ICARE

[orbitaltheatre]

The exact moment a fighter jet is approaching the speed of sound, creating a spectacular visual effect known as a vapor cone

[supplyside]

Globemaster

[enriquemzn262]

And so, Harrier service in the US comes to an end, after their final flight with the Marines today, leaving Italy and Spain as the last remaining Harrier operators in the world.

At its peak, the Harrier was flown by America, Britain, India, Spain, Thailand and Italy, the most successful VTOL combat jet of the Cold War.

[us-air-force-historical-society]

[usafphantom2]

F-89 Scorpion 🦂

[kaot1c-cl]

F-117 Nighthawk

El F-117 Nighthawk es un avión de ataque sigiloso desarrollado por Lockheed Martin y utilizado por la Fuerza Aérea de los Estados Unidos.

[usafphantom2]

F-14 Tomcat

📸Credit to its author.

@MarySioux1 via X

[us-air-force-historical-society]

[usafphantom2]

T-38

[kaot1c-cl]

Northrop YF-23 - The F-22 Competitor

[usafphantom2]

Landing and dry braking with the reverse of a Saab AJ-37 Viggen.

@LineroTifon via X

[j-r-macready]

[j-r-macready]

[j-r-macready]

[usafphantom2]

Navy Northrop F-5N Tiger II aircraft attached to Fighter Squadron Composite 13 (VFC-13) "Saints"

@RonaldEisele01 via X

[j-r-macready]

[usafphantom2]

Why does this SR 71 have a Band-Aid?

SR 71 #975 with something that looks like a Band-Aid?

Bob Archer explains in his book “Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird” that when an SR 71 was relocated to an airbase for an airshow, technicians were required to improvise to keep the elements from entering areas such as the engine nacelle.

Polyurethane protection of a clear sort was used surrounding the cockpits, and the refueling port.

This was in September 1985.

Interesting.

-Linda Sheffield

@Habubrats71 via X

[usafphantom2]

SR-71 was basically a flying fuel tank. The Brown area in the picture. That’s where the fuel was. It’s not true that it had to be refueled after takeoff because so much fuel was leaking. Yes, it leaked but not enough to have to be refueled in some cases the SR 71 could take off with a full tank that’s 80,000 pounds.

A few more facts: this airplane was called a wet wing. It did not have fuel bladders. The wiring was fed through the fuel tanks.

Here are some fun facts about the SR 71 and a question: where is the doghouse?

The SR-71 was the first aircraft to use its own fuel for hydraulic fluid. It was called the fuel hydraulic system.

An engine-driven pump provided 1800 psi of recirculating fuel to accurate various engine components and then returned it to the aircraft fuel system to be burned. Fuel was used in the actuators to control the afterburner nozzles, which maintain the proper exhaust gas temperature and control the thrust output. The fuel was also used in the engine actuators to shift the two-position inlet guide vanes from their axial position to the cambered position and back again. This was just another of the many first-ever inventions of the SR-71.

The J58 engine was hydromechanically controlled and burned a special low-volatility jet fuel mixture known as JP-7.

Emergency fuels could be used in the SR-71 if the crew was low on fuel and had to use ANY tanker (as already explained, the Blackbird relied on KC-135Q tankers [that could simultaneously carry a maximum of 74,490lb of JP-7 and 110,000lb of JP-4 for their engines]. Still, the SR-71 could also be refueled by standard Stratotankers in the event KC-135Qs were not available or if the Blackbird crew had to deal with an emergency) they could find to avoid the loss of the aircraft. The emergency fuels were JP-4 or JP-5, but they limited the Blackbird's top speed to Mach 1.5. There were six main fuselage tanks. All 80,285 pounds of JP-7 fuel were carried in six main fuselage tanks.

The tanks numbered one through six moved forward to aft (back) tank 6B. It could hold 7,020 pounds of gravity-fed fuel and two tank sumps.

This was also called the “doghouse” and was located in the extreme back portion of the fuselage.

These are just a few interesting facts I found by reading Rich Graham’s “SR 71 Revealed the Inside Story.

Linda Sheffield

@Habubrats71 via X

[usafphantom2]

This dreamy picture of the SR 71 being refueled from years ago, when the mighty Blackbird ruled the sky. No one could touch her; she was so fast you could barely see her, but her job was necessary, so crucial because an SR-71 could start a war or finish a war.

Knowledge is power. The United States had the knowledge; we had the power. This was back when right and wrong were easily defined. The SR-71 flew under the command of SAC, the Strategic Air Command, whose motto was “Peace is our Profession.” The only weapon that the SR 71 had was its speed.

The SR-71 KEPT THE PEACE.

Written by somebody who was there at the beginning of the Blackbird program~ Linda Sheffield.

@Habubrats71 via X