The SR71 Speed Check story, as told by the guy who lived it

Hasnt this been on here about 3/4 times already

Some stories NEVER get old.

I don’t remember ever seeing the recording of the pilot posted. And the OP even addressed it.

Very cool

Was going into an airport with sketchy radar coverage late one night, controller points out small airplane traffic between me and the airport, after a couple of exchanges I said negative contact, what’s our closing speed, his response was “you’re about to blow his doors off,” I just said “as long as I don’t break them off”

That's the first time I've actually heard him telling the story. Very funny


I can't begin to imagine what it would have been like to fly a blackbird

At this point I think we need 3D animated simulations, and "where are they now?" style interviews of all participants.

20 or 21 years ago, I was a student government senator, representing engineering council at LSU. For one EC meeting, we somehow got a retired SR-71 pilot into CEBA to give us a talk.

We were enthralled with his speech, every word! I'm gonna screw this story up, but he delivered some joke about how after a mission to snap some photos in the Middle East, in which they make some huge 100 mile radius turn to just straddle a border and not enter "enemy" airspace...

upon the return trip, they had to remember to start slowing down after passing the big creek and the bumps on the ground so they could land without going out over the really big pond.

Again, he told it much better, but the "big creek" was the Mississippi River and the "bumps on the ground" were the Rocky Mountains.

Solid 50,000th post.

You remember when the Germans shot down an SR-71 back in May of 1960?