[freedumb2003]

I find it amazing that a 1960s design like the 747 can be economically viable today. It really shows the quality of the original design

The designs that came out of the 60's and 70's continue to operate and astound:

• SR 71 Blackbird (c 1966)
• F-15 Eagle (c 1973)
• F-14 Tomcat (c 1972)
• F-16 Falcon (c 1976)
• F-10 Thunderbolt (c 1976)
• B-52 StratoFortress (c 1955!)

Of course the very, very latest (F-117, F-22, F-35) finally can surpass these, but not by that much. The bulk of our aerial superiority lie in these 20-30 year old designs and of course, more importantly, the 20-30 something year old pilots, the best in the world, who fly them.

[Batrachian]

Your right, but I'm referring to commercial designs where economics are everything. The examples you cited are all excellent designs, but economics plays a much smaller role.

You know why they can't come up with a fighter that's significantly better than the F-15? Because the pilots couldn't stand the gees. The avionics and stealth of the F-22 is far superior, but the performance can't be. They would have to remove the pilot altogether, and that's in the cards. As for the B-52, they had a replacement for it in the 1960s, the B-70 Valkyrie, which was awesome, but it was canceled in favor of investing in ICBMs.

[COEXERJ145]

The SR-71 is retired and has been for some time while the F-14 will be gone early next year.

[AlaskaErik]

Let's not forget the greatest military cargo plane of all time...the C-130 Hercules. First flew in 1954 and is still in production today!