The SR-71 Blackbird

Blackbird Aircraft Records

Blackbird aircraft have been setting records since day one. Here's a list the top speed, highest and quickest distance between two points.

SR-71 Blackbird - 1971 Mackay Trophy
26 April 1971

SR-71 Blackbird - 1971 Mackay Trophy

On 26 April 1971, SR-17 Blackbird, 61-7968, flown by majors Thomas B. Estes and Dewain C. Vick, flew over 15,000 miles (24,000 km) in 10 hours and 30 minutes. This flight was awarded the 1971 Mackay Trophy for the "most meritorious flight of the year" and the 1972 Harmon Trophy for "most outstanding international achievement in the art/science of aeronautics".

28 July 1976

SR-71 Blackbird - Absolute Speed Record - Manned Aircraft

On 28 July 1976, SR-71 serial number 61-7958 set an absolute speed record of 1,905.81 knots (2,193.2 mph; 3,529.6 km/h), approximately Mach 3.3.

28 July 1976

SR-71 Blackbird - Absolute Altitude (Sustained Flight) - Manned Aircraft

The SR-71 was the world's fastest and highest-flying operational manned aircraft throughout its career. On 28 July 1976, SR-71 serial number 61-7962, piloted by then Captain Robert Helt, broke the world record: an "absolute altitude record" of 85,069 feet (25,929 m).

SR-71 Blackbird: One Flight - Four Speed Records
06 June 1990

SR-71 Blackbird: One Flight - Four Speed Records

When the SR-71 was retired in 1990, one Blackbird was flown from its birthplace at United States Air Force Plant 42 in Palmdale, California, to go on exhibit at what is now the Smithsonian Institution's Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Virginia.

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