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I was a Navy fighter pilot. In the summer of 1968 I was taxiing out for takeoff from Buckley AFB Co. There to my amazement was a Blackbird coming out of a hangar. Seems it hah a problem enroute and made an emergency landing there. It was being fueled from a special tanker flown in with proper fuel.
I had a 35mm camera in my helmet bag, So I grabbed it and shot three or four photos as we taxied close by.
I got to the active runway, did all my checks and requested takeoff. The tower said "permission denied , return to your parking area". I couldn't believe this, and requested permission again. About this time three vehicles surronded my ship, and a crewman was motioning for me to shut the engine down (Throat slashing motion with flat hand)
I shut it down, and seconds later an MP was up the boarding ladder punching the canopy button open. He demanded the camera and said, "you were never, here were you".
I meekly replied "Nope" and that was all that was ever said.Shortly an RPU unit arrived, they plugged me in, restarted, and this time I was able to take off. No word of this event ever reached my squadron, but I did personally log the flight into my logbook, with a coded note of that SR-71. For a few months I thought miraculously my camera might appear in some brown envelope like some porno flick, but I never did see it again. I filed a claim to the U.s Government for a camera lost on official business and it was paid. So the Blackbird program had a little cost overun there. Probably less than 1 seconds worth of fuel.
Whoever wrote this piece, Doug, has a talent for doing so. I'd love to talk to him and take notes for a couple of days. I got a chance to see one up close and personal in 1966 at a little-known airplane patch called Cigli. She was a sinister looking thing, sitting in the pre-dawn light, her shape hinting at the power she possessed. The pilot had been in the weather station two hours before to receive his briefing; it was classified, and may be still for all I know. Now we waited, maybe forty Americans total, lined up in front of Base Ops as she was awakened. Groaning in protest, the big engines slowly rose to the task of easing her away from the hangar, then taking a higher pitch, not quite shrill, but eager to be as she moved onto the taxiway. A glowing orange betrayed her location as she glided to the far end of the runway and turned onto it. There, she made clear her intentions as she tested the air. Slowly the pilot fed her more JP-7 until she was drinking freely; the huge engines screamed furiously for being held at bay. Then came a deathly quiet, a pause as she chose the stars to guide her, followed by the thunderous roar as all her might was released against the earth itself. Nav lights blinking, the dark mass streaked by, then leapt off the concrete at forty-five degrees, aft end spewing blue and gold; twin flares of pure power showing those earthbound how restricted there were. Then she was gone, the blue torch blinking out as she cut her power; gone to test the nerves of our enemies and verify the words of their spokesmen.
And now she's gone forever. You have much to do, Aurora, be proud of your heritage.
Comments
Ben
I had a 35mm camera in my helmet bag, So I grabbed it and shot three or four photos as we taxied close by.
I got to the active runway, did all my checks and requested takeoff. The tower said "permission denied , return to your parking area". I couldn't believe this, and requested permission again. About this time three vehicles surronded my ship, and a crewman was motioning for me to shut the engine down (Throat slashing motion with flat hand)
I shut it down, and seconds later an MP was up the boarding ladder punching the canopy button open. He demanded the camera and said, "you were never, here were you".
I meekly replied "Nope" and that was all that was ever said.Shortly an RPU unit arrived, they plugged me in, restarted, and this time I was able to take off. No word of this event ever reached my squadron, but I did personally log the flight into my logbook, with a coded note of that SR-71. For a few months I thought miraculously my camera might appear in some brown envelope like some porno flick, but I never did see it again. I filed a claim to the U.s Government for a camera lost on official business and it was paid. So the Blackbird program had a little cost overun there. Probably less than 1 seconds worth of fuel.
Gordo
McClellan is totally closed now, I understand.
Thank you very much.
Doug
Did you know it was called the RS-71, but the Prez mistakenly called it SR-71, so rather than embarrass him the new designation was adopted?
And now she's gone forever. You have much to do, Aurora, be proud of your heritage.
Clouder..
Very evocative.
I wish I could write like that.
Doug