Pics of the SR71 Blackbird production line....

[Penderic]

Sleek and a bit sinister looking, the SR71 is one of the fastest craft in the sky and its construction pushed the limits of using heat resistant materials. Not only titanium but heat resistant fuel, lubricants and hydraulic fluids were needed to work.

Here is a link to some factory photos of the plane under construction ... might be interesting to see for the plane enthusiasts here.  8)

http://sploid.gizmodo.com/fascinating-photos-reveal-how-they-built-the-sr-71-blac-1683754944

[RinkRat II]

 Thanks Penderic, always fascinating what the Skunkworks' boys were able to accomplish. ;-T

    Paul :BEER:

[steven c]

 Love this plane and its story, thanks for the link.

[John A]

Thanks for that post, I was stationed at Beale AFB in northern CA from '77 to '82 as a crew chief on a KC 135Q tanker so we air refueled them. Got some interesting trips with them

[canuck750]

I am about as far from a conspiracy theorist as one can get so don't let the title of this interesting read scare you off, Area 51: An Uncensored History Of America's Top Secret Military Base, by Annie Jacobsen, the book was available on paper back last summer, it was about what really went on at Area 51 in the Nevada desert. The storey follows what is now declassified on the SR71 and how it was originally developed as a CIA spy plane to replace the U2 and eventually developed into the SR71 for the US Air Force. The technology developed for the aircraft and its support systems is truly fascinating. Apparently it was never authorized to fly over Russia due to the controversy created over Gary Powers unfortunate case of being captured by the Soviets. Spy Satellite technology eventually took over the role the SR71 was developed for.


I found her book after reading Operation Paperclip by the same author, a history of Nazi Scientists brought to the USA to fight the Cold War, damn good read.

[oldbike54]

 Canuck , Area 51 was the home of some truly alien technology , of course it was all "our" alien tech  ;D

  Dusty

[canuck750]

I am just glad the Aliens crashed in New Mexico and not the Urals!

Who knows what crazy Uncle Joe would have done with alien weapons ;)

[oldbike54]

I am just glad the Aliens crashed in New Mexico and not the Urals!

Who knows what crazy Uncle Joe would have done with alien weapons ;)

 Ask Kirby's aunt about aliens , they may not be here yet , but they are coming  :D Probably gonna land in West Texas  ::) :D

  Dusty

[nunzio]

We would have them come to the Bombing Competitions at Barksdale AFB in the early 70's.

Talked to one of the crew at the flightline café...he said they would be in final approach to land in Sacramento California when flying over Denver Co.

[56Pan]

If you're really interested in the SR-71 and the U2, I recommend the book,"Skunk Works" by Ben Rich.  Story of both aircraft from the ground up.  

[oldmxdog61u]

Something ethereal about planes like this in person.

[DCWCALI]

We still have one on static display here

[Sasquatch Jim]

  They had one in the air museum in the south end of Seattle that I walked around and marveled atin the late nineties.
 The pilot of an SR 71 didn't get in and fly it like other aircraft, it was computer controlled.  The pilot was just a decision
 making module that was temporarily wired into the craft for the duration of the flight.

[Waterbottle]

I read an article written by one of the first pilots of the SR71 a while back, he stated that he thought he was passing out but a few seconds latter he realized he was just flying from daylight into darkness, just how fast is this thing ? I'd love to have a go  ;)

[Two Checks]

The plane that was to replace the U2 is long retired while the U2 (TR) is still flying.
I have a couple friends who were in both programs while in the AF.

[oldmxdog61u]

Tucson has a great air museum.  Has many of the greats you can walk up to. Stunning.

[charlie b]

I read an article written by one of the first pilots of the SR71 a while back, he stated that he thought he was passing out but a few seconds latter he realized he was just flying from daylight into darkness, just how fast is this thing ? I'd love to have a go  ;)

I don't know if the 'real' max speed has ever been published.  Several records have been.  Just say over Mach3.  At 80,000ft that is kinda fast :) 

Too late to get in one and fly.  The cost of upkeep was a bit steep, even when compared to satellites.

[blackbuell]

It's a work of art....stunning. I used a Honda CBR1100XX (the origin of the "black" portion of my screen name) as my touring bike for several years; on long, boring stretches of highway I would imagine what it would be like to be aboard the real Blackbird.

Jon

[Lannis]

Ask Kirby's aunt about aliens , they may not be here yet , but they are coming  :D Probably gonna land in West Texas  ::) :D

  Dusty

They've been "on their way" for a loooong time.

And it's going to be even longer now that everyone in the country is toting a video camera in their pocket.   Amazing how the frequency of Bigfoot and UFO sightings has fallen off now that everyone has a camera!

Lannis

[segesta]

I am about as far from a conspiracy theorist as one can get so don't let the title of this interesting read scare you off, Area 51: An Uncensored History Of America's Top Secret Military Base, by Annie Jacobsen, the book was available on paper back last summer, it was about what really went on at Area 51 in the Nevada desert. The storey follows what is now declassified on the SR71 and how it was originally developed as a CIA spy plane to replace the U2 and eventually developed into the SR71 for the US Air Force. The technology developed for the aircraft and its support systems is truly fascinating. Apparently it was never authorized to fly over Russia due to the controversy created over Gary Powers unfortunate case of being captured by the Soviets. Spy Satellite technology eventually took over the role the SR71 was developed for.


I found her book after reading Operation Paperclip by the same author, a history of Nazi Scientists brought to the USA to fight the Cold War, damn good read.

:+1
I was about to recommend this book as well, and saw that you posted this. It's a really good history of Area 51, and especially of the CIA "Ox Cart" plane that eventually became the SR-71.

PS I thought it was interesting, how during a test flight it required the entire width of Montana to turn around when you're flying Mach 3 or whatever.

[LowRyter]

We would have them come to the Bombing Competitions at Barksdale AFB in the early 70's.

Talked to one of the crew at the flightline café...he said they would be in final approach to land in Sacramento California when flying over Denver Co.

I was told a story of an SR-71 flameout over Chicago and landing at Edwards.  Considering the source at work, I always considered it true.

[roadscum]

They've been "on their way" for a loooong time.

And it's going to be even longer now that everyone in the country is toting a video camera in their pocket.   Amazing how the frequency of Bigfoot and UFO sightings has fallen off now that everyone has a camera!

Lannis

They're here, I saw several yesterday at...
....
..
Wal-Mart!  :o

Paul

[John A]

They FODed out two SR71 engines when MT St Helens erupted, sightseeing ,I guess. I remember I had weekend duty that weekend. Looked like a normal landing.

[oldbike54]

I don't know if the 'real' max speed has ever been published.  Several records have been.  Just say over Mach3.  At 80,000ft that is kinda fast :) 

Too late to get in one and fly.  The cost of upkeep was a bit steep, even when compared to satellites.

 "Fast enough to outrun their own shadow" was the term bandied about in the Air Farce . Of course , the speed required to do so is still classified , but probably 3.1 Mach or so .

  Dusty

[tazio]

 ;-T

[Two Checks]

One pilot said he saw Mach 3.5 once. My friend has a coffee cup from his days as a SR wrench which has 3+ and 100,000 on it.

[Randown]

Q: ...it's a space suit, so you're diapered up, yes?

Pilot: That was an option. You did have a tube on, what looked like a big condom. It had a nipple on the end of it, hooked up to a tube that led down to a bag with sponges in it...

They did have a diaper for extremely long flights, but I don't remember anyone ever using it...

...half the crew that suited you and de-suited you were female....You just hated to come back it with poop in your pants. There's a lot of stuff in the job that isn't in the shiny brochure.

[Rusty goose]

Wow, 11 in one picture. I wonder how many were completed, all 50 airframes? I have enjoyed the close up viewing of the one in the Smithsonian Udvar Hazy museum near the Dulles airport.

[dee g]

I read an article written by one of the first pilots of the SR71 a while back, he stated that he thought he was passing out but a few seconds latter he realized he was just flying from daylight into darkness, just how fast is this thing ? I'd love to have a go  ;)

I used to work with a former SR71 pilot.  We would keep pilot resumes on file (we were a part 121 charter op) and I asked him why he didn't have more time in the Blackbird, as he flew the thing for a few years.  He said that it was really hard to build time in an aircraft that took just over two hours to fly coast to coast.