SR-71 Blackbird: The Cold War spy plane that's still the world's fastest aircraft

[rangerrebew]

SR-71 Blackbird: The Cold War spy plane that's still the world's fastest aircraft
Updated 4th November 2019

Written by Jacopo Prisco, CNN
During the Cold War, this plane could fly higher and faster than any other -- and 55 years after its first flight, it still does.

The Lockheed SR-71, designed in secrecy in the late 1950s, was able to cruise near the edge of space and outfly a missile. To this day, it holds the records for the highest altitude in horizontal flight and the fastest speed for a non-rocket powered aircraft.

It was part of a family of spy planes built to venture into enemy territory, without being shot down or even detected, in a time before satellites and drones.

The black paint job, designed to dissipate heat, earned it the nickname Blackbird, and paired with the sleek lines of the long fuselage, made the plane look unlike anything that had come before -- a design that hasn't lost any of its brilliance.

https://www.cnn.com/style/article/sr-71-blackbird-spy-plane-design/index.html

[rangerrebew]

It would be a lot faster if Trump hadn't colluded with Russia!

[sneakypete]

I remember hanging around Kadena Air Base on Okinawa one day,and even if I can't remember why I was there,I do remember watching a Blackbird take off. SOB left the ground with an earth-shattering sound,and pretty much immediately started climbing at what looked to be a 90 degree angle and disappeared in the blink of an eye.

The only aircraft I saw that impressed me more was a flight of bomb-laden B-52's taking off on a bombing mission. The were so heavy they had to have full-throttle take-offs,and damned if the wings didn't seem to flap up and down as they tried to get airborne. The instant one got to the end of the runway and the wheels left the ground,here came another one in the flight,until they were all gone.

I have never in my life experienced noise like that. It was noise on a level you could feel it in your bones.

I also have to admit,the whole "wing flaping" thing scared the hell out of me,and left me wondering if the guys inside the B-52's could see it or knew about it.