An SR-71's exterior is all smooth, swooping surfaces. The Blackbird's interior, however, is a cramped assemblage of dials and switches need to keep the supersonic spy plane aloft. Don't be intimidated ...

Summary and Key Points: In June 2024, the SR-71 community gathered in Reno, Nevada, for the twenty-fifth and final anniversary hosted by the Blackbird Association, attended by those associated with ...

Pilots often have fascinating flight stories, but few compare to the tale recounted by Lt. Colonel William Burk Jr. in an ...

On July 26, 1968, an SR-71 Blackbird was cruising over Northern Vietnam when the aircraft's Reconnaissance Systems Officer (RSO) noticed the “R” light illuminate on his panel. This warning indicated ...

Around the conclusion of the Cold War, the SR-71 was falling out of favor. The shift in attitude was owed in large part to the Soviet decline, which spoiled the SR-71’s most important reconnaissance ...

After test pilot Bill Weaver crashed, he thought he had died. It turns out he was falling from the edge of outer space, after his SR-71 Blackbird spy plane had ...

For the first time in 40 years, the fastest jet flight crew in the world reunited with the once super-secret spy plane that put them in the history books. At the Museum of Aviation in Warner Robins, ...

The SR-71 is perhaps the most iconic Cold War spy aircraft, famous for many record-setting flights. Seemingly impervious to loss by enemy defenses, a dozen Blackbirds were lost to accidents. On July ...

Sleek, black and evil in appearance, the SR-71 Blackbird was THE masterpiece of Cold War engineering. Flying faster and higher than any fighter, this stealthy reconnaissance aircraft could snoop where ...