Leaving the airspace above New York City at 2,455 miles per hour, SR-71 tail number 64-17972 would set a transatlantic speed record on Sept. 1, 1974.

Key Points - The official retirement of the SR-71 Blackbird in 1990 was driven more by internal US Air Force politics and budget priorities than by high operational costs or obsolescence, according to ...

Is the SR-71 still the fastest plane ever in service? This question captivates aviation enthusiasts and historians alike because the aircraft flew three times the speed of sound and remained ...

The SR-71 Blackbird, the fastest aircraft ever built, was ultimately done in by the Air Force’s most notorious and intractable enemy: budget cuts. The Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird remains one of the most ...