kids encyclopedia robot

Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts
Quick facts for kids
SR-71 "Blackbird"
Dryden's SR-71B Blackbird, NASA 831, slices across the snow-covered southern Sierra Nevada Mountains of California after being refueled by an Air Force tanker during a 1994 flight. SR-71B was the trainer version of the SR-71. The dual cockpit to allow the instructor to fly.
An SR-71B trainer over the Sierra Nevada Mountains of California in 1994. The raised second cockpit is for the instructor.
Role Strategic reconnaissance aircraft
National origin United States
Manufacturer Lockheed, Skunk Works division
Designer Clarence "Kelly" Johnson
First flight 22 December 1964
Introduction January 1966
Retired 1998 (USAF), 1999 (NASA)
Status Retired
Primary users United States Air Force
NASA
Number built 32
Unit cost $34 million
Developed from Lockheed A-12

The SR-71 Blackbird was a super-fast reconnaissance aircraft. This means it was a special spy plane. It was built by a company called Lockheed in the 1960s. The United States Air Force (USAF) used it for gathering information.

Amazing Design of the Blackbird

The Blackbird was built to fly incredibly fast. It could go more than Mach 3. This is three times the speed of sound! Imagine flying faster than a bullet.

Because it flew so fast, the plane would get very hot. To handle this heat, most of the aircraft was made from a strong metal called titanium. Special materials were also used to make it hard for radar to find the plane. This helped it stay hidden during spy missions.

The SR-71 Blackbird used a special fuel called JP-7. When the plane was on the ground, its fuel tanks would sometimes leak. This happened because the parts of the fuel tank were slightly further apart when cold. But once the plane took off and flew super fast, the air friction made the parts get very hot. This heat caused the parts to expand and fit together tightly, stopping the fuel leaks!

The aircraft also had special cameras and radars. These were used to take photographs of places on the ground.

History of the Blackbird

The very first Blackbird flew on December 22, 1964, in Palmdale, California. In January 1966, the first planes started working for the USAF.

Only 32 of these amazing aircraft were ever built. No Blackbirds were ever shot down in war. However, one did crash in an accident in 1969.

The SR-71 program officially stopped in 1998. The last flight of a Blackbird was on March 6, 1990.

Incredible Records and Speed

The SR-71 Blackbird could fly at an altitude of over 80,000 feet. That's more than 15 miles high! It also flew at speeds over 2,190 miles per hour.

For a long time, the Blackbird held the world record for the fastest jet-powered flight. It flew at Mach 3.2. This record was finally broken in March 2004 by NASA's X-43A aircraft.

Lockheed SR-71A 3view
Orthographically projected diagram of the SR-71A Blackbird.

Quick Facts About the SR-71A

  • Crew: 2 people – a pilot and a reconnaissance systems officer (RSO). The RSO managed the spy equipment.
  • Length: About 107 feet, 5 inches. That's longer than two school buses!
  • Wingspan: About 55 feet, 7 inches.
  • Height: About 18 feet, 6 inches.
  • Engines: Two powerful Pratt & Whitney J58 jet engines.
  • Maximum Speed: Mach 3.32 (about 2,200 mph) at 80,000 feet.
  • Ceiling: Could fly as high as 85,000 feet.

Images for kids

  • SR71 factoryfloor SkunkWorks

    SR-71 Blackbird assembly line at Skunk Works

  • Lockheed SR-71A Blackbird, National Museum of the United States Air Force, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, near Dayton, Ohio, USA, cockpit, forward view

    Forward cockpit

  • 1 - Seattle

    A Lockheed M-21 with a D-21 drone on display at Seattle's Museum of Flight

  • Sr71 1

    Water vapor is condensed by the low-pressure vortices generated by the chines outboard of each engine inlet.

  • Inlet shock waves at Mach 2

    Schlieren flow visualization at unstart of axisymmetric inlet at Mach 2

  • Pratt & Whitney J58

    A Pratt & Whitney J58 (JT11D-20) engine on open display at Evergreen Aviation Museum

  • AG330 start cart

    A preserved AG330 start cart

  • Boeing KC-135Q refueling SR-71

    An SR-71 refueling from a KC-135Q Stratotanker during a flight in 1983

  • SR-71 Defensive System B

    The SR-71 Defensive System B

  • Brian Shul in the cockpit of the SR-71 Blackbird

    SR-71 pilot in full flight suit

  • SR71 crew

    The crew of a NASA Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird standing by the aircraft in their pressurized flight suits, 1991

  • Early project logo Habu SR-71

    Early project Habu logo

  • Lockheed SR-71s

    SR-71A (2) and SR-71B trainer, Edwards AFB, CA, 1992

  • View from the SR-71 Blackbird

    View from the cockpit at 83,000 feet over the Atlantic Ocean

  • Pilot-RSO last flight SR-71

    Pilot Lt. Col. Ed Yeilding and RSO Lt. Col. Joe Vida on 6 March 1990, the last SR-71 Senior Crown flight

  • Air Zoo - Lockheed SR-71B Blackbird

    SR-71B on display at the Air Zoo

  • Lockheed Sr-71

    SR-71 at Pima Air & Space Museum, Tucson, Arizona

  • SR71 closeup

    Close-up of the SR-71B operated by NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards AFB, California

  • 16 19 037 SR71

    Detail of SR-71A at the Museum of Aviation, Robins AFB

  • Lockheed SR-71B trainer model 3view

    Orthographically projected diagram of the SR-71B trainer model

  • Sr-71-composit

    SR-71 epoxy asbestos composite areas

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Lockheed SR-71 para niños

kids search engine
All content from Kiddle encyclopedia articles (including the article images and facts) can be freely used under Attribution-ShareAlike license, unless stated otherwise. Cite this article:
Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia.