File A121-R-61-7972SR-71AArticle 2023

61-7972

SR-71A · Article 2023
On displayChantilly, Virginia

Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center (Boeing Aviation Hangar)
Chantilly, Virginia, USA · 38.91, -77.44

SR-71A 61-7972 landing with its drag chute deployed, in a U.S. Air Force photograph.
SR-71A 61-7972 landing with its drag chute deployed, in a U.S. Air Force photograph.U.S. Air Force (National Museum of the U.S. Air Force) · USAF VIRIN 061122-F-1234P-050 · Public domain (US government work) · Source
SR-71A 61-7972 seen nose-on in the Boeing Aviation Hangar of the Smithsonian's Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center, Chantilly, Virginia, with the James S. McDonnell Space Hangar and a Space Shuttle orbiter behind it.
SR-71A 61-7972 seen nose-on in the Boeing Aviation Hangar of the Smithsonian's Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center, Chantilly, Virginia, with the James S. McDonnell Space Hangar and a Space Shuttle orbiter behind it.Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum · NASM2016-00597 · CC0 1.0 · Source

Record

61-7972
2023
SR-71A
2,801.1
12 December 1966
Preserved, on display
Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center (Boeing Aviation Hangar), Chantilly, Virginia, USA

Career

  • 1 Sep 1974: New York to London in 1 h 54 min 56.4 s, avg 1,806.964 mph (James V. Sullivan, Noel F. Widdifield)
  • 13 Sep 1974: London to Los Angeles in 3 h 47 min, avg about 1,435.6 mph (Harold B. Adams, William C. Machorek)
  • 6 Mar 1990: Los Angeles to Washington DC in 1 h 4 min 20 s (Ed Yeilding, Joseph T. Vida)
  • 6 Mar 1990: West Coast to East Coast in 1 h 7 min 53.69 s, avg 2,124.5 mph
  • 6 Mar 1990: St. Louis to Cincinnati in 8 min 31.97 s, avg 2,189.94 mph
  • Palmdale (Lockheed) test aircraft after 61-7955 retired in 1985

Fate

Flown from Palmdale to Washington Dulles on 6 March 1990 by Ed Yeilding and Joseph T. Vida, setting speed records en route, and handed to the Smithsonian. Stored at Dulles, then displayed at the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center from its December 2003 opening.

In the chronology

1 Sep 1974New York to London in under two hours SENIOR CROWN
Maj. James Sullivan and Maj. Noel Widdifield flew 61-7972 from New York to London in 1 hour 54 minutes 56.4 seconds, averaging 2,908 km/h (1,806.96 mph), on the SR-71's first visit to Britain for the Farnborough air show.
13 Sep 1974London to Los Angeles in 3 h 47 min SENIOR CROWN
Buck Adams and RSO William Machorek flew 61-7972 from London to Los Angeles, 5,446.87 miles, in 3 hours 47 minutes 39 seconds, averaging about 1,435.5 mph. A first attempt the day before was abandoned.
20 Apr 1976SR-71 operations begin from RAF Mildenhall SENIOR CROWN
61-7972 arrived at RAF Mildenhall for a 10-day deployment, the start of SR-71 reconnaissance operations from England that ran until 1990.
6 Mar 199061-7972's record-setting delivery flight to the Smithsonian SENIOR CROWN
Lt. Col. Ed Yeilding and Lt. Col. J.T. Vida flew 61-7972 coast to coast (2,404 miles) in 1 hour 7 minutes 53.69 seconds, setting city-pair records including Los Angeles to Washington, D.C. in 1 hour 4 minutes 20 seconds, Kansas City to Washington in 25 minutes 59 seconds and St. Louis to Cincinnati in 8 minutes 32 seconds. The aircraft landed at Dulles and passed into the National Air and Space Museum's custody with 2,801.1 flight hours.
15 Dec 2003Udvar-Hazy Center opens Legacy
The Smithsonian's Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center opened at Chantilly, Virginia, on the 100th anniversary of the Wright brothers' first flight. SR-71A 61-7972 is displayed in its Boeing Aviation Hangar.

Where the record disagrees

Speed figures disagree: NASM pairs the 1 h 4 min 20 s LA to DC time with a 2,124 mph average, but sr-71.org lists LA to DC as 1 h 4 min 19.89 s at 2,144.83 mph, with 2,124.5 mph belonging to the coast to coast leg (1 h 7 min 53.69 s); a Kansas City to Washington leg (25 min 59 s, avg about 2,176 mph) is listed on Wikipedia but not on the archived sr-71.org page. London to LA: 3 h 47 min 39 s and 5,446.87 mi (This Day in Aviation, White Eagle) versus 3 h 47 min 35.8 s, avg 1,435.587 mph (sr-71.org); Machorek is Major in some sources, Captain in sr-71.org. Hours: 2,801.1 (NASM page, sr-71.org) versus 'about 2,800' (NASM archives). Display start: Udvar-Hazy opened 15 December 2003 (sr-71.org photos); habu.org says on display since 17 December 2003. NASM certificate erroneously reads 64-17972. Coordinates are the museum site (Wikipedia infobox, cross-checked against OpenStreetMap).

Sources

  1. Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum. Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird (collection object A19920072000). Open · Archived · In the register
  2. Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum Archives. Lockheed SR-71A (Blackbird) Record Flight Flag and Certificate, NASM.1990.0076. Open · Archived · In the register
  3. SR-71 Online (sr-71.org), via Internet Archive. Blackbird Records (archived copy). Open · In the register
  4. SR-71 Online (sr-71.org), via Internet Archive. SR-71A #61-7972 gallery page (archived copy). Open · In the register
  5. This Day in Aviation (Bryan R. Swopes). 1 September 1974. Open · Archived · In the register
  6. White Eagle Aerospace. Racing the Sun. Open · Archived · In the register
  7. Habu.org. 61-7972 (Blackbird Photo Archive). Archived copy · In the register