Fact  Sheet 
Secretory  of  the  Air  Force.  Office  of  Public  Affairs,  Washington.  C.C.  20330 
82-36 
SR-71 
The  SR-71,  unofficially  known  as  the 
"Blackbird,"  was  developed  from  the  YF-12A  as 
a  long-range,  advanced  strategic  reconnais- 
sance aircraft.  It  can  perform  both  pre-attack 
and  post-attack  strategic  reconnaissance 
missions. 
This  aircraft  is  one  of  the  fastest  and 
highest-flying  in  the  skies  today.  The  SR-71 
flies  at  more  than  three  times  the  speed  of 
sound  at  altitudes  above  80,000  feet.  Three 
times  the  speed  of  sound  (Mach  3)  is  more  than 
2,000  miles  per  hour  or  about  3,100  feet  per 
second  at  sea  level. 
Each  of  the  two  J58  turbojet  engines  is 
housed  in  a  large  nacelle  mounted  away  from 
the    fuselage    on    either    side    of   the    aircraft's 
delta  wing.  Aerial  refueling  gives  the  SR-71 
global  range. 
The  SR-71  carries  a  wide  variety  of 
advanced  observation  equipment  from 
battlefield  surveillance  systems  to  multiple- 
sensor,  high-performance  systems  capable  of 
specialized  surveillance.  It  can  survey  100,000 
square  miles  of  the  Earth's  surface  in  one  hour 
from  an  altitude  of  80,000  feet. 
SR-71  development  began  in  February  1963, 
and  in  January  1966  the  first  SR-71A  was 
delivered  to  the  9th  Strategic  Reconnaissance 
Wing  at  Beale  Air  Force  Base,  Calif. 
When  President  Johnson  announced  the 
SR-71's  existence  on  July  24,  1964,  he  stated. 
"The    system    will    be    used    during    periods    of
military  hostilities  and  in  other  situations  in 
which  the  U.S.  military  forces  may  be 
confronting  foreign  military  forces...." 
Reconnaissance  missions  are  flown  over  part  of 
the  United  States  to  test  the  aircraft  and  its 
systems  and  to  maintain  crew  proficiency. 
The  aircraft  carries  a  crew  of  two  in 
tandem  seats.  When  preparing  for  a  flight, 
crew  members  report  to  the  wing's  unique 
physiological  support  division  for  a  pre  flight 
physical,  high  protein  meal  and  several 
briefings  on  weather  and  special  mission 
characteristics. 
When  this  is  completed,  they  are  helped  into 
their  special  flight  gear  by  physiological 
support  technicians  who  will  stay  with  them 
until  they  are  aboard  the  SR-71  and  connected 
to  its  life-support  systems. 
In  September  1974  an  SR-71A  established 
two  world  speed  records  in  less  than  two 
weeks*  On  Sept.  1,  the  aircraft  flew  3,490 
miles  from  New  York  to  London  in  1  hour,  54 
minutes,  56.4  seconds,  with  an  average  ground 
speed  of  1,806.987  miles  per  hour.   On   Sept.  13, 
the  sar^  a  aircraft  flew  5,645  miles  from  London 
to  Los  Angeles  in  3  hours,  47  minutes.  The 
slower  average  ground  speed  of  1,480  miles  per 
hour  was  due  to  an  added  aerial  refueling.  The 
SR-71  arrivad,  by  local  time,  almost  four  hours 
before  its  departure  from  London. 
In  July  1976,  SR-71s  set  seven  new  world 
records.  On  July  27,  an  SR-71  set  three  speed 
records  flying  over  a  1,000-kilometer  (621.369 
miles)  closed  circuit  course:  an  absolute  speed 
record  and  a  class  speed  record  of  2,092.294 
miles  per  hour  without  carrying  a  pay  load,  and 
a  class  speed  record  of  2,092.294  miles  per  hour 
carrying  a  2,204.6-pound  payload. 
On  Sept.  28,  an  SR-71  set  two  world  altitude 
records  in  a  horizontal  sustained  flight  without 
payload:  an  absolute  altitude  record  and  a  class 
altitude  record  of  85,068.997  feet.  Also  on 
Sept.  28,  another  SR-71  set  two  world  speed 
records  in  the  last  10  kilometers  of  a  25- 
kilometer  straight  course  without  payload:  an 
absolute  speed  record  and  a  class  speed  record 
of  2,193.16  miles  per  hour. 
Specifications 
Primary  function:  strategic  reconnaissance 
Prime  contractor:  Lockheed  Aircraft  Corp. 
Power  plant/manufacturer:   two  Pratt  & 
Whitney  J58  turbojet  engines  with 
afterburners 
Thrust:    in  excess  of  30,000  lb  each  engine  with 
afterburning 
Dimensions:    wingspan  55  ft  7  in,  length  107  ft 
5  in,  height  18  ft  6  in 
Speeds  more  than  2,000  mph 
Ceiling:   above  80,000  ft 
Range:   more  than  2,000  miles  at  Mach  3, 
global  with  aerial  refueling 
Armament:   none 
Crew:    two— pilot  and  reconnaissance  systems 
officer 
Maximum  takeoff  weight:    170,000  lb 
Status:   operational 
Supersedes  USAF  Fact  Sheet  79-9 
Local  Reproduction  Authorized 
October  1982