this post was submitted on 29 Sep 2026
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NASA mysteriously trying to pull world’s fastest plane, SR-71 Blackbird, out of retirement — and won’t say why (nypost.com)
submitted 5 days ago by Ilovethebomb@sh.itjust.works to c/technology@lemmy.world
340 comments fedilink hide all child comments
 

Seeing Blackbird fly again after all these years would be incredible. I'd love to know what NASA has planned for it.

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[–] PalmTreeIsBestTree@lemmy.world 22 points 5 days ago (1 children)

Most of the people who knew how to build that plane are dead to be fair

[–] TranscendentalEmpire@lemmy.today 7 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago) (3 children)

I mean, it's not that old of an airframe. I'm only middle aged and I saw the last time it flew in 1991. My dad just retired from the FAA a couple years ago and when he was in the military he maintained the flight suits for the SR71 and U2 programs.

The original engineers may have passed, but the crew and engineers responsible for the huge amount of maintenance for the airframe are still around and probably have more functional knowledge about the airframe than the designers.

Edit: 1999 not 1991.

[–] kunaltyagi@programming.dev 5 points 5 days ago

Manufacturing and design knowledge is mostly lost and rediscovered every few decades by the US. On one project or the other

[–] NihilsineNefas@slrpnk.net 3 points 4 days ago

Only a few more years before the mesothelioma takes the last of the maintenance crew, that thing was genuinely filled nose to tail (proverbially, it was actually full of fuel) with asbestos

[–] HelloDingo@slrpnk.net 3 points 5 days ago (1 children)

Seconding this; my dad worked on the U2 for 30-odd years and he's still kicking!

[–] TranscendentalEmpire@lemmy.today 2 points 5 days ago

Oh nice, were you guys stationed out at Beale AFB?