And what country can preserve its liberties if their rulers are not warned from time to time that their people preserve the spirit of resistance? Let them take arms. The remedy is to set them right as to facts, pardon and pacify them. What signify a few lives lost in a century or two? The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants.
In retirement, Chuck Yeager once took an SR-71 for an afternoon excursion from Beale AFB to Alaska and about. He was refueled four times on the trip.
Fun Fact: Geneal Yeager could go to any Air Force base and take any aircraft on that base for a flight any time he wanted. I reckon he earned that privilege.
He sure did. What an inspiration, even to a non military, never been in a fight as an adult 60 something guy like me. I am grateful for men like Yeager, of which there are very few.
I believe that was the final flight of that Blackbird. After it landed at Dulles airport it was towed into the Air & Space Museum next door. Air & Space magazine devoted half an issue to it back in the day. Al_in_Ottawa
I was outside a quarry in Loudoun County that day. I heard an unusually loud explosion and thought they'd used too much ANFO. Turned out what I heard was the sonic boom of the Blackbird passing over as it set that record.
I'm glad no one ever told Nancy Pelosi this. I'm sure she'd commandeer a Blackbird for her weekly commute to work like she has with other military aircraft. Then she'd complain about it not being fast enough, comfy enough, or without room for her staff and luggage....
I was at Dulles when she came in. Sonic boom when she passed overhead east bound. about 20 minutes later she came back out of the west. Yeah, it took 20 minutes to circle around and descend from 80,000+ feet. First pass was at about 700 feet with full afterburners. LOUD! USAF colonel next to me started to shake. Pretty sure he had an orgasm then and there. :-) Second pass was so low I had to view her through the glass walls of Dulles' main terminal. LOUDER! Magnificent bit of American engineering. Kelly Johnson's masterpiece.
They would take off from Kadena a time or three/week, and shame the F-15 jocks by going near-vertical in the climb out. About 3-4 hours later they'd come back in, having, in that time, likely crossed over North Korea, China, Siberia, and halfway to Moscow, with nary a care in the world but scooting back out over the North Pacific for refueling on schedule.
The Japanese constabulary would typically close the coast road beyond the runway fence on their takeoffs, lest the jetwash blow some lightweight Toyota into the ocean.
FWIW, not to be pedantic, but an average speed of 2156.25MPH would be required to transit LA to DC airborne in 64 minutes, which is a distance of 2300 miles, civic center to civic center. At 2145MPH, they'd arrive there 34 seconds late. :) IIRC, the SR-71 set the previous record the year it started flying. Then, on its last flight, they beat that previous record.
And if you think the AF retired it without having something better, faster, and more capable already in operation (Mach 6/4000MPH...in 1992), and instead only relied on satellite intel, I have a bridge for sale, cheap. Cash only.
"Ma'am, we don't do turns."
ReplyDeleteOf that's not true. It's just that a turn requires enough space, say the size of multiple states.
Above 60,000 feet, they're in Class A airspace. Only other military fast movers up there.
ReplyDeleteAbove 60k is class E. Uncontrolled. Class A is 18k-60k
DeleteMea culpa
DeleteIn retirement, Chuck Yeager once took an SR-71 for an afternoon excursion from Beale AFB to Alaska and about. He was refueled four times on the trip.
ReplyDeleteFun Fact: Geneal Yeager could go to any Air Force base and take any aircraft on that base for a flight any time he wanted. I reckon he earned that privilege.
He sure did. What an inspiration, even to a non military, never been in a fight as an adult 60 something guy like me. I am grateful for men like Yeager, of which there are very few.
DeleteDue to traffic at both ends, check in and security lines, baggage check and retrieval, etc, total time portal-to-portal was 6 hours and 23 minutes. 😅
ReplyDeleteI believe that was the final flight of that Blackbird. After it landed at Dulles airport it was towed into the Air & Space Museum next door. Air & Space magazine devoted half an issue to it back in the day.
ReplyDeleteAl_in_Ottawa
I was outside a quarry in Loudoun County that day. I heard an unusually loud explosion and thought they'd used too much ANFO. Turned out what I heard was the sonic boom of the Blackbird passing over as it set that record.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad no one ever told Nancy Pelosi this. I'm sure she'd commandeer a Blackbird for her weekly commute to work like she has with other military aircraft. Then she'd complain about it not being fast enough, comfy enough, or without room for her staff and luggage....
ReplyDeleteMy dad who worked FAA watched one running cross country on radar, start a turn in northern VA and end the turn headed back over GA.
ReplyDeleteAt sea level that's about Mach 2.8, at 80,000 feet, typical cruising altitude it's about Mach 3.2.
ReplyDeleteI was at Dulles when she came in. Sonic boom when she passed overhead east bound. about 20 minutes later she came back out of the west. Yeah, it took 20 minutes to circle around and descend from 80,000+ feet. First pass was at about 700 feet with full afterburners. LOUD! USAF colonel next to me started to shake. Pretty sure he had an orgasm then and there. :-) Second pass was so low I had to view her through the glass walls of Dulles' main terminal. LOUDER! Magnificent bit of American engineering. Kelly Johnson's masterpiece.
ReplyDeleteI witnessed touch and go pattern work near San Bernardino in the 80s.
DeleteThey would take off from Kadena a time or three/week, and shame the F-15 jocks by going near-vertical in the climb out.
ReplyDeleteAbout 3-4 hours later they'd come back in, having, in that time, likely crossed over North Korea, China, Siberia, and halfway to Moscow, with nary a care in the world but scooting back out over the North Pacific for refueling on schedule.
The Japanese constabulary would typically close the coast road beyond the runway fence on their takeoffs, lest the jetwash blow some lightweight Toyota into the ocean.
FWIW, not to be pedantic, but an average speed of 2156.25MPH would be required to transit LA to DC airborne in 64 minutes, which is a distance of 2300 miles, civic center to civic center.
At 2145MPH, they'd arrive there 34 seconds late. :)
IIRC, the SR-71 set the previous record the year it started flying.
Then, on its last flight, they beat that previous record.
And if you think the AF retired it without having something better, faster, and more capable already in operation (Mach 6/4000MPH...in 1992), and instead only relied on satellite intel, I have a bridge for sale, cheap. Cash only.
https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1992-04-17-me-607-story.html
Well it did have a 5 mph tailwind.
ReplyDeleteGround Control, this is Aspen 2 4. Could I have a ground speed check?
ReplyDeleteWas living in Olathe, Ks. at the time and heard the triple sonic booms....once in a lifetime experience.....
ReplyDelete