PILOT

Francis Gary Powers

1929 - 1977

Photo of Francis Gary Powers

Icon of person Francis Gary Powers

Francis Gary Powers (August 17, 1929 – August 1, 1977) was an American pilot whose Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Lockheed U-2 spy plane was shot down while flying a reconnaissance mission in Soviet Union airspace, causing the 1960 U-2 incident. He later worked as a helicopter pilot for KNBC in Los Angeles and died in a 1977 helicopter crash. Read more on Wikipedia

Since 2007, the English Wikipedia page of Francis Gary Powers has received more than 5,121,164 page views. His biography is available in 38 different languages on Wikipedia (up from 37 in 2019). Francis Gary Powers is the 9th most popular pilot, the 619th most popular biography from United States (up from 640th in 2019) and the 3rd most popular Pilot.

Francis Gary Powers was a U.S. pilot who was captured by the Soviet Union after his U-2 spy plane was shot down in 1960.

Memorability Metrics

  • 5.1M

    Page Views (PV)

  • 65.16

    Historical Popularity Index (HPI)

  • 38

    Languages Editions (L)

  • 6.44

    Effective Languages (L*)

  • 3.15

    Coefficient of Variation (CV)

Page views of Francis Gary Powers by language


Among PILOTS

Among pilots, Francis Gary Powers ranks 9 out of 48. Before him are Wolfram Freiherr von Richthofen, Sabiha Gökçen, Roland Garros, Adolf Galland, Hanna Reitsch, and Ernst Udet. After him are Sir Arthur Harris, 1st Baronet, Chesley Sullenberger, Ivan Kozhedub, Hermann Graf, Marina Raskova, and Hezârfen Ahmed Çelebi.

Most Popular Pilots in Wikipedia

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Contemporaries

Among people born in 1929, Francis Gary Powers ranks 35. Before him are Tigran Petrosian, Babrak Karmal, Graham Hill, Djalma Santos, Bill Evans, and Zdzisław Beksiński. After him are Petr Shelokhonov, Rudolf Mössbauer, Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, Murray Gell-Mann, Bernard Haitink, and Lata Mangeshkar. Among people deceased in 1977, Francis Gary Powers ranks 19. Before him are Joan Crawford, Makarios III, Anaïs Nin, Alexey Stakhanov, Kurt Schuschnigg, and Ernst Bloch. After him are Howard Hawks, Princess Charlotte, Duchess of Valentinois, Bing Crosby, Clarice Lispector, Alexander Luria, and Groucho Marx.

Others Born in 1929

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Others Deceased in 1977

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In United States

Among people born in United States, Francis Gary Powers ranks 619 out of 18,182. Before him are Jack Kilby (1923), Harold Lasswell (1902), Buddy Holly (1936), Priscilla Presley (1945), Rod Steiger (1925), and Ron Perlman (1950). After him are Gloria Gaynor (1947), Donald Rumsfeld (1932), Charles Greeley Abbot (1872), Ted Kennedy (1932), Jeff Goldblum (1952), and Donna Summer (1948).

Others born in United States

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Among PILOTS In United States

Among pilots born in United States, Francis Gary Powers ranks 3. Before him are Charles Lindbergh (1902) and Amelia Earhart (1897). After him are Chesley Sullenberger (1951), Chuck Yeager (1923), Joseph Kittinger (1928), Claire Lee Chennault (1890), Bessie Coleman (1892), Jacqueline Cochran (1906), Wally Funk (1939), Jerrie Cobb (1931), and Cornelia Fort (1919).

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