In this article:
The Blackbird
From the shadows of the Cold War emerged an espionage platform that expanded the limits of human possibility and made the theoretical thrillingly real.
The fastest manned aircraft in the history of flight, the Blackbird family and its best-known member, the SR-71, streaked across the stratosphere faster than a bullet and delivered stunning intelligence data to the West.
According to the bookazine Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird, the futuristic image of the Blackbird conjures up notions of science fiction, literally pushing the envelope in speed, stealth, and high-altitude performance.
Major Brian Shul
Major Brian Shul was a Vietnam combat veteran who flew 212 missions and was badly burned, but he defied the odds and returned to duty to fly the world’s fastest plane. After a 20-year career in the USAF, Shul wrote four books including Sled Driver: Flying the World’s Fastest Jet.
Always being asked about the actual speed of the SR-71, Shul has said it was common to fly at 35 miles per minute. However, he was surprised at one public speaking engagement to be asked how slow he had flown the Blackbird. He paused and then recalled a mission with RSO Watson out of RAF Mildenhall.
A reconnaissance mission across the Iron Curtain was underway with the Blackbird on its return leg transiting the sky over Denmark in three minutes. A radio message was received informing Shul and Watson that the commander of a group of cadets had requested a fly-by over his small RAF base in the rural English countryside. Happy to oblige, the SR-71 refuelled over the North Sea then headed toward the location.
A prime view of the flypast
Shul recounted: “Walter had myriad sophisticated navigation equipment in the back seat and began to vector me toward the field. Descending to subsonic speeds, we found ourselves over a densely wooded area in a slight haze. Like most former World War Two British airfields, the one we were looking for had a small tower and little surrounding infrastructure.
“Walter told me we were close and that I should be able to see the field, but I saw nothing but trees as far as I could see in the haze. We got a little lower and I pulled the throttles back from 325kt. With the gear up, anything under 275 was just uncomfortable. Walt said we were practically over the field, but there was nothing in my windscreen. I banked the jet and started a gentle circling manoeuvre in hopes of picking up anything that looked like a field.”
Diligent in his effort to complete the add-on assignment, Shul continued to look for the small base, then a memorable event occurred: “The commander had taken the cadets up on the catwalk of the tower in order to get a prime view of the flypast. It was a quiet, still day with no wind and partial grey overcast. Walter continued to give me indications that the field should be below us, but I still couldn’t see it. The longer we continued to peer out the window and circle, the slower we got. With our power back, the waiting cadets heard nothing. I must have had good instructors in my flying career, as something told me I had better cross- check the gauges.
SR-71 super low pass at a speed of 152 knots
“As I noticed the airspeed indicator slide below 160kt, my heart stopped and my adrenaline-filled left hand pushed two throttles full forward. At this point we weren’t really flying, but falling in a slight bank. Just at the moment that both afterburners lit with a thunderous roar of flame – and what a joyous feeling that was! – the aircraft dropped into full view of the shocked observers on the tower. Shattering the still quiet of that morning, they now had 107ft of fire-breathing titanium in their face as the plane accelerated in full burner on the tower side of the infield, closer than expected, maintaining what could only be described as some sort of ultimate knife-edge pass.”
When the Blackbird touched down and taxied to a stop at RAF Mildenhall, Shul was sure that he would be handed his head for an apparently reckless stunt. On the contrary, the commanding officer greeted the crewmen with a hearty handshake and the news that the cadet officer was ebullient after witnessing “the greatest SR-71 flypast he had ever seen.” Some cadets had had their hats blown off. The sight had been “unbelievable.”
Shul concluded, “As we retired to the equipment room to change, we just sat there. We hadn’t spoken a word since the pass. Finally, Walter looked at me and said, `156 knots. What did you see?’ Trying to find my voice, I stammered: `152.’ We sat in silence for a moment. Then Walt said: ‘Don’t ever do that to me again!’ And I never did.
Just a routine low approach
“A year later, Walter and I were having lunch in the Mildenhall officers’ club and overheard someone talking to some cadets about an SR-71 flypast that he had seen one day. Of course, by now, the story included kids falling off the tower and screaming as the heat of the jet singed their eyebrows. Noticing our ‘HABU’ patches as we stood with lunch trays in our hands, he asked us to verify to the cadets that such a thing had occurred. Walt just shook his head and said: ‘It was probably just a routine low approach. They’re pretty impressive in that plane,’ Impressive indeed!”
Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird is published by Key Publishing and is available to order here.
Photo credit: courtesy of Robin Harbour
