be wrong, but I think that the rear view mirror is used by the pilot on his landing rollout, to confirm that the ground crew's truck is following closely, so that if any drooping of the wings might cause the wingtip(s) come close to touching the ground, the ground crew will be able to remedy the problem; they have the wing tip wheel/strut assemblies in their truck and will quickly install them to allow the aircraft to continue to taxi into its parking spot.
You're right, though, about the aircraft not being able to back up on its own. There are tugs with the proper equipment that will allow the ground crew to move the plane back into the hangar.
#17: The pilot/Major is possibly wearing glasses to correct a slight change in his eyesight from the 20/20 requirement that pilot trainees must have in order to be accepted into the USAF training program.
I was a graduate of the Undergraduate Pilot Training (UPT) Class 69-D at Webb AFB in Big Spring, Texas in December 1969; one member of the class had his eyesight tested about halfway through the 53-week program, and was found to have a slight change in the 20/20 requirement that he had initially met. He was allowed to continue, and wore glasses while flying from then on.
I think he went off to fly fighters after graduation, so just because an AF pilot wears glasses, they don't qualify him as a wimp. The Major flying the U2 while wearing glasses seems to bear this out, wouldn't you say?
+4 1. timennor commented 15 years ago on video To the edge of space in a spyplane
I may be wrong, but I think that the rear view mirror is used by the pilot on his landing rollout, to confirm that the ground crew's truck is following closely, so that if any drooping of the wings might cause the wingtip(s) come close to touching the ground, the ground crew will be able to remedy the problem; they have the wing tip wheel/strut assemblies in their truck and will quickly install them to allow the aircraft to continue to taxi into its parking spot.
You're right, though, about the aircraft not being able to back up on its own. There are tugs with the proper equipment that will allow the ground crew to move the plane back into the hangar.
#17: The pilot/Major is possibly wearing glasses to correct a slight change in his eyesight from the 20/20 requirement that pilot trainees must have in order to be accepted into the USAF training program.
I was a graduate of the Undergraduate Pilot Training (UPT) Class 69-D at Webb AFB in Big Spring, Texas in December 1969; one member of the class had his eyesight tested about halfway through the 53-week program, and was found to have a slight change in the 20/20 requirement that he had initially met. He was allowed to continue, and wore glasses while flying from then on.
I think he went off to fly fighters after graduation, so just because an AF pilot wears glasses, they don't qualify him as a wimp. The Major flying the U2 while wearing glasses seems to bear this out, wouldn't you say?