The XB-70 Valkyrie AV/2 would only leave and land at Carswell AFB before being destroyed on June 8, 1966, as a result of an unintentional mid-air collision
The interesting photo in this post was taken at Carswell Air Force Base (AFB), Texas, in 1966 during the Combination Open House, which has the distinction of being the sole public airshow in XB-70 Valkyrie history.
Although the legendary XB-70 was displayed at several events at Edwards AFB, only the military had access to the Mach 3 bomber there, in accordance with XB-70 documentation in the National Archive.
As this incredible photo demonstrates, the airshow that was staged in connection with the Air Force Association (AFA) 20th-anniversary convention on March 24-26, 1966 featured some of the most spectacular aircraft that have ever been constructed. But aircraft ID captions require some improvement. – An F-106, not an F-102, is on the flight line above the hangar. It is the aircraft with no tag between the F-4 and the F-102. The aircraft in the lower right is a B-26K, not an A-37, the X-15 is a full-scale mockup, and the uncaptioned rocket is a Thor Able. Lower left: that is a YF-12A, not an SR-71.
The North American XB-70 Valkyrie air vehicle 2 (AV/2), which made its first public appearance as well as its first landing outside of Edwards AFB, Calif., was the star performer at the largest airshow the U.S. Air Force (USAF) has put on in recent years. Al White of North American and USAF Lt. Col. Fitzhugh Fulton piloted the 275-ton giant during its 55-minute flight from Edwards to Carswell AFB. During a three-day static display, the 275-ton giant was viewed by more than 350,00 people.
Before being destroyed on June 8, 1966, as a result of an unintentional mid-air collision, Carswell AFB would be the sole airfield the AV/2 would fly to and return from. The Valkyrie, piloted by North American’s Al White and USAF Lt. Col. Fitzhugh Fulton, reached 6,000 feet over Carswell AFB just 59 minutes after takeoff after spending just 13 minutes at Mach 2.6! Before landing, AV/2 rumbled across Texas’ sky for the following 30 minutes. Two days later, Cotton and White flew back to Edwards at subsonic speeds, taking just over three hours to complete the trip. This was the only flight throughout the whole program when performance data was not recorded.
Photo by U.S. Air Force
