Moby Dick.

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Before there was Jiu-jitsu there was Moby Dick.

Moby Dick or the hunt for the Great White Balloon!

"A Brief History of Project Moby Dick, the Cold War’s Least Believable Surveillance Strategy"

"The U.S. once launched hundreds of balloons in an attempt to spy on the Soviets"

"the U.S. Air Force launched hundreds of spy balloons to float over the Soviet Union, collect photographic coverage, and hopefully reappear in friendly airspace for midair recovery."

American Cold War era high-flying balloons carrying high-resolution cameras on "spy" missions. Released from allied territory to drift freely over the Soviet Union, from west to east, cameras taking reconnaissance photos, film recovered if and when possible.

Moby Dick I think perceived and quite correctly so as not even a qualified success, rather less than that actually. 

Some key points as gleaned from the article to include but not necessarily limited to:

1. A high priority project.

2. A source of world-wide UFO sightings.

3. High percentage of failure.

4. Cost efficient from a map-making standpoint.

5. Providing high technology film for the Soviets.

6. Soviet high-flight intercept warplane.

With regard to item # 6 think the Myasishchev M-55 interceptor warplane called Subject 34. Analogous to the American U-2 "spy" plane!

"For a ten year period beginning in 1945 it would have better if the United States did not have an intelligence agency." - - Richard Helms.

In part, Richard had Moby Dick in mind?

coolbert.