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Growing up nothing captured my imagination as much as the SR 71. Not rockets and astronauts, not fast cars, not other fighters or experimental aircraft (thanks,

Growing up nothing captured my imagination as much as the SR 71. Not rockets and astronauts, not fast cars, not other fighters or experimental aircraft (thanks, Dumpy Pocket book of aircraft and flight), not cool warships, not nuclear submarines... nothing. To be sure, they were all awe-inspiring, insanely cool machines that kid-me would nerd out on. I knew all the stats. But the SR was on its own pedestal in my head, apart from everything else. I can't explain why, but it was like that. Now-me continues to be as awe-struck, but for other reasons; having read/understood something of the engineering and project management and operational work that went into making and flying that never-before-was, never-will-be work of art. (edit: better words)

atonse 3y ago
I feel ya! Did you grow up in the US? If so, did you ever watch the show “wings” on the discovery channel? It used to be part of my after school lineup, right along with shows like saved by the bell. I used to argue with friends in the schoolyard about which jet was the best, between Migs, Sukhois, and the NATO jets. I miss that show. My first website (on tripod) was even about the SR-71 and the F-117.
- adityaathalye 3y ago
  "Wings"! It stirred faded memories. Our family got cable in the early 1990s in India. Discovery and National Geographic were staples. Quite possibly---though I can neither confirm nor deny---that is how I got proper wind of the Black Bird. I just saw that YouTube has the episode... and, looks like it features Brian Shul.
  - atonse 3y ago
    The Discovery channel was truly amazing in the 90s. So was TLC. They used to show actual surgeries on TLC and explain what they were doing. And the History channel too was great. They all had tons of great shows. I have a tough time seeing all the reality and alien conspiracy theory nonsense on there these days.
- hydrogen7800 3y ago
  Yes! And "Wings of the Red Star" narrated by Peter Ustinov. My friends had posters of Lamborghinis, Ferraris, etc., and I had the SR-71 and space Shuttle on my wall.
  - esafak 3y ago
    An Ustinov documentary? Now I'm listening! His musical documentaries left such an impression on me. Ustinov was a raconteur like no other.
chasd00 3y ago
The SR-71 has a special place in so many hearts. I don't know why but I always imagined the SR-71 as a pretty large plane. I saw one IRL finally a few years ago at a museum in Tucson AZ and was surprised how small it was. It looked about the size of an F-15.
- FpUser 3y ago
  Size of the F-15 is 19.43m, size of SR-71 is 32.74 m. I'd say it is pretty big difference and 32+ meters does not seem small.
photochemsyn 3y ago
When I was a kid, my uncle (a construction contractor) worked on a contract for a few months at Beale Air Force Base in Northern California, where SR-71s were based, and one day he took me along. I got to see the actual planes on the runway from behind a chain-link fence, warming up for takeoff. It's one of the my memorable experiences - the planes are huge, the engines are loud, the jet fuel was steaming off the tarmac, it felt like being in a sci-fi film. I can still see it like it was yesterday. That was a few years before the fall of the Berlin Wall, and I was sure we were all going to get nuked.
- adityaathalye 3y ago
  Watching fighter aircraft take off in close quarters is quite the experience. The SR-71 must have been epic. This one time, I was in a civilian aircraft, on a shared military/civilian airport. It was nearing twilight. Our cute little Airbus A320 was nosing about and stopped alongside a Sukhoi 30-MKI (the squadron is based there). Now this bird is no pipsqueak. In that light, in that surprise moment, it oozed menace on the tarmac. Then the pilot started letting loose, and a needle-point blue dart jetted out from the afterburners. It felt like the aircraft doubled in length. The roar in our cabin was deafening. The sonic vibration in my body curdled my blood. And then off it went. I almost sprained my neck tracking it. Crazy angle of attack when the pilot nosed up. That was quite the experience. (edit: typo)
  - FourHand451 3y ago
    Tangentially related question: I've always wondered why afterburners on more modern Soviet/Russian engines seem to glow blue, while European or American jets seem to have a more orangey glow. Anyone here know why?
    - rootusrootus 3y ago
      My understanding is that afterburner flame color mostly comes down to temperature. American jets have blue afterburners, too, at lower power levels, it turns orange towards the upper limit. Maybe Russian jets typically have the maximum dialed down, or that's just the limit of the particular design. I know that it is (or was, at least, 30 years ago) pretty common in the US for Air National Guard fighters to have stops installed when they're training, and not on alert status. IIRC they were typically capped at zone 1 (out of 5 available)[0]. Barely visible at all. [0] That's 30 year old memories right there, take with a heaping spoonful of salt. I used to know a fighter pilot in Portland flying F-15s and learned a lot about their operations. But memory fades...

atonse 3y ago

I feel ya! Did you grow up in the US? If so, did you ever watch the show “wings” on the discovery channel? It used to be part of my after school lineup, right along with shows like saved by the bell. I used to argue with friends in the schoolyard about which jet was the best, between Migs, Sukhois, and the NATO jets. I miss that show. My first website (on tripod) was even about the SR-71 and the F-117.

adityaathalye 3y ago
"Wings"! It stirred faded memories. Our family got cable in the early 1990s in India. Discovery and National Geographic were staples. Quite possibly---though I can neither confirm nor deny---that is how I got proper wind of the Black Bird. I just saw that YouTube has the episode... and, looks like it features Brian Shul.
- atonse 3y ago
  The Discovery channel was truly amazing in the 90s. So was TLC. They used to show actual surgeries on TLC and explain what they were doing. And the History channel too was great. They all had tons of great shows. I have a tough time seeing all the reality and alien conspiracy theory nonsense on there these days.
hydrogen7800 3y ago
Yes! And "Wings of the Red Star" narrated by Peter Ustinov. My friends had posters of Lamborghinis, Ferraris, etc., and I had the SR-71 and space Shuttle on my wall.
- esafak 3y ago
  An Ustinov documentary? Now I'm listening! His musical documentaries left such an impression on me. Ustinov was a raconteur like no other.

chasd00 3y ago

The SR-71 has a special place in so many hearts. I don't know why but I always imagined the SR-71 as a pretty large plane. I saw one IRL finally a few years ago at a museum in Tucson AZ and was surprised how small it was. It looked about the size of an F-15.

FpUser 3y ago
Size of the F-15 is 19.43m, size of SR-71 is 32.74 m. I'd say it is pretty big difference and 32+ meters does not seem small.

photochemsyn 3y ago

When I was a kid, my uncle (a construction contractor) worked on a contract for a few months at Beale Air Force Base in Northern California, where SR-71s were based, and one day he took me along. I got to see the actual planes on the runway from behind a chain-link fence, warming up for takeoff. It's one of the my memorable experiences - the planes are huge, the engines are loud, the jet fuel was steaming off the tarmac, it felt like being in a sci-fi film. I can still see it like it was yesterday. That was a few years before the fall of the Berlin Wall, and I was sure we were all going to get nuked.

adityaathalye 3y ago
Watching fighter aircraft take off in close quarters is quite the experience. The SR-71 must have been epic. This one time, I was in a civilian aircraft, on a shared military/civilian airport. It was nearing twilight. Our cute little Airbus A320 was nosing about and stopped alongside a Sukhoi 30-MKI (the squadron is based there). Now this bird is no pipsqueak. In that light, in that surprise moment, it oozed menace on the tarmac. Then the pilot started letting loose, and a needle-point blue dart jetted out from the afterburners. It felt like the aircraft doubled in length. The roar in our cabin was deafening. The sonic vibration in my body curdled my blood. And then off it went. I almost sprained my neck tracking it. Crazy angle of attack when the pilot nosed up. That was quite the experience. (edit: typo)
- FourHand451 3y ago
  Tangentially related question: I've always wondered why afterburners on more modern Soviet/Russian engines seem to glow blue, while European or American jets seem to have a more orangey glow. Anyone here know why?
  - rootusrootus 3y ago
    My understanding is that afterburner flame color mostly comes down to temperature. American jets have blue afterburners, too, at lower power levels, it turns orange towards the upper limit. Maybe Russian jets typically have the maximum dialed down, or that's just the limit of the particular design. I know that it is (or was, at least, 30 years ago) pretty common in the US for Air National Guard fighters to have stops installed when they're training, and not on alert status. IIRC they were typically capped at zone 1 (out of 5 available)[0]. Barely visible at all. [0] That's 30 year old memories right there, take with a heaping spoonful of salt. I used to know a fighter pilot in Portland flying F-15s and learned a lot about their operations. But memory fades...