File A121-R-60-6940M-21Article 134

60-6940

M-21 · Article 134
On displaySeattle, Washington

The Museum of Flight (Great Gallery)
Seattle, Washington, USA · 47.52, -122.30

M-21 60-6940 in flight carrying a D-21 drone, circa 1964 to 1966.
M-21 60-6940 in flight carrying a D-21 drone, circa 1964 to 1966.U.S. Air Force (Defense Visual Information Center) · circa 1964 to 1966 · DoD VIRIN DF-SC-82-10541 · Public domain (US government work) · Source
M-21 60-6940 with a D-21 mounted on its back, on display at The Museum of Flight, Seattle, on 19 June 2018.
M-21 60-6940 with a D-21 mounted on its back, on display at The Museum of Flight, Seattle, on 19 June 2018.Aaron Headly (Flickr) · 2018-06-19 · CC BY 2.0 · Source

Record

60-6940
134
M-21
123.9
22 December 1964
Preserved, on display
The Museum of Flight (Great Gallery), Seattle, Washington, USA

Career

  • Only surviving M-21 (A-12 derivative with a second seat for a launch control officer and a dorsal pylon for the D-21)
  • CIA timeline marks 22 Dec 1964 as the first flight of an M-21 carrying a D-21
  • 80 flights
  • D-21B 510 joined it in 1994 after the museum acquired the drone in November 1993

Fate

Stored at Palmdale after TAGBOARD ended; acquired by The Museum of Flight in 1991 on loan from the National Museum of the USAF and displayed in the Great Gallery with D-21B drone 510 mounted on its back.

Where the record disagrees

The CIA timeline entry reads 'First flights of SR-71 and M-21 carrying D-21 drone' (22 Dec 1964); the Museum of Flight only says it first flew in 1964. Which M-21 made which of the first three D-21 launches was not confirmed.

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. The Museum of Flight. Lockheed M-21 Blackbird. Open · Archived · In the register
  3. The Museum of Flight. Lockheed D-21B Drone. Open · Archived · In the register
  4. Roadrunners Internationale (OXCART veterans association). Lockheed A-12 Blackbird Survivors. Open · Archived · In the register