The Mach 3 SR-71 Blackbird Deserves A Better Fate Than This

National Security Journal ^ | 11/8/2025 | Steve Balestrieri

[whyilovetexas111]

The SR-71 Blackbird was a “fantastic” aircraft, but its origins lie in the even faster, single-seat CIA A-12 “Oxcart.” Developed by Lockheed’s Skunk Works to fly at Mach 3.2+ and 90,000 feet, the A-12 required a 90% titanium airframe to survive the 800°F heat. In a “stunning” Cold War irony, the CIA had to secretly buy the titanium from its main adversary, the Soviet Union, using “shell companies” and a “pizza oven” cover story.

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TOPICS: Government; History; Military/Veterans; Politics
KEYWORDS: aviation; history; military; russia; sr71

[ridesthemiles]

IIRC-—THERE IS A SIMILAR STORY-—

PILOT CALLS LA & ASKED FOR CLEARANCE TO LAND

TRAFFIC CONTROL ASKS WHERE HE IS-—NOT ON RADAR-—

PILOT SAYS-— COMING OVER KANSAS...BE THERE VERY SHORTLY—

HE WAS.

[T.B. Yoits]

We have satellites...

Satellites only took over part of the SR-71 mission. The U-2, RC-135, RQ-4 Global Hawk, RQ-170 Sentinel, the US Army Athena-R, and a few others took over a large portion of it.

[wbarmy]

I didn’t say that Lady Bird had done it. I said LBJ had it done by somebody. I know not who.

I also did not say that was “my expert opinion”. I was telling what I was told by all the old Texans who knew LBJ, personally knew LBJ, what they had said.

Additionally, Lady Bird did make money from transporting troops and equipment to Vietnam, it is all publicly available information.

I also know all of that about Oswald, but I have stood in that place, and seen the gun, and do not believe that Oswald fired all three shots which hit Kennedy and Governor John Connally. I believe he was up there and shot at them, but he didn’t fire all those shots which hit.

I was just answering the throwaway line from someone else.

[ducttape45]

I got to see one fly overhead at the Randolph AFB in Texas way back in the early 1980’s. Magnificent plane.

[Ditto]

I also know all of that about Oswald, but I have stood in that place, and seen the gun, and do not believe that Oswald fired all three shots which hit Kennedy and Governor John Connally. I believe he was up there and shot at them, but he didn't fire all those shots which hit.

I have been there as well and looked out the windows Oswald looked out and do you know what I realized? Those were easy shots. Anyone who was even half way competent could have made those shots. I always thought that they were some incredible long distance marksmanship. They weren't. The longest shot was less than 80 yards.

There was no grand conspiracy. It wasn't LBJ, prick that he was. It wasn't the CIA, the FBI, the Mafia, the Russians, or space aliens. It was a F…ked-up Commie punk named Lee Harvey Oswald.

[USAF1985]

We had two on rotation at RAF Mildenhall when I was a cop in the 80’s. One weekend I’m coming around the flightline perimeter road by KGB corner and a guy was waving me to stop from the exterior fence. “Excuse me mate…we’ve driven all night from Edinburgh…is the Blackbird flying today?” Didn’t have the heart to tell him they didn’t fly on Saturdays. Not long after, I was on an incentive flight on a KC-135R flying near Norway. The sight of the SR-71 slipping under the tanker was pretty awesome.

[wbarmy]

It isn’t the distance, it was the trees. There were more trees than, and it was a shot from behind.

What year did you go there? In the 60’s and 70’s there was a privately run museum which kept a lot of the stuff that was actually there, while the trees were still there. Sometime in the 80’s it was bought out for businesses.

[Ditto]

It isn’t the distance, it was the trees. There were more trees than, and it was a shot from behind.

Less trees then and they were not as tall. Oswald had an uninterrupted shot.