Lockheed SR-71A Blackbird

USA / California / Wheatland /
 aircraft on display  Add category
 Upload a photo
SR-71A #61-7963

The Lockheed SR-71 was an advanced, long-range, Mach 3 strategic reconnaissance aircraft developed from the Lockheed YF-12A and A-12 aircraft by the Lockheed Skunk Works. The SR-71 was unofficially named the Blackbird; its crews often called it the Sled, or the Habu ("snake"). The SR-71 line was in service from 1964 to 1998. Clarence "Kelly" Johnson was the man behind many of the design's advanced concepts. The SR-71 was one of the first aircraft to be shaped to reduce radar cross section. However, the aircraft was not stealthy and still had a large enough radar signature to be tracked by contemporary systems. The aircraft's defense was its high speed and operating altitude; if a surface-to-air missile launch was detected, the standard evasive action was to simply accelerate.


This has the D21 Drone on display beside it.
Wikipedia article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lockheed_SR-71_Blackbird
Nearby cities:
Coordinates:   39°6'49"N   121°23'24"W

Comments

  • Aircraft Tail Number 17963. Lockheed Production Article #2014.
This article was last modified 12 years ago