3. Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird No discussion of fast fighter jets would be complete without mentioning the legendary SR-71 Blackbird. Developed during the Cold War era, this reconnaissance aircraft boasted a top speed of Mach 3.30 at more than 16 miles (85,000 feet or 25,908 meters) above ...
The Lockheed SR-71A Blackbird reconnaissance aircraft prepares for flight. The Blackbird parked at the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center once flew from Los Angeles to Washington, D.C., in one hour, four minutes and 20 seconds. © George Hall/Corbis If ramjets are so fiddly, then why bothe...
Lockheed’s Skunk Works is another organization with a reputation for breaking with tradition. In addition to the U-2 and the Mach 3 SR-71 Blackbird, the Skunk Works was responsible for the first stealth attack fighter: The F-117, without a single curve in its exterior surface, had to be...
However, the CIA and Lockheed realized they would soon need more advanced aircraft because the Soviet Union's missile technology was rapidly catching up. In 1960, the USSR shot down a U-2, confirming this concern. Engineers designed a plane — called the Suntan — to be a successor to the...
but they also come in a multitude of shades. Stealth jets such as the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird may be solid black; the Blue Angels, the U.S. Navy's flight demonstration squadron, pilot blue and yellow jets; and historically, many pilots have painted various pictures on the sides of their...