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aircraft

SR-71 pilot recalls when his RSO flipped off a French Air Force Mirage III pilot

by Till Daisd August 10, 2024

The SR-71 Blackbird

The most advanced Blackbird developed by Lockheed Aircraft Corporation’s clandestine “Skunk Works” division, the SR-71 reconnaissance aircraft was also the fastest jet-propelled aircraft in the world.

Everything that has come before the Blackbird was not comparable. “Everything had to be invented. Everything,” Kelly Johnson, the legendary aircraft designer from Skunk Works, recalled in an interesting article that was posted on the Lockheed Martin website.

The SR-71 flew at over 2,000 miles per hour. Theoretically, other aircraft of the time could reach that velocity, but only in short bursts powered by afterburners. The Blackbird maintained a record-setting speed for hours at a time.

One of the most entertaining stories about flying the Blackbird comes from Lt. Colonel William Burk Jr., who shares about a particular mission he flew [according to SR-71 pilot Stormy Boudreaux, Tom Henichek was Burk’s RSO for that mission] over Lebanon back in 1982 in the book Skunk Works by Ben Rich.

Blackbird over Lebanon

‘In the fall of ’82, I flew from Mildenhall on a mission over Lebanon in response to the Marine barracks bombing. President Reagan ordered photo coverage of all the terrorist bases in the region. The French refused to allow us overfly, so our mission profile was to refuel off the south coast of England, a Mach 3 cruise leg down the coast of Portugal and Spain, left turn through the Straits of Gibraltar, refuel in the Western Mediterranean, right turn into Lebanon and fly right down main street Beirut, exit along the southern Mediterranean with another refueling over Malta, supersonic back out the straits, and return to England.

‘Because Syria had a Soviet SA-5 missile system just west of Damascus that we would be penetrating (we were unsure of Syria’s intentions in this conflict), we programmed to fly above 80,000 feet and at Mach 3 plus to be on the safe side, knowing that this advanced missile had the range and speed to nail us.

SR-71 pilot recalls when his RSO Flipped Off a French Air Force Mirage III Pilot (Then They lit their Blackbird’s Afterburners and Outran him)

‘As we entered Lebanon’s airspace my Recon Systems Officer in the rear cockpit informed me that our defensive systems display showed we were being tracked by that SA-5. About 15 seconds later we got a warning of active guidance signals from the SA-5 site. We couldn’t tell whether there was an actual launch or the missile was still on the rails, but they were actively tracking us. We didn’t waste any time wondering, but climbed and pushed that throttle, and said a couple of “Hail Kellys.”

SR-71 crew flipping off a French Air Force Mirage III Pilot

‘We completed our pass over Beirut and turned toward Malta when I got a warning low-oil-pressure light on my right engine. Even though the engine was running fine I slowed down and lowered our altitude and made a direct line for England. We decided to cross France without clearance instead of going the roundabout way.

‘We made it almost across when I looked out the left window and saw a French Mirage III sitting ten feet off my left wing. He came up on our frequency and asked us for our Diplomatic Clearance Number. I had no idea what he was talking about, so I told him to stand by. I ask my backseater, who said, “Don’t worry about it. I just gave it to him.” What he had given him was “the bird” with his middle finger: I lit the afterburners and left that Mirage standing still. Two minutes later, we were crossing the Channel.’

Check out Habubrats SR-71‘s Twitter profile, SR71Habubrats‘s Instagram profile, and Born into the Wilde Blue Yonder Habubrats‘s Facebook page for further Blackbird photos and stories.

Photo by U.S. Air Force and French Air Force Via FAST Museum Twitter Account

August 10, 2024 0 comment

Cold War

USAF T-39A pilot explains why he chose to fly the Sabreliner business jet over the F-15 Eagle

by Till Daisd August 9, 2024

written by Till Daisd

The F-15 Eagle

The Air Force was able to establish and preserve air supremacy over the battlefield with the help of the F-15 Eagle, a tactical fighter that is incredibly maneuverable and suitable for all weather conditions.

The Eagle’s exceptional maneuverability, acceleration, range, weapons, and avionics all contribute to its outstanding air superiority. It is capable of defeating all existing hostile aircraft and penetrating opposing defenses. The F-15 is equipped with electronic systems and weapons that allow it to track, detect, and attack hostile aircraft when it is in friendly or enemy-controlled airspace. Air-to-air combat can be safely and effectively carried out by one person because of the design of the weaponry and flight control systems.

Would you rather be a T-39A Sabreliner pilot instead of being an F-15 Eagle pilot?

Why would you prefer to fly a T-39A Sabreliner over an F-15 Eagle, considering its unique capabilities?

Ron Wagner, former USAF Pilot, recalls on Quora.

‘I was first in my USAF Undergraduate Pilot Training (UPT) class in October 1974, and we were thinking about our upcoming assignment selections. With the exception of a single year—the year I got my wings—the USAF sent a list of aircraft to each class, and then the class chose from that fixed list, whatever came down to them, and it varied quite a bit from class to class. #1 got first choice from the list, on down to the B-52 to Minot that went by default to the bottom slot.

‘However!

‘During this one magical year, the USAF experimented with a system that allowed the #1 graduate to pick any aircraft in the USAF inventory for which they were qualified. (We could not select an SR-71, for example, which required a certain number of hours of flight experience.)

‘In other words, #1 got anything they wanted and then the block that went to the rest of the class was short by one.

F-15 Initial Cadre

‘When the F-15 entered USAF service, all of the pilots were experienced fighter pilots who built up what the USAF calls an “initial cadre” before letting slots in the new aircraft go to brand new pilots fresh out of UPT.

‘I got a note to go see the wing commander in his office, where he very proudly informed me that the F-15 had just completed “initial cadre” and that if I selected an F-15, I would be the first to go from UPT directly into it.

‘He was excited. He expected me to be excited.

‘I was honored.

‘And I gave it some serious thought because—well, damn, I question the wings on the chest of any USAF ‘pilot who does not want to FLY an F-15.

‘Any pilot, actually! It’s a hell of an airplane!

‘Flying one would be absolutely fabulous and I loved wringing out everything the T-38 could do and the instructors knew I did. They figured I’d love the F-15. I would have.

‘However, all military flying assignments come with a lifestyle.

‘I had spent a year surrounded by fighter pilots, including a really swaggering, mouthy captain who had been an F-4 back-seater in Vietnam. He had a MiG kill to his credit, which earned him a slot to UPT to move to the front seat. A year listening to him made me sure I did not want the lifestyle.

USAF T-39A Pilot who Classified First in his UPT Class Tells why He Chose to Fly the Sabreliner Business Jet instead of the F-15 Eagle Fighter Jet

Bad News for my Wing Commander

‘Unfortunately for the hopeful colonel, two “coincidences” had happened to me in the previous couple of months.’

Wagner continues;

‘First, I had spotted a very cool [T-39A Sabreliner] business jet on the Webb Air Force Base ramp one day, painted up for the U.S. Air Force. I raced over to base ops and met the crew. They were NOT wearing the green-bag flight suits, but were sharply dressed in regular uniforms, and wearing Air Force flight jackets. That combination was prohibited!

‘But it turns out that crews at Andrews Air Force Base—here in Washington, D.C.—are authorized to wear the combo, and it looked sharp. Those guys had flown Texas Senator John Tower to my Texas base, and they let me go out to their jet.

‘I about peed myself sitting in the cockpit. I thought, “I want to fly these.”

‘Second, about two weeks later, a guy in the class ahead of me took one of those assignments to Andrews Air Force Base and I thought, “Holy S**t, that’s a good idea.” It turned out, he had gone to see that jet the same day I did and came to the same conclusion.

‘So, at that point, the colonel’s dreams were “toast” before I got to his office.

‘At that point, now knowing I was Numero Uno, I took the cool bizjet to Andrews Air Force Base. The guy who had been the aircraft commander on the jet that inspired me was soon my instructor pilot, checking me out in the same jet. Thank you, Captain Devore.

T-39A Pilot recalls when a Saudi Prince arrived in the US to buy F-15s pulled out a Roll of $1,000 Bills and asked him how many he needed to pay for the Sabreliner Fuel

T-39A Sabreliner Lifestyle Choice

‘I sure would have loved to have flown an F-15, but, damn, did I have fun flying at Andrews! During my flying career, I met and flew seven U.S. presidents, three first ladies, and countless ambassadors, generals, admirals, astronauts, Senators, Reps, and many famous heroes. Back in those days, the USAF had 93 U.S. bases, and I landed at every single one of them. I saw and did cool things!

‘As cool as flying an F-15?

‘In the opinions of a lot of people, no way.

‘But in my opinion, with lifestyle factored in: Hell yes!

T-39A Sabreliner Museum Pieces

‘If you’re ever near Dayton, Ohio, stop by the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force and say “Hi” to an old friend of mine. The museum has a section called the Presidential Gallery because it houses aircraft that carried Presidents of the United States. This one, [T-39A Sabreliner] 62–4478, was nicknamed “Queenie” and is in my logbook.

‘The Pima Air & Space Museum in Tucson, Arizona also wanted one of our jets and they got [T-39A Sabreliner] 62-4449, which is also in my logbook, with another Andrews bird parked on the other side of it.

Can’t do this in an F-15

‘I looked up 4449 in my logbook and remembered I flew it on a memorable mission. Back then, the U.S. Ambassador to the UN was Andrew Young and Carter was POTUS. Mr. Young had a flare for saying things that irked the POTUS. When he spouted out something that Carter had to “correct,” Carter would dispatch the Secretary of State, Cyrus Vance, to “straighten him out.”

‘I did that twice!

‘But the first time happened to be in 4449. I remember opening that side door with Cyrus Vance at my left shoulder and peering down at Ambassador Young when Vance, with a smiling smirk, said, “Hello, Andy.”

‘And “Andy” chuckled back as he said, “Hello, Cyrus.”

‘Clearly, it was going to be quite an ass chewing! LOL! NOT!’

Wagner concludes;

‘The point of the mission was for President Carter to save face by having the network TV cameras capture the arrival so that the White House press briefer could say that President Carter sent Cyrus Vance to NYC to straighten out that wild and crazy Andrew Young.

‘They had a nice dinner and I took Secretary Vance home that evening.

‘You don’t get missions like that in F-15s.’

Photo by U.S. Air Force

August 9, 2024 0 comment

Cold War

SR-71 pilot recalls a Soviet MiG-23 pilot asking to bring the Blackbird to Vladivostok as a peaceful gesture

by Till Daisd August 8, 2024

written by Till Daisd

The Blackbird

Which aviation enthusiast is not enthralled with speed, advanced manufacturing techniques, new technologies, and the hidden details of a top-secret government program? These features are shared by many aircraft, yet none quite compare to the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird.

It could fly over Vietnam in eight minutes, it had tires filled with nitrogen, it was built from one of the most expensive metals on earth, and its electronic countermeasures were so sophisticated that they are still top-secret and in use on other aircraft today. It remains the fastest plane in the world as well.

No aircraft of its era came close to the SR-71 Blackbird for speed, innovation, and secrecy.

First public display since the 1976 record-setting speed record

As told by Paul Crickmore in his book Lockheed Blackbird: Beyond the Secret Missions – The Missing Chapters, in 1977, Blackbird pilot Buz Carpenter and RSO John Murphy’s TDY at Mildenhall, United Kingdom, was extended to support the air tattoo celebration of the Queen’s silver jubilee open house. This would be the first public display of an SR-71 since the record-setting speed record in 1976 from New York to London in under two hours.

Carpenter recalls;

‘The SR-71 would be part of the static display but roped off so that people could not touch the aircraft. We were advised that, indeed, the Russians were coming. To prevent the Russians or anybody else from exploiting the display. No sensors were left on the aircraft, all fuel had been removed from the tanks, and the plane was heat-soaked to an ambient temperature to prevent infrared cameras from discovering the aircraft’s secrets, internal structure, and support systems. We four crewmembers Buz Carpenter, John Murphy, JT Vida, and Tom Alison were standing around the aircraft, answering questions from the crowd when sure enough the Russians showed up in numbers. They took numerous regular and infrared photos. Some of the Russians even had hidden microscopes.

‘They were a site to see coming up like a covey of quails.

Soviet MiG-23 pilot asks to bring an SR-71 to Vladivostok

‘It looks like the Salvation Army had outed them. Their dress sense was from a 1930s movie about American mobsters. They were wearing double-breasted suits made from a rougher cloth than one normally sees.

‘The head of the Soviet delegation is a former MiG-23 fighter pilot who’s quite relaxed and talkative in his demeanor. He asked John and me to drop in on Vladivostok (the USSR) as a gesture of peaceful relationship.

‘We just quipped “please forward that request to our state department.” Buz Carpenter.’

Check out Habubrats SR-71‘s Twitter profile, SR71Habubrats‘s Instagram profile, and Born into the Wilde Blue Yonder Habubrats‘s Facebook page for further Blackbird photos and stories.

Photo by NASA and U.S. Air Force

August 8, 2024 0 comment

History

When two Concorde supersonic airliners landed simultaneously

by Till Daisd August 8, 2024

written by Till Daisd

When two Concorde supersonic airliners landed simultaneously at Orlando International Airport

The video and photo in this post, taken on October 18, 1982, show two Concorde supersonic airliners landing side by side on parallel runways at Orlando International Airport almost simultaneously for the first time. Following the first X-1 rocket plane test flights in 1946, Orlando International Airport (MCO) conducted a unique aviation event relating to supersonic flight on that day.

The Orlando Sentinel claims that Walt Disney organized the event, which was mainly a publicity gimmick to announce the arrival of the sponsors of the exhibits at the recently opened British and French pavilions at Epcot Center. In addition, the two European airlines that flew the Concorde—British Airways and Air France—had attempted a simultaneous landing at Washington in 1976. However, due to heavy air traffic over Dulles International Airport, which hindered the two planes from correctly lining up on their approach, they landed 70 seconds apart.

Orlando provided an excellent location for the 1982 landing because of its two parallel 12,000-foot runways and less air traffic congestion. Approaching from the south, the droop-nosed British and French planes landed close to each other, less than two seconds apart, in front of an estimated 35,000 spectators.

A little-known detail of this stunt, according to AviationHumor.net, is that the airport was not designed to withstand the heat produced by the Concorde’s engines. They cooked the runway to the tune of hundreds of thousands of dollars when they took off. Due to urgent repairs, the airport was closed for more than a week.

Rolls-Royce/Snecma Olympus 593 turbojets

The Concorde was powered by four Rolls-Royce/Snecma Olympus 593 turbojets. It was initially a joint project between Bristol Siddeley Engines Limited (BSEL) and Snecma, derived from the Bristol Siddeley Olympus 22R engine. Rolls-Royce Limited acquired BSEL in 1966 during the development of the engine, making BSEL the Bristol Engine Division of Rolls-Royce.

As the only turbojet with an afterburner powering a commercial aircraft, the Olympus turbojet was unique in aviation until regular Concorde flights ended in October 2003. During supersonic cruising flight or supercruise, the engine’s overall thermal efficiency reached approximately 43%, the highest value ever recorded for a typical thermodynamic machine.

Photo by Orlando International Airport (MCO)

August 8, 2024 0 comment

Cold War

Penn State Expert mistook SR-71 shockwave for meteorite

by Till Daisd August 7, 2024

written by Till Daisd

The Blackbird

The Lockheed A-12 and YF-12A aircraft served as the basis for the development of the SR-71, also referred to as the “Blackbird”, a long-range, advanced strategic reconnaissance aircraft. The 4200th (later 9th) Strategic Reconnaissance Wing at Beale Air Force Base, California, received the first SR-71 to begin service in January 1966. The first SR-71 flight occurred on December 22, 1964. On January 26, the US Air Force retired its SR-71 fleet.

Jim Shelton, the SR-71 pilot, and SR-71 RSO after flying the longest Blackbird operational sortie in history—11 hours and 19 minutes during the Yom Kippur War—Gary Coleman was awarded the 1973 Trophy for recon and crew. They had to get the Blackbird from Beale to Griffiss Air Force Base (AFB) before they took off on that long flight.

Penn State expert mistakes SR-71’s shockwave for a meteorite entering the Earth’s atmosphere

Shelton recalls in Rich Graham’s book SR-71 Blackbird: Stories, Tales, and Legends:

‘On short notice, we took off in SR-71 #979 and headed for Griffiss Air Force Base with one in-flight refueling over Nevada as we headed east at Mach 3 at 80,000 feet. Our route took us south of Chicago and north of Indianapolis. Passing south of Chicago, I said to Gary, “I can see the lights of Chicago out the left window.” The lights of Indianapolis on the right were so clear that we must have been creating quite a sonic boom that was touching the ground and disturbing many people.

‘However, it turned out to be worse than I thought, as indicated by the articles that appeared in the newspaper on October 12, 1973, when the shockwave stretched from Indiana to New York State; Jim says he laughed at the media quotes when Dr. Alexander, a Penn State Expert, said it was conceivable it could’ve been a meteorite entering the Earth’s atmosphere.

‘Do you think that we were going to tell the world that they were wrong that it was an SR-71 going to Griffith Air Force Base?’

Sonic boom complaints

Shelton concludes;

‘At Beale, there was an office that handled sonic boom complaints on a full-time basis. The office received boom complaints from everyone and anyone farmers claimed that their cows would not give milk anymore, chickens wouldn’t lay eggs.’

Check out Habubrats SR-71‘s Twitter profile and Born into the Wilde Blue Yonder Habubrats‘s Facebook page for further Blackbird photos and stories.

Photo by Lockheed Martin and U.S. Air Force

August 7, 2024 0 comment

Cold War

A former US Navy F-14 pilot recalls odd UFO sightings while flying the Tomcat

by Till Daisd August 5, 2024

written by Till Daisd

UFO sightings

Have you ever wondered what odd objects pilots see in the sky?

With a unique vantage point and have reported seeing a variety of strange sightings, such as drones, geoglyphs, and… UFOs.

There have been reports of sightings of unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAP) and unidentified flying objects (UFOs) throughout history. There is growing interest in figuring out what these sighting reports mean, both because of scientific curiosity and the possible security and safety issues they pose.

Pilots have reported seeing UFOs for decades, according to Doyle Borchers, a former US Navy F-14 Tomcat test pilot, on Quora, sightings of UFOs typically feature objects flying in a formation or bright lights.

A string of lights

‘Once as an F-14 test pilot flying a night mission returning from White Sands range in New Mexico to NAS Pt Mugu. The weather was bad in Mugu so we were diverted to NAS Miramar in San Diego. We were at 24,000 ft and both my Radar Officer and I saw a string of lights well below us on what we thought was the desert floor, but they continued to follow us at almost 500kts. As we turned, the lights followed us, and finally, after about 10 minutes, they broke off and departed. I wanted to make a report, but my RIO wouldn’t back me up.’

He continues;

‘Second one was when I was flying an F-14 from Palma/Majorca to RNAS Yeovilton for an airshow back in 1976. Both my RIO and I saw a bright silver disk well above our altitude of 35,000ft. I would guess it was at about 70,000ft. It moved very quickly from our 10 o’clock high position to 3 o’clock, and I mean like a flash, and then was out of sight.’

Borchers concludes;

‘No doubt in my mind that UFOs are real.’

Photo by Capt. Dana Potts / U.S. Navy and US DoD

August 5, 2024 0 comment

Cold War

The USAF General who killed the SR-71 program because he was denied to fly it

by Till Daisd August 4, 2024

written by Till Daisd

The Blackbird

The long-range, advanced, strategic reconnaissance aircraft, the SR-71, also referred to unofficially as the “Blackbird,” was created from the Lockheed A-12 and YF-12A. The 4200th (later 9th) Strategic Reconnaissance Wing at Beale Air Force Base, California, received the first SR-71 to begin service in January 1966. The first SR-71 flight occurred on December 22, 1964.

Throughout its nearly 24-year career, the SR-71 remained the world’s fastest and highest-flying operational aircraft. From 80,000 feet, it could survey 100,000 square miles of Earth’s surface per hour. On July 28, 1976, an SR-71 set two world records for its class — an absolute speed record of 2,193.167 mph and an absolute altitude record of 85,068.997 feet.

For almost 24 years, the SR-71 held the record for being the fastest and highest-flying operational aircraft in the world. It could cover 100,000 square miles of the Earth’s surface per hour from 80,000 feet. Two world records for its class were set on July 28, 1976: an absolute speed record of 2,193.167 mph and an absolute altitude record of 85,068.997 feet.

The US Air Force formally retired its SR-71 fleet on January 26, 1990, citing rising operating costs and decreasing defense budget.

The USAF General who killed the SR-71 program

However, these were not the real causes of the SR-71 program’s demise, according to Jim Goodall, a military historian and the author of Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird: The Illustrated History of America’s Legendary Mach 3 Spy Plane. Goodall served in the USAF and the Minnesota Air Guard for 27 years.

He explained;

‘As a military historian and a published author, I have a good understanding of how and why the Blackbirds were put to rest long before their time.

‘In 1985, General Jerry O’Malley was the Air Force Chief of Staff and was a very strong supporter of the Blackbird. It may be that he was the first Air Force pilot to fly the very first SR-71 Blackbird over enemy territory, that is, North Vietnam. General O’Malley loved the Blackbird and all the maintenance, built, supported, and flew “Kelly’s Black Jet.”

‘On 20 APR 1985, the first Air Force officer to fly an operational mission in an SR-71 was killed in a plane crash that also killed his wife and two Other military officers.

‘His next in command was his Deputy Chief of Staff (AFCS), General Larry Welch. General Welch did not have the same warm and fuzzy feelings that General O’Malley had toward the SR-71. The reason? Welch was turned down to fly the SR-71 when he was a major, he was not that good of a pilot, which was a requirement to be considered for the prestigious position of being a crew member of the world’s fastest operational aircraft.’

The pain of losing out on flying the Blackbird

He continued;

‘The pain of losing out on flying the SR-71 was bitter pill that Welch had a hard time swallowing. His first order of business once he took over and Air Force Chief of Staff was to do everything in his power to kill the program. He sent out a memo that stated, If anyone under his command said anything negative about the Blackbird’s, he was fine with that. But, if anyone, from the lowly E-1 Airman Basic to the O-10 general level, they were going to have to live with the repercussions to their careers.

‘So, pulling every string and favor he could, Welch effectively killed the Blackbirds. The Russians, the North Vietnamese, the Chinese and the Israelis couldn’t shoot one down using their best pilots, and a second rate general, who wasn’t good enough to take control of a plane that moves through the air at 3,400 feet per second, or two miles every three-seconds took down the entire fleet. Last operational SR-71 flew on 09 March 1990, six months prior to Saddam invading his neighbor.

‘To make matters worse, during the beginning of Desert Shield, Air Force contacted the Skunk Works in early September and asked what it would take to have one SR-71A reactivated and operationally ready for the up coming war in Iraq. It took Ben R. Rich, then President of the Lockheed Skunk Works about ten days to have answer.

Reinstating the Blackbirds and making the man who killed the SR-71 program look bad

The story of the USAF General who killed the SR-71 program because he was turned down to fly the Blackbird

‘Ben told Air Force, that he needed a gold-plated authorization letter to cut through all the red tape, a blank check, access to all sensors, Air Force support, and electronics, then in storage, and his pick of both operational pilots and ground crew. Once the “Go” was given, he would guarantee that the Blackbird would be fully operationally ready.

‘Air Force told Ben to hold that though. About a month later, they got back to Ben. They asked what it would take to have a second SR-71 ready? Ben said he already had the answer, 30 days, start to operational readiness.

‘It’s now late October/early November 1990. Finally, after waiting over 70 days for a reply as to when could Lockheed expect the ‘Go-a-head” for reactivation of two SR-71s. He was told, and he told me in a meeting I had with him after he retired. He was told that since the program was canceled by the total lack of support at the Air Force Chief of Staff’s office, to reinstate the Blackbirds now would make the AFCS, that be Welch, look bad.’

Goodall concludes;

‘So much for waving Old Glory and petty backstabbing by the Jack Ass that was the reason the program was killed. He should be charged with treason, found guilty, and e******d, but not necessarily in that order.

‘Cheers… Jim Goodall, USAF (ret).’

Check out Habubrats SR-71‘s Twitter profile and Born into the Wilde Blue Yonder Habubrats‘s Facebook page for further Blackbird photos and stories.

Photo by Lockheed Martin, U.S. Air Force and NASA

August 4, 2024 0 comment

History

Adolf Galland almost burned to death when his Messerschmitt Bf 109 was badly damaged by an RAF Spitfire.

by Till Daisd August 3, 2024

written by Till Daisd

Legendary German Ace Adolf Galland

Lieutenant General Adolf Galland, arguably the most well-known of Germany’s fighter pilots and air leaders during World War II, is a complex individual. He is among the most remarkable men to reach high rank on either side during the conflict. Air power historians will surely be interested in Galland for many years to come because of his significant influence on the ebb and flow of Germany’s aerial fortunes. He also earned his spot among the immortal aces as a combat pilot.

Before serving in a fighter group during the 1940 campaign against France and leading a fighter squadron during the Battle of Britain, where he destroyed over 100 enemy planes by the end, Galland held a staff post when Germany invaded Poland in 1939.

In their book Fighter Aces of the Luftwaffe, Ray Toliver and Trevor J. Constable describe how, on June 21, 1941, Galland blasted a Spitfire out of formation northeast of Boulogne. As he saw the flaming Spit spiraling down, he started to precisely record the crash. Galland made a serious mistake by flying alone. He was jumped by a lone Spitfire lagging behind the formation.

Jumped by a lone Spitfire

In his own words:

Legendary German Ace Adolf Galland recalls when He nearly Burned to Death after his Messerschmitt Bf 109 was badly damaged by a RAF Spitfire — Adolf Galland

“Hell broke loose in my crate. Now they’ve got me. Something hard hit my head and arm. My aircraft was in bad shape. The wings were ripped by cannon fire. I was sitting half in the open. The right side of the cockpit had been shot away. Fuel tank and radiator were both leaking heavily.

“Instinctively I banked away to the north. Almost calmly, I noticed that my heavily damaged fighter still flew, and responded tolerably well with the engine cut off. My luck had held once more, I was thinking, and I will try to glide home; my altitude was 18,000 feet.

“My arm and head were bleeding. But I didn’t feel any pain. No time for that. Anyhow, nothing precious was hurt. A sharp detonation tore me out of my reverie. The tank, which up to then had been gurgling away quietly, suddenly exploded. The whole fuselage was immediately aflame. Burning petrol ran into the cockpit. It was uncomfortably hot! Only one thought remained: Get out! Get out! Get out!

Jammed cockpit roof

“The cockpit roof release would not work — must be jammed. Shall I burn alive in here? I tore my belt open. I tried to open the hinged top of the roof. The air pressure on it was too strong. Flames all around me. I must open it! I must not fry to death in here! Terror! Those were the most terrible seconds in my life. With a last effort, I pushed my whole body against the roof. The flap opened and was torn away by the airstream… I had already pulled her nose up. The push against the joystick did not throw me entirely clear of the burning coffin, which a few minutes before was my beloved and faithful Bf 109.

“The parachute on which I had been sitting was caught on the fixed part of the cockpit roof. The entire plane was now in flames and dashing down to earth with me. With my arm around the antenna mast I tugged, I pushed against anything I could find with my feet. All in vain! Should I be doomed at the last moment although I was already half-freed? I don’t know how I got free in the end. Suddenly I was falling.

“I turned over several times in the air. Thank God! In my excitement I nearly operated the quick harness release instead of the rip cord handle. At the last moment I noticed that I was releasing the safety catch. Another shock! The parachute and I would have arrived separately . . slowly and softly I floated down to the earth.

The spot where German Ace Adolf Galland Messerschmitt crashed

“Below me a column of smoke marked the spot where my Messerschmitt had crashed. By rights I should have landed in the forest of Boulogne like a monkey on a tree, but the parachute only brushed a poplar and then folded up. Handed rather luckily in a soft, boggy meadow. Up to now I had been under high tension of nerves and energy. I collapsed. I felt as wretched as a dog. Shot and bleeding profusely from head and arm, with a painfully twisted ankle which started to swell immediately, I could neither walk nor stand up.”

The clanked and bleeding Galland was picked up by car. After attention from Dr. Heim at the naval hospital at Hardingham, and a few jolts of cognac, he was on his way to recovery.

Fighter Aces of the Luftwaffe is published by Schiffer Publishing and is available to order here.

Photo by Platinum Fighters and German Federal Archive via Wikipedia

August 3, 2024 0 comment

Cold War

F-14 pilot glided his Tomcat from 54,000ft to 33,000ft for 21 minutes after a dual flameout

by Till Daisd August 3, 2024

written by Till Daisd

The glide ratio

According to Globeair.com, the glide ratio measures the aerodynamic efficiency of an aircraft in a no-engine glide. It shows how far an aircraft can go forward for each altitude unit lost.

It measures how well an airplane can translate altitude into distance without using its engines. This concept is also important for powered aircraft, especially when an engine failure forces a glide to safety. It is also essential for the design and performance assessment of gliders.

The F-14 pilot who glided his Tomcat from 54,000ft to 33,000ft

John Chesire, former US Navy F-4 Phantom II and F-14 Tomcat pilot, explains on Quora;

‘All aircraft have what is known as a “glide ratio,” even heavy fighter aircraft like my old F-4 Phantom II.

F-14 pilot recalls when he glided his Tomcat from 54,000ft to 33,000ft, for 21 minutes after a dual flameout during a large F-14s Vs F-15s exercise (then the engines restarted)

‘I once had a dual flameout in my F-14 at around 54,000ft/19,459m. I could not attempt an engine restart until I glided down to the restart envelope which, as I recall was around 33,000ft/10,058m. It was a very long glide, and also very quiet with no engine noise while getting down. Thankfully, both engines then started right up and I flew back to base.

‘It was a many vs. many, F-14s vs. F-15s DACM exercise, Air Force against the Navy… and great fun! Both aircraft were new at the time and this exercise was very, ‘unofficial’. It was done quietly between two squadron COs and without higher authority’s knowledge or approval.

‘I got on an F-15 ‘s tail, and he went way up in the vertical, which they liked to do. Of course, we were not supposed to fly above 50,000 feet but I was looking at him instead of my altimeter, although I knew were “way up there.” (My RIO later said we topped out just above 54,000 feet). As the F-15 ran out of airspeed above me and started coming back down, I pulled a little too hard on the stick and at a dwindling airspeed myself to cut him off early by pulling lead at the top of “the tactical egg”* to get a shot on him.’

A slow and long glide

He continues;

‘In an F-4, my engines would have been fine. But with the notorious TF30, they flamed out as I increased angle-of-attack up in that rarified air.

‘It wasn’t so bad. With that problematic TF30 engine, I had a single engine failure due to engine stalls many times before and I never had any problems restarting them, so I was comfortable that they would start once I glided down. It was a slow and long glide, and actually slightly relaxing following the high-G exercise I was in when the engines both quit.

‘The wings went forward automatically with their inputs from the CADC (Computer Air Data Computer) based upon speed.

The F-14 pilot who glided his Tomcat for 21 minutes

‘Even though the engines had failed they still provided enough hydraulic power by windmilling in the dive to move the wings forward. We also had a backup hydraulic pump if needed, which it was not in this instance. And for electrical power, we had an external ram-air-turbine generator (RAT). This was like a little propeller that popped out into the airstream and spun rapidly, thus providing emergency electrical power.

‘My RIO was making too much noise. He broadcasted, “Mayday, Mayday, November Fox 101 is going down.” Since it was a large exercise, the radios were jammed with other aircraft wanting information. I was upset because I knew we were not in serious trouble yet, unless the engines did not restart later. But there was not much to do gliding from 54,000 feet down to 33,000 feet.’

Chesire concludes;

‘At about a 2,000 feet per minute glide it would take us 21 minutes to glide down to restart altitude. (But I went a little faster.)’

Photo by U.S. Navy and U.S. Air Force

August 3, 2024 0 comment

Cold War

Two Buick Nailhead V8 engines were used to start the SR-71

by Till Daisd August 2, 2024

written by Till Daisd

The Blackbird

The Lockheed A-12 and YF-12A aircraft were the basis for the long-range, Mach 3+ strategic reconnaissance aircraft known as the SR-71, or “Blackbird,” as it was unofficially called.

The 4200th (later 9th) Strategic Reconnaissance Wing at Beale Air Force Base, California, received the first SR-71 to begin service in January 1966. The first SR-71 flight occurred on December 22, 1964.

Everything that had come before the Blackbird was not comparable. “Everything had to be invented. Everything,” renowned aircraft designer Kelly Johnson of Skunk Works remembered in an interesting post that appeared on the Lockheed Martin website.

The SR-71 flew at over 2,000 miles per hour. Theoretically, other aircraft of that era could reach that speed, but only in brief bursts powered by afterburners. The Blackbird maintained a record-setting speed for hours at a time. Friction with the atmosphere at such a speed produces temperatures that would melt a traditional airframe.

Two Buick Nailhead V8 engines to start the SR-71 Mach 3+ plane

When Kelly Johnson was designing the A-12/YF-12 /M-21 and SR-71 he didn’t want the weight to be added for a starter on the airplane. According to him, the more it weighs, the more fuel it will need. It was decided that the job could be accomplished by two Buick Nailhead V8 engines.

Did you know two Buick Nailhead V8 engines were used to start the SR-71 Mach 3+ plane because the Blackbird didn’t have a starter? — SR-71 Blackbird AG330 start cart

As you can hear in the video below, starting the fastest aircraft in the world, the Blackbird, was amazing, but it also sounded like the Indianapolis 500 was getting ready the SR-71 for takeoff with its two V8 engines.

Autoevolution claims that two of the aforementioned Nailhead V8 engines were fused together for this specific usage only, using a common drive shaft and transmission. The combined engines were then housed in a metal container with four wheels and a trailer hitch, which was given the name AG330 “start cart.” The two engines of the Blackbird were directly connected to the resultant Chimera. The two V8s spun the turbines until they could sustain compression on their own by using the combined drive shaft. SR-71 and its cousins, the A-12 Archangel and the YF-12 fighter, used nailhead V8s as impromptu starter motors until at least 1970, when most of them were swapped out for Chevy 454 V8s.

Phased out

When a new, quieter pneumatic system was put in place to perform the same function as the start cart at the majority of US airbases where the Blackbird and company were stationed, these were also phased out. A few continued to serve longer at auxiliary bases abroad, some of them with the original Buick Nailheads, until the Blackbird and all of its variants were retired in 1999.

Check out Habubrats SR-71‘s Twitter profile and Born into the Wilde Blue Yonder Habubrats‘s Facebook page for further Blackbird photos and stories.

Photo by John Freedman and User:Jaydec via Wikipedia

August 2, 2024 0 comment

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