File A121-R-60-6925A-12Article 122

60-6925

A-12 · Article 122
On displayNew York, New York

Intrepid Museum (flight deck of USS Intrepid)
New York, New York, USA · 40.76, -74.00

A-12 60-6925 on the flight deck of USS Intrepid at the Intrepid Museum, New York City, on 6 March 2016.
A-12 60-6925 on the flight deck of USS Intrepid at the Intrepid Museum, New York City, on 6 March 2016.Alan Wilson (Flickr) · 2016-03-06 · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Source

Record

60-6925
122
A-12
177.9
January 1963
Preserved, on display
Intrepid Museum (flight deck of USS Intrepid), New York, New York, USA

Career

  • Second A-12; arrived at the test site in late June 1962
  • Used principally for checking electronic and propulsion systems and radar cross section; photographed mounted inverted on a pylon for radar testing at Area 51
  • During delivery a Greyhound bus grazed its 35 ft wide crate; the project paid nearly $5,000 for the bus damage to avoid an insurance inquiry
  • 122 flights per CIA inventory

Fate

Retired in 1968 and stored at Palmdale; on display on the flight deck of USS Intrepid in New York since 1991.

Where the record disagrees

First flight given only as 'January 1963' by CIA (Archangel). Flight count: CIA inventory 122, Wikipedia table 161; hours agree (177.9). Intrepid Museum says the aircraft arrived in 1991; some registry sites say 1990.

Sources

  1. Central Intelligence Agency, Center for the Study of Intelligence. Archangel: CIA's Supersonic A-12 Reconnaissance Aircraft (David Robarge, 2nd ed.; includes 'Inventory of A-12s' table, p. 50). Open · Archived · In the register
  2. Roadrunners Internationale (OXCART veterans association). Lockheed A-12 Blackbird Survivors. Open · Archived · In the register
  3. Intrepid Museum. Aircraft of the Month: A-12. Open · In the register
  4. Wikipedia. Lockheed A-12 (aircraft table and accidents list). Open · Archived · In the register