Fifty years later the SR71 still has to be the coolest looking plane ever built.....what a plane.

I am a retired Air Force pilot. One day in the early 70's I was flying along at 49,000 feet at about mach .95, and lo and behold way above me was an aircraft passing me like I was standing still. It was so high, I could not visually identify it, but obviously it was an SR-71.

1960's technology... makes you wonder what they are designing now.

And to think the engineers designed this baby with slide rules and pencils.......... Pure genius....

Designed in the 1950's and it's the most futuristic looking plane yet.

This Jet flew right over my house in 1971 I was only 7 and sitting on the roof with my dad to watch the Air Show but little did we know this Bird was going to make a fly by right over top of our house that day. I will never forget the blasting hum in my ears and my dad crouched down because the damn thing was so big it looked as if it was going to touch us. It was so huge even though it was flying relatively high it seemed as if it was within arms reach. Just after it passed over top our house shook and are ears began to hum then there was this huge bang like thunder then it was gone just like that. I was never so scared and excited in my life at the same time as when I saw this beast of a bird flying right over my head that day. I feel privileged to have had that moment only wish we had taken a picture of it, but its engraved in my memory for ever man oh man what a ride.

I get tears in my eyes just watching this masterpiece fly.

Greetings from Chula Vista, California! Proud to say my father welded the titanium on these beautiful jets in the late 50's and into the mid 1960's. We lived in Manhattan Beach at the time then moved to Burbank, California. I'll be 66 soon and I was born in 1958. Torrance , California. God Bless!

I can't believe this things was made in the 1960's! So it is over 50 years old and still is the fastest aircraft, and probably has the most futuristic look of any planes. Awesome piece of engineering. :)

It doesn't get any better than this, folks! You are watching the most badass aircraft in the history of aviation! I had the pleasure of watching them do their stuff from up-close at Beale AFB back in '72. The twin hopped-up Buick 425 nailhead-powered start-cart at full-song, those glorious J-58s spooling-up, the twin booms of the afterburners kicking-in, followed by the unearthly screech as they literally tore the air apart is a sound like no other on this planet. I am thankful that I was fortunate enough to witness the spectacle from as close as one could get without getting shot.

In the mid 90’s I worked on a new electric power generating system for the SR-71 at the Aerospace company I work for. I am still proud to have been associated with that fantastic aircraft.

I attended that show with my Mum, we couldn't get anywhere near the perimeter fence due to the amount of people crowding at the Farnborough end, so we walked right down to the Fleet end of the runway.....when that bird left the runway she was virtually at our position and despite having our hands over our ears, it was deafening - what was more scary was the breath getting knocked out of us by the roar of those engines....an experience I will never forget.....

I got the honor to see this magnificent machine when I was stationed at Kadena AB, Japan. We didn't know why it was there but the sound of those engines is a sound I will never forget!

My mom was a member of Skunk Works. They built these amazing planes. I remember it flying over my elementary school all the time. Along with the sonic booms. This is my all time favorite aircraft.!

Its sad that they are all gone and retired . My favorite plane ever .

They need to take this thing out from storage, and at least give her one more flight. Thumbs up if you agree!

Just think about it. How perfect and masterfully made is this piece of engineering - that 51 years later it still holds the world record for the fastest production aircraft ever. God damn..

This is going on my Christmas list

The Blackbird is one of the most amazing aeronautical engineering feats.

it's 5 days from 2020,that plane looks more menacing than anything in the air today.

It's a pity that back then we could build amazing aircraft like this, but not a decent video camera.

I was lucky enough to see an SR-71 flight demonstration like this at an air show in California when I was 11 years old. When it makes a low pass like this you don't even hear it coming until it's already flown past you.

Simply a gorgeous aircraft and a masterpiece of engineering. How can you not get goosebumps watching the black beauty fly

I was fortunate to see this plane retired in 1990 while in basic training in San Antonio with the Air Force. Pouring down rain but it was still awesome. They brought some out of retirement a few years later, but the plane could still do it's job. Love your video. It brings back memories!!!!!!

We were on our way to see my grandparents who lived in Hampshire, UK. On the way, we passed the Farnborough airshow and saw the SR-71 as she landed having just broken the Transatlantic speed record. My mother pretended she was having car problems and pulled over to the shoulder so that my brother sister and I could get a great view of her landing. She still sends shivers up my back.

Beautiful plane, unmistakeable look, a credit to the designers....

I was at this airshow and this aircraft blew my mind and ears and a few car alarms, fond memories and a shame we won't get to see her fly again.

Imagine Wilbur and Orville, standing at an airshow and witnessing this awesome craft, pass by, at full afterburner... I doubt words could exit their mouths! Words will never, sum up, the true impact of this amazing aircraft! The sound is, simply, angelic... The SR-71 Blackbird, is a gift, for the ages✈🎆🎉

Most beautiful plane ever built.

I was a freshman in high school in 1990 at the Dayton Air Show in Dayton Ohio when the PA announcer came on and said the "SR -71 Blackbird has taken off from an airbase in California attempting to break the transcontinental air speed record." 67 minutes later he came back on the PA to announce that the Blackbird had broken the record by nearly an hour. The plane then turned around and came back to the Dayton Air Show and I got to see it and meet the pilot. A day that I will never forget!

I so enjoyed building this as a 1/48 scale model kit from Testors. It was over 3' long and painted like an early OxCart SR-71 with the exposed titanium finish on upper parts of the aircraft. It was my first large metalizing project with the airbrush.

I want to be borned in 50’s so i can see this amazing jet fly. I get tears in my eyes every time i see this legendary bird the SR-71 Blackbird. Amazing

The absolute best jet aircraft ever built by man PERIOD.

I was a US Resident in the early 60´s and to go to work I went by the Burbank Lockeed airport every day, never saw this airplane. But sometimes I had the night shift and around 430AM a couple times I saw it right over my head while approaching the runway. I guess at that time the USAF didn´t show it to anyone like the do now, which makes me think what will they be hiding nowadays...

Thank you so much Kelly Johnson...you saved our asses.

Some of the gnarliest vintage footage I’ve seen. The grain, the music straight out of Midnight Express, I’m in heaven.

Such a beautiful piece of American engineering : )

Having seen one up close at the Air and Space Museum near Dulles Airport, I think it is nearly a crime that this beautiful aircraft is not still being flown and displayed at USAF air shows. It is clearly one of the best man-made machines ever created - ever. I imagine the Blue Angels don't appreciate being upstaged by an "obsolete" plane, though.

I am so very proud of my uncle and the others who made this plane a reality. Rest in peace Uncle Richard!

We’re all admiring this beauty, but imagine how much cooler it is to Fly this thing..

I only saw The SR-71 take off once and it's an experience I will never forget. It was at Norton AFB during an airshow. It was fascinating watching them roll out the start carts to get her going. I believe the announcer said the start carts had Chrysler engines. When she took off, the noise of her engines was so loud that it rattled everyone's innards. A kid had broken a plastic bead necklace leaving the beads all over the ground. Those things were jumping up and down as the SR took off. Long tails of shock diamonds. She looked unreal in the air to me. After a few passes she tipped nose up in a very steep climb with those long tails of shock diamonds again and flew until she was out of sight. I think it must have been maybe a minute or two later when the announcer said she was over Nevada. Wish I had a video camera because I think that was some "hot leggin."

Amazing aircraft. 1960's technology and still no air-breathing engine, piloted craft has ever been built since that could come close to keeping up with it. A true marvel of ingenuity and technology. It's a shame to see this bird retired. Not one ever lost to hostile fire. Amazing.

I was at a museum once in Cambridge, England, United Kingdom. There she was, I was so shocked and instantly turned into a little boy. The sign said “Do not touch” every man looked over his shoulder like a spy followed by the hand up whilst graciously touching her, mumbling something too. I felt the same when visiting Concorde 🇬🇧. That said, nothing makes me emotional like the Spitfire or Hurricane. We owe everything to that generation. Oh yeah, the Vulcan, she’s pretty to. Oh one more, Miss Sea Harrier. My wife doesn’t know this but when we win the lottery I’m buying all the above and putting them on the front garden.

I was at the Pima air museum in Tucson, AZ. They have an SR-71 on display there. I'd wanted to see the plane for a long time. I felt a sense of grief when I had to leave it behind and go home. It was absolutely majestic.

An amazing day, it's remained so vivid, thanks to this plane! I was about 7. Amusingly, during this display I got separated from my dad in the crowd but still managed to enjoy an epic moment in aviation history. Wonder who the crew were and where that plane is now?

My favourite plane of all time . The look is just PERFECT

I was stationed at Osan AFB Korea in 1983 and saw it take from there and do a fly by after circling the hills and mtns around song ton tee and came blazing down the center of the runway before going almost vertical before returning to Guam. What a beautiful site to see.

The engine roar at 0:23 is probably the most awe-inspiring thing I've ever heard. Unbelievable.

The footage looks as though it was at RAF Mildenhall. I remember the bird well. When I was stationed there in the late 80's, Air Fete was in full swing. I was a member of the base crash rescue team. We were allowed to train on the SR-71 for such situation as to egress the crew from the plane. I even got to sit in the front cockpit. Wonderful aircraft. Sorry to see her go.

there is no sweeter sound than the sound of jet engines. it is the sound of freedom.

Growing up next to Offut AFB in Nebraska in the late 70's and 80's. For some reason this clip brings tears to my eyes. Maybe its thinking of childhood and air shows or the horns in the background.?.?.. i dont know.

Such a bad ass looking bird. There will never be anything quite like it. Still can't believe this thing came out of the 60s!

BLACKBIRD RECORDS Altitude in Horizontal Flight Date: 28 July 1976 Crew: Capt. Robert C. Helt and Maj. Larry A. Elliott Altitude: 85,068.997 feet Speed Over a Straight Course Date: 28 July 1976 Crew: Capt. Eldon W. Joersz and Maj. George T. Morgan Average Speed: 2,193.167 mph Speed Over a Closed Course Date: 27 July 1976 Crew: Maj. Adolphus H. Bledsoe, Jr. and Maj. John T. Fuller Distance: 1,000 km Average Speed: 2,092.294 mph Speed Over a Recognized Course: New York to London Date: 1 September 1974 Crew: Maj. James V. Sullivan and Maj Noel F. Widdifield Distance: 3,461.53 miles Time: 1 hour, 54 minutes, 56.4 seconds Average Speed: 1,806.964 mph Speed Over a Recognized Course: London to Los Angeles Date: 13 September 1974 Crew: Capt. Harold B. Adams and Capt. William C. Machorek Distance: 5,446.87 miles Time: 3 hours, 47 minutes, 39 seconds Average Speed: 1,435.587 mph Speed Over a Recognized Course: West Coast to East Coast Date: 6 March 1990 Crew: Lt. Col. Ed Yeilding and Lt. Col. J.T. Vida Distance: 2,404.05 miles Time: 1 hour, 7 minutes, 53.69 seconds Average Speed: 2,124.51 mph Speed Over a Recognized Course: Los Angeles to Washington, D.C. Date: 6 March 1990 Crew: Lt. Col. Ed Yeilding and Lt. Col. J.T. Vida Distance: 2,299.67 miles Time: 1 hour, 4 minutes, 19.89 seconds Average Speed: 2,144.83 mph Speed Over a Recognized Course: Kansas City to Washington, D.C. Date: 6 March 1990 Crew: Lt. Col. Ed Yeilding and Lt. Col. J.T. Vida Distance: 942.08 miles Time: 25 minutes, 58.53 seconds Average Speed: 2,176.08 mph Speed Over a Recognized Course: St. Louis to Cincinnati Date: 6 March 1990 Crew: Lt. Col. Ed Yeilding and Lt. Col. J.T. Vida Distance: 311.44 miles Time: 8 minutes, 31.97 seconds Average Speed: 2,189.94 mph

Just imagine, the SR71 could cruise at Mk3 or slightly above, for nearly an hour at a time, without any lasting damage to its engines. Just about every other jet capable of Mk3 or faster,could only achieve that speed for around four minutes,then their engines needed technical maintenance, due to the intense stress placed on their engines. The SR71 was one special jet.

Thank you, it brings back memories, my father worked on this plane, I saw it when I was 9 or 10 years old, mid- late 80's Cal. It was cool to see, will never forget it.

One of the best soundtracks combined with one of the best planes and vintage quality... Nice!

SR-71. -- designed. By: Kelly. Johnson. And. The. Boys. At. Lockheed! Just: Genius!!

this plane is, without question, one of the most stunning works of beauty and engineering that has ever left the runway. if it were legal to marry and breed with an aircraft, i would totally wed this one.

The fastest plane ever made 6 months from design to construction. Saw one on display at Duxford air museum. The most stunning plane ever made, I was like a kid at Xmas.

My favourite aircraft of all time. I am still gutted to have missed it fly in real life. When I was 4, my Mum took me to RAF Finningley airshow, the Blackbird was supposed to fly there, but bad weather meant it got cancelled. Luckily, they didn't cancel the Vulcan.

Still the most beautiful bird in the skies! 💚

Such a beautiful plane.

SR 71 is ahead of its time. Still lives these days.

I lived in Lancaster, California at the end of the runway of Edwards Air force base in the 1970's! Every once in a while the window of our office building would start to rattle. Everyone would run outside, we knew what caused the noise, the SR-71 was flying by. It's an amazing site to watch it fly by, not only the noise, but the speed. It was a treat to watch such an historical aircraft...

An interesting bit of trivia. The tires on the main landing gear of this aircraft were impregnated with aluminum to help the rubber withstand the heat of Mach 3+ flight. They were inflated with nitrogen to 415 psi. (Saw one on display at the Pima Air and Space Museum)

Kelly Johnson the genius who designed it

I watched one of these awesome machines landing at R.A.F.Lakenheath with my daughter years ago,it was an incredible sight,i have never forgotten it and my daughter,now30,remembers it clearly.A superb aircraft and sorely missed.

The amazing thing is that I remember when I was a kid in the mid 1960's these planes were around. Now I am in my 60's! We used to build Revell models of them, and they were a recognized modern marvel then. One piece of American technology that made us #1.

I get tears in my eyes knowing almost all of them have been scrapped for their titanium alloy.

On March 06 1990 an SR-71 flew from Los Angeles, Calif. to Washington, D.C. in 64 minutes and 20 second. Mach 3+ (2,000 MPH +)

I saw the SR-71 make a full speed pass with my family at Burke Lakefront airport near Cleveland, Ohio and that was an amazing sight! Yes, there was a sonic boom and yes it rattled the windows of nearby aircraft hangers! I consider this to have been a rare privilege of my childhood and believe it was only permitted because the Blackbird was flying over lake Erie and current restrictions of speed were not in place back then. It was awesome!

Always got a kick seeing the SR-71 at air shows back in 1980's.

LOVE this plane. Kinda looks like something batman would fly back in the 80s haha. Love this. And I know it's unarmed, but it looks like it would drop a nuke or something. Intimidating bird right there.

*The LockHeed SR-71 BlackBird* An advanced, long-ranged, strategic reconnaissance aircraft capable of mach 3 and an altitude of 85,000 *feet!!!!*

Used to be a static display of SR71 at the Virginia Air Museum at Richmond Intl Airport. Have seen it dozens of times. What a beautiful bird she was. The plane is gone now as is the museum.

This plane is just amazing for its time. This amazing piece of history was decades ahead of its time. This could still fly in service today and still beat most of the planes out there even in 2019. Just truly amazing.

Whenever I see these clips I always imagine its missions over the Ho Chi Minh trail and it out running SAM after SAM. To my knowledge I do not think a single pilot was ever lost while this plane was in military service!

I don't care what you say, the SR-71 is STILL the most awesome looking plane in flight, ever...

It's truly amazing how far man has come with regards to flight in the short time it was first discovered , I can only imagine (or not) where the minds of tomorrow will take us

I saw the SR71 display just like this at RAF Mildenhall in the 1980's. Still one of the coolest things I've ever seen.

I bet that was a real handful to fly low and slow. The sled wants to stretch its legs and touch the edge of space.

Unreal aerospace technology for its time, for any time....

I remembered watching your video when I was a kid literally when KZfaq first came out. Glad to see you still have this video up after all these years

The more I see and learn about that bird, the more impressed I am with its engineering.

Are there any comments on here about how this thing leaks fuel on the ground because the fuselage expands and contracts so much? The plane goes so fast and creates so much friction heat on the leading edge of the craft that the fuselage had to be engineered to expand and contract with the temperature difference! Amazing piece of engineering for an amazing aircraft!

A glorious machine, perfect testament to human enginuity

I was stationed in Okinawa in the late '80s and saw this wonderful aircraft take-off from Kadena many times. This is the aircraft that peaked my interest in aviation before high school. I saw a poster of an SR-71 that showed it from a straight-on viewpoint, making it look like an alien aircraft.

This is a legend with a legacy that will never die.

Freakin love this black jet they should put it back in service lol

Behold! The eternal glory of Jetfire!

OMG! I am just scared of this masterpiece sometimes because it looks like Extra terrestrial..... Such a beauty. I never got to see it....

I am a retired Air Force pilot. One day in the early 70's I was flying along at 49,000 feet at about mach .95, and lo and behold way above me was an aircraft passing me like I was standing still. It was so high, I could not visually identify it, but obviously it was an SR-71.

Back when our country was so adventurous with technology and pushing the limit of what's possible... We were so curious and determined. Nowadays, we just don't have the same passion, sadly.. I wish things will change soon. It's sad that our highest flying and fastest aircraft was late 50's, early 60's technology. I'm sure there's something being worked on, but, its just not the same.

Simply beautiful, master piece.

I remember I received a model blackbird as a young kid and at first I thought it was something out of Star Trek! What an amazing aircraft...

I got to fly in the landing pattern with an SR-71 while doing practice carrier landings in the F-14 at NAS Miramar in the last 80's. It was a big thrill just to be flying in the same airspace with such an amazing aircraft. Skunk Works was top notch in those days!

I wish the US would keep this bird in service

This thing was faster than the Flash on the season finale...

This aircraft broke engineering boundaries just like the concorde. The SR-71 is one of the best aircraft ever made. Made during the cold war to avoid the mig-35? And able to out run ground to air missles. The speed and service ceiling is very impressive, the speed of this aircraft. Just think if future passenger jets could be made to look like this.

Saw the SR-71 at the museum in Mobile Bay a few years ago... Dam scary up close and way ahead of its time!!! Also got buzzed by an F-22 near Atlanta... He came out of no where, vertical over I-75 and filled the passenger window with his underbelly!!!! He was there ... And then he was gone!!! Our military is bad ass!!!!