The SR-71 Blackbird

The SR-71 Blackbird is a military plane, famous for how fast and how high it could fly. This plane, developed during the Cold War was an American reconnaissance plane, used to spy on the Soviet Union but also on North Korea, Vietnam, and the Iran-Iraq war. In this blog post, I take a look at the history of this aircraft.

After World War Two, engineers built ultra sophisticated spy planes that went faster and higher than ever before. The U-2 was a predecessor to the SR-71, but it is still used today. When flying the U-2, pilot endurance limited flight time to 12 hours and pilots had to wear a special high-altitude suit. Manned spy planes are limited by human endurance and bring risk of pilot loss. In 1960 a pilot was shot down while flying a U-2 over the Soviet Union. This demonstrated the need for unmanned spy planes. Today reconnaissance satellites are generally used instead of spy planes but in the age of autonomous aircraft, unmanned drones are used for reconnaissance.

During the Cold War, the American’s knew very little about facilities deep in the Soviet Union. In 1956, the U-2 spy plane began flying over the Soviet Union. It was neither fast nor stealthy, but it could fly at 70,000 feet which was above Soviet air defences. However, true impunity over Soviet airspace would need a combination of incredible speed, altitude and stealth. In the spring of 1960, a Soviet surface-to-air missile finally managed to shoot down a U-2 plane. It was clear that the United States needed a replacement for the U-2. This replacement came in the form of the SR-71.

The SR-71 was a titanium spy plane built during the height of the Cold War. The aircraft could take photos of the ground with 12-inch resolution from 90,000 feet. The aircraft was strictly used for surveillance as there was no internal volume used for weapons. The aircraft flew faster than a rifle bullet and missiles were too slow to catch it. The SR-71 could go over Mach 3 and the maximum recorded altitude was approximately 85,200 feet but it could probably fly higher.

The SR-71 was a long-range plane, capable of flying 26km above the surface if the earth. From this height, pilots were able to see the curvature of the earth. The aircraft was powered by Pratt and Whitney J58 turbojet engines. The aircraft was a hybrid of a conventional jet engine and a ramjet engine which allowed the aircraft to fly at Mach 3.2. While missiles did have higher speeds, they could not achieve the range and high-altitude maneuverability that the Blackbird could. When the aircraft detected a missile launch, it simply changed course and increased its speed. The SR-71 could outrun and out climb any threat.

The SR-71 was originally used by the CIA for reconnaissance. It could cruise at Mach 3.2 near the edge of space for hours on end. At Mach 3.2 the aircraft’s exterior would heat up to beyond 500 degrees Fahrenheit which was easily enough to soften aircraft aluminum. As a result, titanium was used for 92% of the aircraft. The unusual shape of the aircraft helped to reduce its radar signature as did its special black paint. The black paint on the SR-71 helped it to radiate heat away from the plane as it allowed the plane to radiate more heat than it gained from radiation from the sun. It also helped to keep the structure of the plane cool. The SR-71 flew missions through Vietnam, North Korea and Iraq, all without losing an aircraft to enemy fire. The longest operational sortie was in 1987 when the SR-71 flew from Okinawa to observe developments in the Iran-Iraq war. The mission lasted 11.2 hours and likely required 5 aerial refuelling’s.

The average range of the SR-71 was 5,200 km however, with air to air refuelling the plane could stay in the air indefinitely provided there were no mechanical issues. The fuel was contained by the skin of the plane itself but because the titanium skin expanded and contracted with every flight it gradually deteriorated overtime, allowing fuel to leak out. The plane used so much fuel that it needed to be refuelled every two hours.

However, Soviet Mig 31’s posed a legitimate threat to the SR-71and more than a third of the fifty aircraft built were destroyed in accidents. Additionally, advances in spy satellites, aerial drones and the SR-71’s inability to deliver surveillance data in real time diminished some of the plane’s usefulness. The aircraft was officially retired in 1998 and two were sent to NASA for testing.

The SR-71’s replacement, the SR-72 is in development and will take advantage of new high-performance composites, allowing it to reach speeds of up to Mach 6 and because the aircraft will be autonomous, the range will not be limited by pilots.

It is easy to see why the SR-71 is such an amazing aircraft. Its high speed allowed it to outrun any missile and gave the United States a technological and intelligence advantage during the Cold War and other conflicts.

What other Cold War aircraft would you like me to cover? Do you think the SR-72 will ever fly? Share your thoughts by leaving a comment below, on the forum or on our social media.

I hope you enjoyed this blog post. Thank you for reading.

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