Gitzo Loc: Indiana

The Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird

I have probably read at least half of the books ever written about this fantastic airplane and I thought I knew a fair amount about it; just today, while searching for something else, I happened to run across this set of pictures of the Blackbird, and a few facts about it, some that I already knew, and a couple that I didn't. The person who wrote all of the captions for the photos was not a very good writer, but he/she at least had a few good facts that made it worth reading.

A few of the photos a quite good, (most that I have seen many times before ), and again, a few that I haven't seen before.


#1. The raw materials used to make the Blackbirds was earned through subterfuge. In order to obtain the vast amounts of titanium needed for construction of the planes, the CIA created fake companies throughout the world to purchase the metal from the biggest supplier (and the United State's enemy at the time), the USSR.

#2. A decade before the SR-71 first flew, the military created another supersonic aircraft, the Ramjet. The man who designed it, Clarence "Kelly" Johnson, would later draft the plans for the SR-71.

Actually, you won't find a particular airplane called "The Ramjet"; ramjet is just another of the many types of jet engines. And Kelly Johnson was responsible for much more than just the SR-71.

#3. Lockheed Martin is actually working on a hypersonic (capable of Mach 5) spy plane to replace the famous SR-71 Blackbird. 

Don't hold your breath waiting on this one! It's highly unlikely that there will ever be another manned recon plane built and put in service that's any more capable than the Blackbird was.

#4. The SR-71 had enough fuel to take off and then get refueled up in the air by an air tanker (sometimes multiple times per flight).

#5. The Blackbird would actually constantly leak fuel while not in flight due to the contraction of its titanium skin. It was designed to expand as it heated up due to air friction.

#6. How bad was the fuel leakage on that beast? Not as bad as a lot of people say (it is often over exaggerated according to pilot Col. Richard Graham) but it did leak "some" fuel.

#7. A cool fact is that the fuel (JT-7) had such a high flash point it would not ignite even if struck by a flame.

#8. The cameras on the Blackbird could take a photograph clear enough to read the license plate on a car on the ground while the plane traveled 80,000 feet above the Earth and at speeds of over 2,000 mph. 

#9. The SR-71 had extremely accurate navigation systems, too. It was able to maintain its heading within 1,000 feet while at Mach 3 by using a celestial navigation system nicknamed "R2-D2" that tracked a series of 61 stars. The sensor was so powerful that it was capable of detecting the stars in broad daylight while on the ground.

#10. None of the 12 Blackbirds lost during service came by way of enemy fire. They were all lost due to accidents. 

#11. One of the unfortunate times an SR-71 crashed was all because of a two inch piece of duct tape. Someone left it in a small component possibly as a dust cover, yet at such high speeds it caused a lag in the pilot's meters and the plane broke into pieces in mid air.

#12. The SR-71 Blackbird had to deal with a somewhat unique problem for planes going at such high speeds. The engines needed air going slower than the speed of sound in order to function properly, so when the Blackbird was going over Mach 1, there was actually a shockwave permanently inside the engine as the air slowed down. Sometimes, the shock wave could make it outside the engine in front, and this caused major problems that any normal person would be terrified at, but these pilots trained to fix calmly.

#13. The average Blackbird mission lasted about four hours, but they could go on for twice that long. A urine collection device (UCD) allowed pilots to relieve themselves during flight; there was no such device for going No. 2. 

#14. There are two cockpits connected only by radio.

#15. Here's what the cockpit looked like. You can't actually see much of anything when the canopy comes down since the windows are so small and so high. You mostly see space!

Attached file:
(Download)

bcheary Loc: Jacksonville, FL

I posted a video on the SR-71 awhile back.
http://www.uglyhedgehog.com/t-289877-1.html

GTinSoCal Loc: Palmdale, CA

I had a large print of photo #7 on my wall growing up!

I miss seeing her fly :-(

She came off the end of the runway so hard one time she knocked most of the dishes out of the cupboard!

Thank you for sharing!

GT

DOOK Loc: Maclean, Australia

Very interesting. Thanks for sharing. :-) :-)

Gitzo Loc: Indiana

For anyone interested in reading stories about the SR-71 Blackbird or the U2 program, this link will take you to the Roadrunners International website; everyone who ever flew these airplanes or had anything to do with the programs to develop and operate them now belong to the Roadrunners.

There are enough stories on this site about these airplanes that you won't be able to read them all in six months.

GT; I see you are in Palmdale; I imagine you have seen the Blackbird in the air many times; I grew up just south of Dayton, Ohio; before I moved to where I live now in Indiana I used to spend quite a bit of time at the USAF Museum in Dayton. I was fortunate enough to see Blackbirds and a few U2s as they would come into Wright-Patterson AFB. Hanging around the Air Force Museum, I even met several men who flew the SR-71. Even today, the SR-71 that they have on display at the museum acts like a magnet to many of the people who took part in the programs that developed and flew these amazing airplanes; when you visit the Museum, you never know who you might run into there, as it draws people from all over this country and even from all over the world to see the many airplanes and other military hardware that they have on display there.

I'll see if I can find the link to the Museum's website so I can post it here on this thread.

www.roadrunnersinternationale.com/stories.html

jkaye65 Loc: Chico, CA

Living in Nor Cal (so close to their home base of Beale AFB), we had many SR-71 sightings. I lived on Beale for several years just after the program ended and drank beer on weekends with guys who were SR-71 crew chiefs. They had lots of cool stories and facts.....but were mostly glad the plane was retired. Many were stuck at Beale for the majority of their careers because of the "special" plane they worked on.

Another highlight I've had was when I interviewed (for my base newspaper at Langley AFB) Gen Jerome O'Malley just after he became the TAC commander. O'Malley flew the first operational mission in a SR-71 for the USAF. Sadly, he was only the commander for 3 months or so as he was killed in a Lear jet accident while landing in his home state of PA.

jkaye65 Loc: Chico, CA

Oh yeah..........why is this topic in The Attic?

Gitzo Loc: Indiana

jkaye65;
If you paste this to your browser you can see a story and a lot of photos of General Jerry O'Malley; he had flown back to his home at Carbondale, Pa. (near Scranton, Pa. ) to give a talk to a bunch of Boy Scouts at the request of a Congressman; apparently the accident in which he and his wife were killed happened at Scranton.

http://www.roadrunnersinternationale.com/o_malley.html

I post anything that isn't photography related in The Attic.

GTinSoCal Loc: Palmdale, CA

My neighbor growing up was an SR-71 pilot, then later another pilot moved in, a B-1 pilot :-D

2 of my favorite birds!

Now I get to go see her languishing on the ground at the Palmdale Airpark.
"She's only happy going fast"
Col. William 'Hawk' Hawkins, Space Cowboys, 2000

GT

Gitzo Loc: Indiana

:thumbup: :thumbup: :thumbup: :thumbup: :thumbup:

Here's a few more "fun facts" about the Blackbird that I just found on the Roadrunners website;

SR
-
71 Fun Facts
SR
-
71As
29 operational aircraft built, 11 lost. Trainers built
-
2 SR
-
71Bs, 1 lost & 1 SR
-
71C
Historical
:
54,000 flying hours; 17,000 sorties; 3500 ops missions; 11,000 ops hours; 26,000 refuelin
gs.
1
St
Flt 22 Dec 1964, 1st Combat Flight March 1968, & Operational Flights end Oct 1989
Speed Runs: NY to London 1 hr 5
5 minutes, London to LA 3 hrs 48
minutes
Aircraft 972 arrives Dulles Airport after Speed runs (LA to Dulles 64 min) on 6 Mar 1990
Structure
-
93% titanium
–
Russian Titanium source
America’s
first stealthy A/C & last designed with
Slide rule
Speed
-
Top speed 3.3 mach, 2,200 Miles/hour, 36 miles/min or 3200feet/sec
Faster than a standard 30.06 hunting rifle bullet when fired.
Normal turn took about 75nm+ radius
Why black?
Prote
ct mostly titanium surfaces &
best heat radiating
col
or to help remove heat from the
aircraft during flight by radiating
heat into the ext
remely cold upper air
-
(
-
55°C/
-
8
0F).
Reduced surface
temperatu
re by up to 50F
at 3.2 mach.
Glass Windows
-
L
aminated Quartz glass a
bout 2.0
inches thick
Average temp
At cruise, about 600°F (causes the aircraft to grow 3
-
4 inches length & 1
-
2 width during
cruise).
Aircraft
Surface
Temp range
from
cool 450 F to hot
engine area 12
00 F. Pilot
pie
windows 620 F
J58 bleed bypass turbojet engines
34,000 lbs thrust in afterburner at sea lev
el; afterburners lit coming off
tanker to initiate climb and acceleration; stay on continuously for cruise until descent 1
-
1/2+ hour
s
later.
6 engine bypass tubes create significant Ram Thrust at higher machs. 83% ram effect at 3.2 Mach.
Engine Chemical Ignition System
TEB (triethylborane), a pyrophoric (burns on contact with air) with
burn temp up to 3000°F.
CORE Engine temperature
-
3400F in Afterburner
Fuel
-
JP
-
7 kerosene base with additives; tanks inerted with nitrogen to prevent auto detonation
Engine oil
70
-
550°F normal temp range; consistency at 60°F honey, 40°F Jell
-
O, 32°F solid. Preheat
engine to 70°F before start.
Tire
s
BF Goodrich, aluminum powder impregnated to reject airframe heat; 425 psi filled with nitrogen; 22
ply rating; 3 ply tread.
Flight duration
-
Most training and ops flights 2.5
-
4.5 hours (required one or two in
-
flight refuelings)
Aerial refueling
-
Airc
raft carries up to 80,000lbs of fuel (12,000+ gallons). Refueling normally lasted
about 12
-
15 minutes with 70,000
-
80,000 lbs of fuel transferred. Normally flown around 25,000 ft with
KC
-
135Q tanker starting at about 325 knots; as fuel transferred from
tanker; it would accelerate to 350
knots IAS (its airspeed limit). Max distance between refuelings about 2800 nm (3200 statute miles).
Pressure
suits
-
Derived from Gemini designs used through mid 70s. Late 70s replacement 1030 pressure
suits would lat
er serve as the initial Space Shuttle
pressure
suits for Shuttle test flights
–
Cost $250,000
Two Man Crew
(1) Pilot in front with normal flight controls and functions, (2) Reconnaissance Systems
Officer in back had no flight controls; ran astronavigatio
n system, all camera systems, and the aircraft
systems checklist; controlled the electronic defensive systems; and did many of the radio calls.
View at Altitude
-
At 80,000
+
ft you can see the
curvature of the Earth about 350
+
miles in all directions.
The s
ky is a deep blue
-
black, as 97%
of the atmosphere, which gives the blue color, is below.
Engine start
-
Normally 30 minutes prior to takeoff; enough time to do all ground checks and taxi to end
of runway for one final check before taking the runway.
Performance points
-
Most take
-
offs at 40,000 lb fuel load.
From brake release and afterburner light
, about a 4,500 ft takeoff roll in
about 20 seconds.
Liftoff at 210 knots (about 240 mph)
with
Rapid climb passed through 20,000 ft in about 2 minutes.
Afte
r dropping off the tanker and after
burner ignition it took about 17
minutes to climb to 75,000 ft +
and Mach 3. This took about 360 nautical miles distance and consumed 1/3 of your fuel.
Level off normally around 75,000+ ft to a cruise
-
climb condition tha
t, as fuel burned off, would climb
up around 82
-
85,000 ft before starting down
depending on the outside temp & number of turns
.
Descent and deceleration from 80,000+ ft to 25,000ft took about 10 minutes and 220 nm.
Landing approach speed was 175 knots plu
s (200 mph) with landing at 150
-
155 knots (170mph). With
the large orange drag chute the aircraft would stop in about 5000 ft. If the drag chute did not work it
was a 10,000 ft landing roll out to slow and stop the aircraft.
Film and recorders would be d
own loaded for processing after engine shutdown

Buz Carpenter, Smithsonian Udvar Hazy Center Docent and former SR
-
71 Instructor Pilot

GeorgeH Loc: Jonesboro, GA

Gitzo, thanks for the post on this fabulous airplane!

anotherview Loc: California

March Field Air Museum has an SR-71 "Blackbird" on display outdoors.

SR-71 "Blackbird" March Field Air Musem

Gitzo Loc: Indiana

IMO, they shouldn't allow anyone to display one of these outdoors; the enclosure on the one that's on display on the aircraft carrier in NYC was badly damaged in that big hurricane they had, but I'm pretty sure they rebuilt it.

Note; if you google, "National Museum of the USAF" it will take you to the website; then look for the "Virtual Tour"; so far, they have it set up to take a 360 degree "virtual tour" of the cockpits and interiors of about 25 different planes that they have on display; I don't know if they have the SR-71 set up for it yet, but I'm guessing that they probably do, as it's one of the most "looked at" planes they have on exhibit.

IMO, the USAF Museum is the single best "attraction" there is in the whole country, inasmuch as they have BY FAR the biggest and best exhibits on display of any of the many aviation museums, and it's all FREE, except for their Imax Theater, and even it's only a few dollars.

Even though the Museum is free, they have a marvelous book store; you can very easily "go broke" in the book store if you're not careful!

anotherview Loc: California

Well, okay, but the powers-that-be have stored and displayed this airplane outdoors since arrival at MFAM back in the '90s. I understand that military planes go out on loan from the respective military branch or from its museum authority. These entities dictate the display conditions from what I gather.

SR-71 "Blackbird" March Field Air Musem

Gitzo Loc: Indiana

http://www.roadrunnersinternationale.com/transporting_the_a-12.html

For anyone really interested in the SR-71 and how it was first developed in 1962, this link will take you to one of the most interesting stories of all.
In the very beginning, "Project OXCART" was a joint effort between the C.I.A. and Lockheed Aircraft to build what started out as the A-12;
Lockheed's first high altitude recon plane, (the U-2) was called "Angel", and the A-12 was to be known as "Arcangel"; because of the great security of the time, there was never any mention made of a "plane"; it was ALWAYS referred to as an "Article"; the very first example built at Lockheed's plant in Burbank, Ca. was named "Article 121".

When Lockheed got Article 121 built, the first big challenge was to get the thing to Area 51, ("The Ranch" ) as the test site in the Nevada Desert was known at the time. This first story describes the 3 day journey of trucking a 105 ft "box", 35 ft wide, over mountains, deserts, etc. prior to the Interstate Highways being built. I might mention, "Article 121" in this story is the same plane that is now on display at the Blackbird Air Park in Palmdale, Ca. (Just found that out, BTW )

Also….(and mentioned in the story), this whole thing was "Top Secret" at the time, and the ONLY pictures that were taken by ANYONE, were the ones that you'll see in the story.

After the original A-12s were built, they built 3 YF-12s in 1964; sometime after that, and several years of the C.I.A. operating the A-12, the program was turned over to the Air Force and the A-12 then became the SR-71.

It's also worth noting, even though the earlier A-12 look almost identical to the later SR-71s, there were MANY significant changes made, mostly having to do with air flow to the engines and it's exit out the "tail pipes". (There are any number of stories on the Roadrunners website dealing with all that. )

http://www.roadrunnersinternationale.com/transporting_the_a-12.html