Lockheed photo		 "It makes no sense to just take this one or two steps ahead, because we'd be buying only a couple of years before the Russians would be able to nail us again. No, I want us to come up with an airplane that can rule the skies for a decade or more."

Clarence "Kelly" Johnson: Chief Engineer, Lockheed Martin Skunk Works
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On April 25, 1962, a huge lance-like shape left the ground from a desert airstrip in Nevada. Built by Lockheed's Skunk Works, the strange looking aircraft was designated the A-12. Not long after the A-12 began its test flights, airline pilots began reporting strange shaped aircraft flashing past them at high speeds. Since the project was top secret, these sightings were almost certainly filed away with reports of other unidentified flying objects.
Designed as a single seat reconnaissance aircraft, development began in 1958. The Cold War was going strong,and the government foresaw the necessity of coming up with a superior replacement for the slow, more vulnerable U-2. The Skunk Works began a series of designs code named "Archangel", hence the "A" designation. After 10 designs were deemed not satisfactory, they finally came close to the optimum combination of speed and low radar signature on the all metal A-11. After changes in structural materials to lower the radar signature even further, the titanium skinned A-12 model was introduced.
USAF Museum photo

Lockheed photo 		You can't hit what you can't catch, and the A-12 was designed to be faster than anything the Russians could throw at it. When the test model performed as promised, Lockheed received CIA support for the project on August 28, 1959. The A-12 was put into limited production for CIA missions, who gave it the code name "Oxcart". Thirteen A-12's were built, with the program lasting until 1968. Two other aircraft, designated M/D-21's, were built using A-12 airframes. They were used to test D-12 reconnaissance drones. The A-12 project remained classified until 1981.
When the A-12 design proved successful, Kelly Johnson and the Skunkworks pushed for a variant that would be a high speed, high altitude interceptor, and a tactical bomber version. Johnson pressed the Air Force after testing proved successful. The Air Force was impressed and tentatively ordered 10 interceptors and 25 tactical bombers. The YF-12A, the interceptor version, would be a two seat aircraft utilizing look-down, shoot-down radar and air to air missiles. The second crewman would launch the missiles. Three YF-12A's were built. The bomber version was never built. The contract never became a reality, but did lead to development of the SR-71. -
Lockheed photo
The Air Force decided to acquire a 2 seat reconnaissance version instead. Code named "Senior Crown", six of the super fast aircraft were ordered. Development began in 1961. The aircraft, later to be designated the SR-71, first flew on December 22, 1964.   The SR-71 entered into service in January, 1966. 32 SR-71's, the most publicized version of the Blackbird family, were eventually built. The SR-71 performed its first operational sortie from Kadena AFB in Okinawa in 1968. Although "Blackbird" is its popular nickname, the name given it by the pilots who flew it is "Habu". The name comes from a type of snake found in Okinawa. The Blackbird has been utilized many times since its introduction, in many delicate situations, to carry out its intelligence gathering missions. It does this job extremely well, able to survey 100,000 square miles of the Earth's surface per hour.

Lockheed photo 		The SR-71 is virtually a titanium shell wrapped around a huge fuel tank. The chine or sharp edge that extends from the base of the wings to the nose, actually forms a lifting edge that enable the fuselage to generate aerodynamic lift. At the speeds the SR-71 travels, the temperature at parts of the outer skin can reach 800 degrees F. Special materials and components had to be developed that could hold up to this extreme heat. The materials used also had to be able to handle extreme heat expansion and contraction, reportedly the entire airframe of the aircraft expands 4 inches. To reach its top speed of mach 3.3, the SR-71 utilizes two huge Pratt and Whitney J58 engines. The J58s, developed for use in the Blackbird, were designed to function as ramjets, sort of like jet engines with the afterburners in continuous operation.
The Blackbird's stealthiness is achieved by its extreme speed, the high altitude of its missions, electronic measures, and special radar absorbing materials on the chine and leading wing edges that reportedly contain iron ferrites. The ferrites dissipate radar waves and effectively lower the SR-71's chances of getting picked up on radar. The Blackbird flies so fast, it travels faster than a bullet, and there isn't a missile made that can catch it. The SR-71 still holds the record for highest flying and fastest jet.  With an absolute speed of 2,193.167 mph. and sustained altitude of 85,068.997 feet, the Blackbird broke the record on July 28, 1976, taking the title ironically set by the YF-12A in 1965.
The Blackbird was retired from duty in January, 1990 due to budget cuts and its high cost of maintenance and operation. However, it was returned to active duty in 1994, then retired again in 1997 Some details of its technical design have been revealed. However, given the Blackbird's delicate role and sophisticated technology, most other information is still classified.
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The "Blackbird's" incredible speed is almost unimaginable.  The SR-71 can cover long distances real quick. To see how quick, take a look at NASA's well done java applet at this link:

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