[Eric in the Ozarks]

There is an “M-21” variant of the A-12 that anyone can get up close to and touch. It is inside the air museum in Seattle.

One of the guides told the following story:

The US didn't have sufficient quantities of titanium to build these airplanes so the CIA set up a dummy trading company in South America. This company made contact with a Russian company that had titanium and the finished materials for the project came from the USSR via Brazil.

The M-21 was a two-seater with the extra seat designated for the drone launch officer. The drones were to be flown over territory “too hot” for the Blackbird. It is believed the drone system was never used. Only two M-21 birds were built.

[G Larry]

Well.....there are videos of it slowing down to launch an Air-2A Genie