SR-71

• The Blackbird was built by Skunk Works
• Used for reconnaissance missions
• Created by Kelly "Clarence" Johnson
• Fastest aircraft in the world
• Flies in the top 1% of the Earth's atmosphere

MANY QUESTIONS

• How did the aircraft help the U.S.?
• Who was the first pilot of the plane?
• How efficient is the camera on the plane?
• What war was the plane used in?
• How did the aircraft reflect radar?

Searching
I began my research by gathering information from websites, looking for books, and watching a video. Since the Blackbird was a secret weapon, it was extremely hard to find books and movies about the aircraft. I did get past those barriers of challenges and I found a movie that gave me most of my information that was made for the History Channel.

THEY HAVE BEEN ANSWERED!

• The first pilot was Robert Gilliland
• Used in the Cold War

BLACKBIRD CAMERA
The Blackbird camera is so precise that is can take a picture of a person's license plate from 80,000ft perfectly.

BLACKBIRD STEALTH

• Built in reference to the U-2
• Earned the title "faster than a speeding bullet"
• Made of titanium and 20% composite
• Large surfaces and inward pointed fins deflect radar
• 100x radar returned

FLIGHT SUIT

• Same suit of the astronaunts
• $120,000 pressure suit

Untitled Slide

TRAINING

• Months of training
• Simulators testing crews to their limits
• Spent long hours in T-38 Shooting Stars
• Same physical examination as astronaunts
• Evaluations lasted a week

FASTEST JET IN THE WORLD

• Broke records and holds them to this day
• Flew across 7 time zones in 3hr 47min 39sec
• Broke speed record from NY to London in 1hr
• Charles Lindbergh flew same distance in 33hrs

TERMINATED??!

• On December 20, 1989 the SR-71 made final path
• Kelly Johnson was there to say goodbye to his best creation
• Served 6 presidents and holds speed records to this day
• Shot at over 4,000 times
• No aircraft was ever lost to enemy fire

WORKS CITED

Winchester, Jim. Military
Aircraft of the Cold
War: Chartwell Books,
INC. NY, 2012. Print.

Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird
Nonprofit Organization.
8 Apr 2014. Web. 14 Mar
2010.

Skunk Works. Canada:
Little, Brown and
Company, 1994. Print.

History-Heavy Metal
Blackbird Stealth! Dir.
Katie Chadney. A&E
Television Network,
2008. DVD.

"SR-71." Groller
Multimedia
Encyclopedia. Groller
Online, 2014. Web.
13 Apr 2014.