Breaking Up is Hard to Do

First-person account about involuntarily exploring near-space at over Mach3 speed: http://www.thedigitalaviator.com/blog/?p=504

An amazing event that once again proves test pilots have huge attachments. How the he!! do these people even fit their seats?

And to think. They are using top secret aircraft far more advanced now.

WOW.

I bet you hear clanking sounds when he walks.

Wow!

Here is some more SR-71 poop

http://m.gizmodo.com/5950763/holy-fcklook-at-all-these-sr+71-blackbirds-together

Awesome stories. I've loved the SR-71 ever since watching them do touch-and-go's at the USAF base in Okinawa back in 1974. I was 4 and can still remember it. Somewhere I have some old 110 camera photos taken from the top of our apt building which was across the street from the flight line.

That is a good tale.

What does it mean that I thought this thread was about Neil Sedaka?

Wow. The guy definitely has cojones. Just climbing into an aircraft not designed to glide and also known for 'engine unstarts' is some kinda ballsy.

There's an SR-71 sitting in the Dulles Air and Space Museum. You can walk right up to it. Coolest plane EVAR. It's longer than 2 school buses.

When someone signs up to be a test pilot, I imagine the compensation negotiations going something like: "Retirement benefits? Huh, we never thought about those." It's like a modern version of "Eat these wild plants so that we can see which ones won't kill us."

spitfirebill wrote: Here is some more SR-71 poop http://m.gizmodo.com/5950763/holy-fcklook-at-all-these-sr+71-blackbirds-together

Good picture of the g-suit in that article. Still amazing to think that it withstood being ripped out of a disintegrating airplane going faster than the speed of sound, though.

Thanks for posting those. I had forgotten the awe of seeing one in the 80's in a hanger at Keesler, then again when dad got stationed at Beale. Kinda miffed I never got to see it fly, (it left Keesler while I was at school, the fact I got to see it was kinda amazing. The joys of dad being the air boss/chief controller)

Both articles were incredible, thanks for sharing!

bravenrace wrote: What does it mean that I thought this thread was about Neil Sedaka?

This. Ive had that song in my head all evening thanks to just reading the thread title. I catch earworms very easy :(

Awesome read, man. Thanks for sharing!

One day, high above Arizona, we were monitoring the radio traffic of all the mortal airplanes below us. First, a Cessna pilot asked the air traffic controllers to check his ground speed. ‘Ninety knots,’ ATC replied. A twin Bonanza soon made the same request. ‘One-twenty on the ground,’ was the reply. To our surprise, a navy F-18 came over the radio with a ground speed check. I knew exactly what he was doing. Of course, he had a ground speed indicator in his cockpit, but he wanted to let all the bug-smashers in the valley know what real speed was. ‘Dusty 52, we show you at 620 on the ground,’ ATC responded. The situation was too ripe. I heard the click of Walter’s mike button in the rear seat. In his most innocent voice, Walter startled the controller by asking for a ground speed check from 81,000 feet, clearly above controlled airspace. In a cool, professional voice, the controller replied, ‘Aspen 20, I show you at 1,982 knots on the ground.’ We did not hear another transmission on that frequency all the way to the coast.

There are times when I read something and think "there's 5 minutes I'll never get back." In this case it was "That was worth every second. I'll have to read it again." Someday I need to get over my fear of flying.

Holy CRAP that is a gnarly story!!!

Great read.