Months after Project ‘Jiu-Jitsu’ was banned, a Royal Air Force Canberra aircraft undertook one of the most secretive flights over the USSR. Even today, the exact date of this mission remains unknown, as British intelligence consistently guards its secrets. The British conducted this operation largely independently, involving the US Air Force but not the CIA. Unlike previous projects, however, this one narrowly avoided failure.
The idea for the flight emerged approximately a year before it took place. In 1952, Western intelligence learned that the USSR was testing missile weapons at the Kapustin Yar proving ground, near Stalingrad (now Volgograd). One intelligence report indicated that telemetry data from a launched missile had been intercepted over the air. This report was later confirmed by ground-based radio interception services stationed in Turkey.
Additional information about the Soviet missile program was obtained from German engineers who had been captured by the Russians during the war, participated in its development, and later returned to Germany. Western intelligence urgently needed photographs of the Kapustin Yar proving ground. Bob Amory, then Deputy Director of the CIA, insisted on a reconnaissance flight in the area. He stated, ‘We cannot ignore these facts. This missile program is something new, and we must know everything about it from the beginning.’ However, General Nathan Twining informed Amory that the US Air Force could not undertake such a mission, so the British decided to take on the task.
Project Robin and the Canberra’s Preparation
On the eve of the mission, the Americans supplied the British with K-30 cameras equipped with hundred-inch focal lenses. The terms of delivery were straightforward: ‘Do whatever you want with them, it’s none of our business, but provide us with copies of everything you photograph.’ The K-30s were installed on a Canberra jet bomber, where they had previously been used for aerial photography over Eastern Europe from the airspace of friendly nations. During trials, the camera produced excellent images of St. Paul’s Cathedral in London, taken from an aircraft flying along the English coast near Dover.
The flight program using aircraft equipped with K-30 cameras was dubbed ‘Project Robin.’ The Canberra, with its K-30s installed, was designated to conduct the flight to the Kapustin Yar proving ground. In the spring of 1953, a plan for a long-range daytime reconnaissance flight over the southern European part of the USSR was developed. An ordinary B-2 Canberra bomber was preferred over the new PR-3 reconnaissance aircraft, which had only just entered service. The camera was to be placed in the aft fuselage, with its lens protruding from the aircraft’s port side. Additional fuel tanks were fitted in the bomb bay to enable the B-2 to complete the long-distance flight.
To maximize its flight altitude and make the Canberra unreachable for Soviet MiG-15s, all unnecessary equipment was removed from the bomber. The Canberra conducted two or three successful test flights over Eastern Europe. Following these successes, Prime Minister Winston Churchill gave his authorization for the flight to the Kapustin Yar proving ground.
The High-Stakes Reconnaissance Mission
The actual flight took place in late August 1953. The aircraft took off from Gebelstadt airfield in West Germany, near the East German border, and was immediately detected by Soviet radars after takeoff. The Canberra headed directly east, gradually climbing to an initial altitude of 14,000 meters. It penetrated the airspace over Prague, then flew over southern Poland and Krakow, crossed the Soviet border, and proceeded towards Kyiv.
Throughout the flight, the aircraft steadily gained more altitude. Although Soviet air defense (PVO) was dealing with only one intruder flying a straight course, their interceptor fighters were powerless against the Canberra. Radar installations tracked the B-2’s flight, but MiG pilots could not intercept the aircraft, which was already flying above 14,500 meters. The Russians were clearly bewildered; no one knew what to do. In one air defense district, a controller even ordered fighters to fly west, not east.
As the Canberra passed over Kharkiv, MiG pilots dispatched for interception opened fire on each other. Upon approach to Kapustin Yar, one MiG managed to briefly close in on the Canberra and fire a burst from its machine gun. The damage sustained by the British aircraft caused a slight fuselage vibration, but the plane maintained its altitude and continued its flight. The British pilot photographed the missile test site, then turned south and flew along the Volga River. He exited Soviet airspace over the Caspian Sea and soon successfully landed in Iran, completing his mission.
Aftermath and Consequences
Because the Canberra narrowly escaped destruction, the British abandoned long-range daytime flights over the USSR. According to Amory’s recollections, they vowed never to undertake such missions again. The failed attempts to intercept the Canberra led to new repressions in the USSR. Several generals and other officers were dismissed. One Soviet general was demoted to lieutenant colonel, and it was later reported that he committed suicide. Some were sent to penal battalions.
The Americans learned about the Kapustin Yar flight in February 1954; US Air Force command and the CIA later received copies of all the photographs taken. Amory himself stated that there were ‘some excellent shots’ among them, while others claimed the photos were of poor quality and contained little information about the proving ground, possibly due to the aircraft’s fuselage vibration.