The crews of the SR-71 Blackbird remember the KC-135Q Stratotanker crew with gratitude for their attention to their safety The Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird requires JP-7 fuel, which the KC-135Q variant…
The Blackbird’s cockpit needed to be rearranged prior to the aircraft’s first flight, but the cost was high and it wasn’t functional. The SR-71 Blackbird collected intelligence during its service…
At the Edwards AFB Open House Airshow on October 9, 1999, an SR-71 Blackbird made its final flight The brief video in this post, which was recorded on Saturday, October…
The A-12 was an early attempt by Lockheed to create a spy plane that could avoid enemy detection and anti-aircraft fire. It was the first “attempt” at a stealth aircraft…
During the harshest period of the Cold War, the SR-71 Blackbird Mach 3 + spy plane crew used some unusual equipment while flying through Soviet-controlled airspace The SR-71 Blackbird collected…
The USAF ordered 93 F-12B Blackbird Mach 3+ Interceptors, each of which was equipped with three Hughes AIM-47A Falcon air-to-air missiles in secure compartments at the fuselage’s bottom On February…
‘I am really tired of hearing the “LA speed story” so I thought I would relay a mission that gives real perspective to the speed of the Blackbird,’ David Peters,…
According to the story, President Johnson intended to call the Blackbird the “RS-71,” but he misread the letters, and said “SR-71.” The following story appears in Col. Richard H. Graham’s book…
“How about solid waste? We just had to control any urges. There was occasional incidents; no names mentioned here!” Richard H. Graham, SR-71 pilot In the following story, which appears in Col.…
“With no drag chute doors, the drag chute had departed the aircraft and was lost at sea. We were grateful to the Lockheed engineers for designing the drag chute to…