Aircraft Profile: Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird
The SR-71 was one of the most spectacular pieces of equipment to emerge from Lockheed’s ‘Skunk Works’ under the leadership of Clarence ‘Kelly’ Johnson.
Its remarkable attributes are well-known: capable of travelling at Mach 3.2 at heights over 85,000ft (26,000m) over a range of 5,900km, the SR-71 was a mainstay of the US strategic reconnaissance force from 1968-90. (Several aircraft were briefly reactivated from 1995.)
The aircraft’s design looks futuristic even today. Indeed, Lockheed notes that almost every area of its design required new approaches or breakthroughs in technology. More than 90% of the airframe, for example, was constructed from titanium composite, to cope with the friction heating generated by its speed.
