The Lockheed SR-71, known as the "Blackbird" and nicknamed Habu by its crews, was an American twin-engine jet strategic reconnaissance aircraft developed during the 1960s as part of the unpublished Black Project. It was built as a developmental type of the A-12 OXCART reconnaissance aircraft by Lockheed and its Skunk Works division. American aeronautical engineer Clarence Johnson became responsible for most of the design innovations.

The distinguishing feature was a high flight speed of over Mach 3 at high altitudes here I would add about how much (above 3,600 km/h), putting it out of harm's way during reconnaissance missions. On detecting the activation of anti-aircraft missile defences, the standard procedure was to simply evade the missile, for which an increase in speed was sufficient. The surface of the structure was designed to minimize the reflective surface of radar radiation.

The aircraft served in the United States Air Force from 1964 to 1998. The total production reached 32 units of which 12 were destroyed in accidents and no machines were lost in engagements with the enemy. The SR-71 has held the record as the fastest manned aircraft since July 28, 1976, surpassing the older Lockheed YF-12 developmental type. The measured speed was Mach 3.29 (3,529.6 km/h).

The end of the SR-71 came with the end of the Cold War. In 1990, all the machines were scrapped. However, several machines remained in NASA service until 1999. After the outbreak of the War on Terror, the SR -71 became apparent as it was missed in service. Lockheed was commissioned to produce the Blackbird for the 21st century. The SR-72 "Son of Blackbird" hypersonic, unmanned reconnaissance aircraft was scheduled to take off in 2023. But we're still waiting for its first confirmed flight.

Source: Wikipedia

Original

Length:
32,74 m

Width:
16,94 m

Height:
5,64 m

Weight:
30.600 kg

Take-off weight:
78.000 kg

Maximum speed:
3.540 km/h

Range:
5.925 km

Pilots:
2

State:
USA

Model 1:8

Length:
4,10 m

Width:
2,12 m

Height:
0,71 m