Key Points and Summary - The SR-71 Blackbird, the world's fastest air-breathing manned aircraft, held its speed record not because of its airframe's limits, but due to a crucial safety restriction on ...

The SR-71 is perhaps the most iconic Cold War spy aircraft, famous for many record-setting flights. Seemingly impervious to loss by enemy defenses, a dozen Blackbirds were lost to accidents. On July ...

Key Points - The official retirement of the SR-71 Blackbird in 1990 was driven more by internal US Air Force politics and budget priorities than by high operational costs or obsolescence, according to ...

The SR-71 Blackbird, the fastest aircraft ever built, was ultimately done in by the Air Force’s most notorious and intractable enemy: budget cuts. The Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird remains one of the most ...