[National Interest] The SR-71 Blackbird is one of the most famous planes ever used by the U.S. military. It is believed to be the fastest plane ever flown. Also, it was never shot down in combat.A new report looks at how the Blackbird almost didn’t get to that prominent place in aviation history.
According to Aviation Geek Club, it all happened in 1961. Gen. Curtis LeMay, then the vice chief of staff of the Air Force, approached Lockheed Martin’s Kelly Johnson and asked for something specific: an update of the A-12 Oxcart, to create "an extended range deep penetration bomber that the Russians could not stop."
Also, he wanted a "two-seat version of the A-12," which was meant to "survey the damage after World War III."
This request led to the YF-12 prototype interceptor, several of which were ordered during the 1960s. The creation of the interceptor eventually led to an order for the XB-70 Valkyrie Mach 3 strategic bomber.
However, both bomber aircraft were canceled and the Blackbird’s rise came soon afterward.
"The worries about World War III were subsided when the US found out, that the Russian’s nuclear arsenal buildup had been exaggerated and that they were not on the brink of developing a supersonic bomber. But this was the beginning and this led to the Skunk Works building 31 SR-71s," according to the Aviation Geek Club.
LeMay is known for the role he played during the Vietnam War. It was then when he suggested that the United States "bomb them back into the Stone Age."