SR-71 Blackbird still the fastest

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 The SR-71 Blackbird is still the Fastest on record: 

It’s been twenty years since the sonic boom that raced across America from coast to coast. Plant 42 in Palmdale California celebrated the anniversary with the opening of the cockpit of one of the SR-71’s on display for the public to get a chance to climb inside and see what it was like to be one of the lucky few that got to chase the sun around the world.  The record run took only 67 minutes and 54 seconds from Los Angeles to New York at an average speed of 2124.5 MPH.  Back on March 6th 1990 USAF Pilot Ed Yeilding and RSO J.T. Vida set three other world records on the same day:

 Los Angeles to Washington, DC(1998 nmi): 64 m. 54 s. for 2144.8 mph
Kansas City to Washington, DC(942.08nmi): 25 m 58.53s for 2176 mph
St. Louis to Cincinnati, OH(311.44nmi): 8 m 31.97s for 2189.94 mph

The aircraft was retired that day and is now on display at the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum Dulles Annex for all to see up close.

Bill Flanagan Chairman  of the Flight Test  Historical Foundation and retired SR-71 RSO pilot held the event at the Blackbird Airpark in Palmdale California with fellow retired Blackbird pilots on hand to tell first hand accounts and experiences they had in the program that at one time was absolutely TOP Secret even from their wives.  The SR-71 was built in Palmdale at USAF Plant 42 in the early 60’s to counter the Soviet Cold War threat of Nuclear dominance. The SR-71 was the only aircraft that could fly over and near the USSR borders and successfully do strategic reconnaissance at over Mach 3.2 and 80,000 feet.  Later it was learned that there were over 1000 missiles sent up to knock  down the Blackbird but not one had ever made it.  The speed of the SR-71 will never be duplicated, designed by Kelly Johnson of the Lockheed corporation back in 1958 his vision of the future was to build something that could not be countered in less then ten years by the Soviets. To this day well over half a century later his vision still stands as a masterpiece of aviation history.

Michael Darcy