U-2 Optical Bar Camera Retirement

When was the last time you got your camera's film developed at a 1-hour photo? You can't remember, can you? Neither can we! Well, the folks at Beale Air Force Base in California have continued to process large amounts of film long after the digital imaging revolution swept massive brand names like Kodak and Fuji Film to the back of the public's consciousness.

The U.S. Air Force’s 9th Reconnaissance Wing says that the U-2 Dragon Lady spy plane has flown Beale Air Force Base’s last Optical Bar Camera, or OBC, mission. In service for over half a century with the U-2, the OBC is one of the high-flying plane's oldest sensor systems. Making its exit from Beale truly marks the end of an era in more ways than one.

A Dragon Lady piloted by U.S. Air Force Lt. Col. Ralph Shoukry flew the last sortie with the OBC from Beale — the home of the U-2 community — on June 24. Upon its return to the base, technicians ceremoniously lowered the sensor out of the jet one final time. Because the OBC is a wet film camera, its last flight from the base also effectively ended wet film processing at the 9th Reconnaissance Wing. With that, Beale's U-2s have finally fully embraced the digital imaging age.