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The Fulton system in use The Fulton system in use from below. The Fulton surface-to-air recovery system (STARS), also known as Skyhook, is a system used by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), United States Air Force, and United States Navy for retrieving individuals on the ground using aircraft such as the MC-130E Combat Talon I and B-17 Flying Fortress.
English: Illustration of Fulton surface-to-air recovery system (STARS) showing a Lockheed MC-130 capturing the lift line attached to a self-inflating balloon and recovering a person from the ground Date
Project Coldfeet was a 1962 Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) operation to extract intelligence from an abandoned Soviet Arctic drifting ice station.Due to the nature of its abandonment as the result of unstable ice, the retrieval of the operatives used the Fulton surface-to-air recovery system.
In 1966, at Edwards Air Force Base, Brooks was the first to fly an experimental device attached to an HC-130H called the Fulton surface-to-air recovery system. This demonstrated the effectiveness of recovering personnel on the ground if they could launch a helium-filled balloon.
The Fulton surface-to-air recovery system was used to extract personnel and materials via air. A large helium balloon raised a nylon lift line into the air, which was snagged by a large scissors-shaped yoke attached to the nose of the plane. The yoke snagged the line and released the balloon, yanking the attached cargo off the ground with a ...
Balloons were also used during the American Civil War, where they were used for reconnaissance and communication. Balloons had a decline after several incidents in the interwar period. In the late 19th century, military ballooning began to evolve, as advances in technology allowed for the development of more sophisticated balloons and equipment.
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Early USAF versions were also equipped with the Fulton surface-to-air recovery system, designed to pull a person off the ground using a wire strung from a helium balloon. The John Wayne movie The Green Berets features its use. The Fulton system was later removed when aerial refueling of helicopters proved safer and more versatile.