Quoting Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum | Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird:
No reconnaissance aircraft in history has operated globally in more hostile airspace or with such complete impunity than the SR-71, the world’s fastest jet-propelled aircraft. The Blackbird’s performance and operational achievements placed it at the pinnacle of aviation technology developments during the Cold War.
This Blackbird accrued about 2,800 hours of flight time during 24 years of active service with the U.S. Air Force. On its last flight, March 6, 1990, Lt. Col. Ed Yielding and Lt. Col. Joseph Vida set a speed record by flying from Los Angeles to Washington, D.C., in 1 hour, 4 minutes, and 20 seconds, averaging 3,418 kilometers (2,124 miles) per hour. At the flight’s conclusion, they landed at Washington-Dulles International Airport and turned the airplane over to the Smithsonian.
Transferred from the United States Air Force.
Manufacturer:
Lockheed Aircraft Corporation
Designer:
Clarence L. "Kelly" Johnson
Date:
1964
Country of Origin:
United States of America
Dimensions:
Overall: 18ft 5 15/16in. x 55ft 7in. x 107ft 5in., 169998.5lb. (5.638m x 16.942m x 32.741m, 77110.8kg)
Other: 18ft 5 15/16in. x 107ft 5in. x 55ft 7in. (5.638m x 32.741m x 16.942m)
Materials:
Titanium
Physical Description:
Twin-engine, two-seat, supersonic strategic reconnaissance aircraft; airframe constructed largley of titanium and its alloys; vertical tail fins are constructed of a composite (laminated plastic-type material) to reduce radar cross-section; Pratt and Whitney J58 (JT11D-20B) turbojet engines feature large inlet shock cones.
• • • • •
Quoting Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum | Vought F4U-1D Corsair :
By V-J Day, September 2, 1945, Corsair pilots had amassed an 11:1 kill ratio against enemy aircraft. The aircraft’s distinctive inverted gull-wing design allowed ground clearance for the huge, three-bladed Hamilton Standard Hydromatic propeller, which spanned more than 4 meters (13 feet). The Pratt and Whitney R-2800 radial engine and Hydromatic propeller was the largest and one of the most powerful engine-propeller combinations ever flown on a fighter aircraft.
Charles Lindbergh flew bombing missions in a Corsair with Marine Air Group 31 against Japanese strongholds in the Pacific in 1944. This airplane is painted in the colors and markings of the Corsair Sun Setter, a Marine close-support fighter assigned to the USS Essex in July 1944.
Transferred from the United States Navy.
Manufacturer:
Vought Aircraft Company
Date:
1940
Country of Origin:
United States of America
Dimensions:
Overall: 460 x 1020cm, 4037kg, 1250cm (15ft 1 1/8in. x 33ft 5 9/16in., 8900lb., 41ft 1/8in.)
Materials:
All metal with fabric-covered wings behind the main spar.
Physical Description:
R-2800 radial air-cooled engine with 1,850 horsepower, turned a three-blade Hamilton Standard Hydromatic propeller with solid aluminum blades spanning 13 feet 1 inch; wing bent gull-shaped on both sides of the fuselage.
Posted by Chris Devers on 2011-05-31 04:03:34
Tagged: , Eye-Fi , Somerville , Massachusetts , United States , Smithsonian , Smithsonian Institution , Air and Space Museum , National Air and Space Museum , Steven F. Udvar-Hazy , Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center , Dulles Airport , Chantilly , Dulles , Fairfax , Virginia , VA , Udvar-Hazy , Vought , F-4 , F-4 Corsair , Corsair , SR-71 , Blackbird , Lockheed , SR-71 Blackbird , SR-71A , reconnaissance , Cold War , airplane , plane , Air Force , USAF , speed record , Clarence Johnson , Kelly Johnson , jet , supersonic , aircraft , spyplane , Vought F-4U Corsair , F-4U Corsair , exif:aperture=f/4.0 , exif:exposure=0.017 sec (1/60) , exif:exposure_bias=0 EV , exif:filename=DSC_0054.JPG , exif:flash=Off, Did not fire , exif:focal_length=18 mm , exif:iso_speed=640 , exif:lens=18-200mm f/3.5-5.6 , camera:make=NIKON CORPORATION , camera:model=NIKON D7000 , exif:orientation=Horizontal (normal) , exif:shutter_count=11569 , exif:vari_program=Auto(Flash Off) , meta:exif=1350331321