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The author states that he graduated high school in 1966 and that he built a model of the the SR-71 when he was 10, presumably 1958 if he graduated at 18. He als

by scdlbx 17y ago

The author states that he graduated high school in 1966 and that he built a model of the the SR-71 when he was 10, presumably 1958 if he graduated at 18. He also states that the SR-71 was designed in 1960. Some of this doesn't quite seem right.

jacquesm 17y ago
There is a Colonel Walter L. Watson though: http://scafricanamerican.com/public/pdf/honorees/112004.pdf http://scafricanamerican.com/public/pdf/honorees/112004.pdf The story feels a little strange though, the amount of 'mystic' connection between the plane and the pilot would make me worried if someone that prone to it would be piloting a 747 I'm a passenger on. The pilot would be 'Brian Shul' http://www.sleddriver.com/ http://www.sleddriver.com/
- dasil003 17y ago
  The story feels a little strange though, the amount of 'mystic' connection between the plane and the pilot would make me worried if someone that prone to it would be piloting a 747 I'm a passenger on. Really? "Mysticism" scares you so much that you'd rather your flight be piloted by a clock punching union man then what the Air Force deemed to be one of the best?
  - jacquesm 17y ago
    Strawman much ? There is a long way to go between a clock punching union man and a person that does not let his love for the machine get in the way of objectivity. Personally I think that those bits are just to juice up the story, but you really have to wonder at passages like: "Like the combat veteran she is, the jet senses the target area and seems to prepare herself." and "There seems to be a confirmed trust now, between me and the jet; she will not hesitate to deliver whatever speed we need".
    - aristoxenus 17y ago
      At least two things at play there: 1) Intuition. His non-conscious brain has developed an understanding of the machine. 2) Focus. When you're a warrior in his situation, you can't be second-guessing your horse. That calculation was made on the ground, and now he's committed -- to be effective, he needs to be fully confident that he's well-taken care of. The human brain seems to be wired for a euphoric reaction to complete and utter trust (parental/social/religious bonding?), and that he was able to let that system kick in at such a moment speaks a lot about his abilities as a pilot and about the engineering feat embodied in that jet.
      - aristoxenus 17y ago
        Ok, and one more thing -- poetic license. The guy is a great storyteller.
- jrockway 17y ago
  Don't worry. Commercial airliners will make various loud noises to prevent the pilots from getting too distracted with flying and forgetting about those mountains that are coming up.
ctkrohn 17y ago
Perhaps he built an A-12 model. This was the direct predecessor of the SR-71, designed in the 50s. A very similar aircraft: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lockheed_A-12 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lockheed_A-12
unexpected 17y ago
This is true, but I wouldn't necessarily say it's a smoking gun- "concept models" come out long before the actual plane is built. I remember playing a computer game called "F-22 Raptor" in 1997, and the plane officially entered service in 2005.
JunkDNA 17y ago
That doesn't necessarily mean anything. As a kid, I built a model that was supposed to be the "super secret stealth fighter" before people knew what it looked like. It was based on all the leaked reports of what the aircraft might look like. In the end, it was similar but not identical to the actual plane (owing to the fact that nobody predicted how jagged it was going to be). In fact, it looked a bit like a miniature SR-71.
jbyers 17y ago
http://www.sleddriver.com/biography.html http://www.sleddriver.com/biography.html
joss82 17y ago
But he seems like the kind of guy who graduates at 16.

by scdlbx 17y ago

jacquesm 17y ago

There is a Colonel Walter L. Watson though: http://scafricanamerican.com/public/pdf/honorees/112004.pdf http://scafricanamerican.com/public/pdf/honorees/112004.pdf The story feels a little strange though, the amount of 'mystic' connection between the plane and the pilot would make me worried if someone that prone to it would be piloting a 747 I'm a passenger on. The pilot would be 'Brian Shul' http://www.sleddriver.com/ http://www.sleddriver.com/

dasil003 17y ago
The story feels a little strange though, the amount of 'mystic' connection between the plane and the pilot would make me worried if someone that prone to it would be piloting a 747 I'm a passenger on. Really? "Mysticism" scares you so much that you'd rather your flight be piloted by a clock punching union man then what the Air Force deemed to be one of the best?
- jacquesm 17y ago
  Strawman much ? There is a long way to go between a clock punching union man and a person that does not let his love for the machine get in the way of objectivity. Personally I think that those bits are just to juice up the story, but you really have to wonder at passages like: "Like the combat veteran she is, the jet senses the target area and seems to prepare herself." and "There seems to be a confirmed trust now, between me and the jet; she will not hesitate to deliver whatever speed we need".
  - aristoxenus 17y ago
    At least two things at play there: 1) Intuition. His non-conscious brain has developed an understanding of the machine. 2) Focus. When you're a warrior in his situation, you can't be second-guessing your horse. That calculation was made on the ground, and now he's committed -- to be effective, he needs to be fully confident that he's well-taken care of. The human brain seems to be wired for a euphoric reaction to complete and utter trust (parental/social/religious bonding?), and that he was able to let that system kick in at such a moment speaks a lot about his abilities as a pilot and about the engineering feat embodied in that jet.
    - aristoxenus 17y ago
      Ok, and one more thing -- poetic license. The guy is a great storyteller.
jrockway 17y ago
Don't worry. Commercial airliners will make various loud noises to prevent the pilots from getting too distracted with flying and forgetting about those mountains that are coming up.

ctkrohn 17y ago

Perhaps he built an A-12 model. This was the direct predecessor of the SR-71, designed in the 50s. A very similar aircraft: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lockheed_A-12 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lockheed_A-12

unexpected 17y ago

This is true, but I wouldn't necessarily say it's a smoking gun- "concept models" come out long before the actual plane is built. I remember playing a computer game called "F-22 Raptor" in 1997, and the plane officially entered service in 2005.

JunkDNA 17y ago

That doesn't necessarily mean anything. As a kid, I built a model that was supposed to be the "super secret stealth fighter" before people knew what it looked like. It was based on all the leaked reports of what the aircraft might look like. In the end, it was similar but not identical to the actual plane (owing to the fact that nobody predicted how jagged it was going to be). In fact, it looked a bit like a miniature SR-71.

jbyers 17y ago

http://www.sleddriver.com/biography.html http://www.sleddriver.com/biography.html

joss82 17y ago

But he seems like the kind of guy who graduates at 16.