Articles
Today in History: Last Flight of the SR-71 Blackbird
On October 9, 1999, the SR-71 Blackbird made its final flight, but its legacy continues to soar. It remains one of the most iconic and admired aircraft in aviation history. […]
Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird
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Today in Aviation History: First Flight of The Lockheed YF-12A Interceptor
On August 7, 1963, the first Lockheed YF-12A interceptor, sn/ 60-6934, took off from a top-secret air base at Groom Lake, Nevada, on its first flight. Lockheed test pilot James D. Eastham was at the […]
Articles
Randy’s Warbird Profiles – Lockheed M-21 Blackbird
Since his other posts received such a warm welcome, we thought our readers might enjoy another warbird profile from our good friend Randy Malmstrom. As we mentioned before, Randy has long held a passion for aviation […]
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Today in Aviation History – The SR-71 Flew New York to London in Less Than 2 Hours
by Bryan R. Swopes of This Day in Aviation On September 1, 1974, Major James V. Sullivan, USAF, Pilot and Major Noel F. Widdifield, USAF, Reconnaissance Systems Officer, set a Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI) World […]
Articles
Tomcat Tales – A Stray Blackbird in Key West
In a follow-up to our first article from F-14 Tomcat RIO and TOPGUN instructor Dave “Bio” Baranek this past May, we thought our readers might enjoy this story about his experiences on a TOPGUN training […]
Aviation Museum News
SR-71 Blackbird Forum at The Museum of Flight
The Museum of Flight in Seattle, Washington is holding a special event on the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird over the weekend of September 14th/15th featuring more than two dozen personnel involved in flying and maintaining them. […]
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Declassified: Swedish Pilots Presented with U.S. Air Medal For Protecting SR-71 Blackbird
At the end of November last year, details of a fascinating cold war mission involving the SR-71 Blackbird came to light, a mission which had remained classified until 2017. The story dates back to the […]
Dixie Wing Living History Series Presents the SR-71 Blackbird
PRESS RELEASE – Retired U.S. Air Force Lt. Col. Les Dyer will share an inside look at what it was like to pilot the world’s fastest, highest-flying manned aircraft, the SR-71, when he speaks at […]
Articles
Lockheed Skunk Works Celebrates its 70th Anniversary
By Lockheed Martin‘s count, this year marks the 70th anniversary of its secretive yet famous Skunk Works division, though some credibly argue that its genesis began with the 1938 development of the XP-38 that led […]
“Center, Aspen 20, you got a ground speed readout for us?”
In his book, “Sled Driver,” SR-71/Blackbird pilot Brian Shul writes: I’ll always remember a certain radio exchange that occurred one day as Walt (my back-seater) and I were screaming across Southern California 13 miles high. […]