When the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird was unveiled to the public in 1964, it heralded a new era in reconnaissance aviation.

The Blackbird’s capability to sustain Mach 3.2 for extended periods was, making it the perennial holder of the crown for the fastest air-breathing manned aircraft in history.

Designed by the legendary aeronautical engineer Kelly Johnson, the SR-71 was designed to defeat the most capable air defense systems and intercept fighters the planet had ever seen through a combination of early stealth, meticulous mission planning, and perhaps most important of all, sheer power.

In the 1960s, the Soviet Union’s Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-25 Foxbat posed the most serious challenge to the Blackbird.

The MiG-25, primarily designed as a high-speed interceptor and reconnaissance aircraft, managed to record speeds as high as Mach 3.2 during brief all-out sprints—only to risk significant engine damage.

In stark contrast, the SR-71’s unique Pratt & Whitney J58 turbojet engines allowed it to cruise at these high speeds for hours without any detriment to the aircraft’s integrity.

While the MiG-25 Foxbat may have been formidable with its speeds exceeding Mach 3.2 and its ability to fly higher than 80,000 feet as observed by Israeli forces over the Sinai Peninsula in 1971, these performances were fleeting and unsustainable.

Lt. Viktor Belenko, a Soviet MiG-25 pilot who defected in 1976, recounted the futility of intercepting the SR-71.

The Foxbat “simply couldn’t climb fast enough to close with an SR-71 screaming past at sustained speeds above Mach 3,” and even if they could attempt an interception, their missiles lacked the necessary thrust to bridge the gap.

The Blackbird’s speed was indeed not its only defense mechanism.

With a radar cross-section of just 22 square inches, the SR-71 was a challenging target for the Soviet Union’s surface-to-air missiles.

By the time defense systems reacted, the SR-71 was already out of their reach, having darted away at speeds.

Captain Mikhail Myagkiy, a former Soviet pilot, claimed to have successfully locked onto an SR-71 in his MiG-31, a claim that remains unverified and disputed.

The engineering challenges overcome to create the SR-71 were immense.

From inventing new kinds of wire for its avionics systems to withstand massive temperature fluctuations to formulating new hydraulic fluids functional at both sea level and high altitude, Even the Blackbird’s quartz windows, heated up to the point that they could warm a pilot’s meal.

Relevant articles:
– Russia’s Fast MiG-25 Stood No Chance Against the SR-71 Blackbird, The National Interest
– The 11 Fastest Planes in the World [#11 Hasn’t Been Produced Yet], pilotmall.com
– This was the only fighter that had a chance of catching the SR-71, We Are The Mighty, Jul 31, 2022