File A121-R-60-6935YF-12AArticle 1002

60-6935

YF-12A · Article 1002
On displayDayton (Wright-Patterson AFB), Ohio

National Museum of the United States Air Force
Dayton (Wright-Patterson AFB), Ohio, USA · 39.78, -84.11

YF-12A 60-6935 in flight during NASA research flying in 1972.
YF-12A 60-6935 in flight during NASA research flying in 1972.NASA Dryden Flight Research Center · 1972 · NASA EC72-3150 · Public domain (US government work) · Source
YF-12A 60-6935 on display at the National Museum of the United States Air Force, Dayton, Ohio, on 22 May 2022.
YF-12A 60-6935 on display at the National Museum of the United States Air Force, Dayton, Ohio, on 22 May 2022.ZLEA (Wikimedia Commons user) · 2022-05-22 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Source

Record

60-6935
1002
YF-12A
Not published
Not confirmed
Preserved, on display
National Museum of the United States Air Force, Dayton (Wright-Patterson AFB), Ohio, USA

Career

  • Only surviving YF-12A
  • Loaned to NASA under an agreement signed 31 Mar 1970
  • First flew with the improved K-type J58 engines on 18 Oct 1974
  • Final NASA flight 31 Oct 1979 (Fitz Fulton and Vic Horton); delivery flight 7 Nov 1979 by Col. James V. Sullivan with museum director Col. Richard Uppstrom

Fate

Recalled from storage in 1969 for the joint NASA/USAF YF-12 research programme, flown 146 times between 1969 and 1979, then ferried to the USAF Museum at Wright-Patterson AFB on 7 November 1979. It is the only surviving YF-12A.

In the chronology

29 Dec 1967F-12B interceptor cancelled KEDLOCK
Defense Secretary Robert McNamara would not fund the operational F-12B interceptor, and on 29 December 1967 the Air Force instructed Lockheed to stop F-12B development; the YF-12A program ended on 1 February 1968 and the surviving YF-12As went into storage. NMUSAF cites high costs, the Vietnam War and a lower priority for continental air defense.
18 Jul 1969NASA and USAF announce joint YF-12 research program NASA
NASA and the Air Force announced a joint flight research program using YF-12As 60-6935 and 60-6936 taken from Air Force storage. NASA's work focused on loads, structural heating, propulsion and supersonic cruise technology, led by Gene Matranga.
11 Dec 1969First NASA/USAF YF-12A research flight NASA
YF-12A 60-6935 flew the first sortie of the joint program at Edwards AFB. Over its life the YF-12 program logged 297 flights and about 450 flight hours and produced more than 125 technical reports.
23 Jun 1977Coldwall experiment returns its first good data NASA
The Coldwall experiment, a liquid-nitrogen-cooled, insulated tube carried under YF-12A 60-6935 whose insulation was blown off at Mach 3 to measure turbulent heat transfer, first produced good data at Mach 3.0 and 72,500 ft. The first true Coldwall flight on 21 October 1976 had been spoiled by premature loss of the insulation.
31 Oct 1979Final NASA YF-12 flight; 60-6935 goes to the museum NASA
Fitzhugh Fulton and Victor Horton flew the final NASA flight of YF-12A 60-6935. On 7 November 1979 Col. James Sullivan and Col. Richard Uppstrom ferried it to the Air Force Museum at Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio, where it is the only surviving YF-12.

Where the record disagrees

Museum arrival date: NASA's flight log gives 7 Nov 1979 (flight 146); Wikipedia gives 17 Nov 1979, probably an error. First flight date not verified. Article number 1002 is from secondary sources.

Sources

  1. NASA. Mach 3+: NASA/USAF YF-12 Flight Research, 1969-1979 (Peter W. Merlin, NASA SP-2002-4525). Open · Archived · In the register
  2. National Museum of the United States Air Force. Lockheed YF-12A fact sheet. Open · Archived · In the register
  3. Wikipedia. Lockheed YF-12. Open · Archived · In the register
  4. Warbird Registry. Lockheed YF-12/60-6935 history. Open · Archived · In the register