Some things need a simple glance to immediately transport us to specific atmospheres and contexts, influenced as we are by the ideas conveyed by cinema and literature. Just like in science fiction , for example: the characters, settings, stories and even vehicles can immediately connote as “futuristic”, which is why finding them in reality is sometimes as strange as it is fascinating.
Here we want to tell you about a NASA vehicle , a record-breaking plane that looks like an object out of a spy or sci-fi story, even though it’s 100% real. so much so that over the years, he has been talked about a lot.
#1
image credit: USAF – Judson Brohmer/Wikimedia
“Blackbird”: its nickname indicates that we are in front of something special, and indeed, one only has to look at it to realize that the Lockheed SR-71 is much more than just an airplane. Developed between the 1950s and 1960s in the famous Area 51 , this high altitude reconnaissance aircraft holds the record for the highest speed ever reached by a piloted aircraft and the highest flight altitude.
#2
image credit: Business Insider/Youtube
Can you imagine “driving” a vehicle at a supersonic speed of 3,530 km / h , at an altitude of 26,000 meters ? If the answer is no, that’s what the SR-71 pilots did. A one-of-a-kind project, which led to the creation of this incredible “creature” from the sky , with characteristics and traits absolutely avant-garde for the time in which it was built. The technicians benefited from the invaluable collaboration of NASA, essential to give the Blackbird what it needed to make history and stand out in the aviation landscape.
#3
image credit: Business Insider/Youtube
And it is mainly to NASA that we owe the video and photographic evidence that we have today on the SR-71. Images of the latter in flight are now rare, as the Blackbird has been out of service for a long time. In 1999, in fact, the 32 units were all decommissioned because of the high management costs that these “planes” implied and the end of the allocation of funds in their favor.
#4
image credit: Business Insider/Youtube
It is nothing short of impressive to see this vehicle in action and to reflect on the technical heights that the designers and builders who designed and built it have reached. The legacy it left behind, even though it is no longer possible to see it roaming the skies, is invaluable, both in terms of the materials used, engines, aerodynamics and steering systems. So much so that it was used for various missions – known and secret – as well as for the study of various flight parameters.
#5
image credit: NASA
From what has been learned in recent years from sightings, news and rumors, the United States is working on the “son” of the Blackbird, the SR-72 , an aircraft capable of doubling its speed. predecessor, thus breaking new records. In the meantime, the SR-71 continues to arouse the fascination and interest of all fans, and not only: it’s not hard to see why!
#6
image credit: Business Insider/Youtube
Source used: https://www.nasa.gov/ / NASA