Schedule Madness
Been a bit busy around here with the end of the semester. Exams and papers to grade, all that fun stuff. Every time I think I've gotten it sorted out, my schedule seems to perform an auto-destruct! I've got a pile of things in progress for this site that have not seemed to be effectively nearing completion with anything resembling timeliness. So, as I sat here yesterday pondering how I managed to make a total mess of things, I realized that there was a simple answer: I need a schedule!
Scheduling Applied...in theory
Here's how this will work until I think of something better, or until I totally screw this up backwards and have to rethink yet again. During a normal month, things will fall like this:
-Every week will still see an Image of the Week, that will not go away. Beginning with this weekend, Images of the Week will be posted on Sunday. This keeps them away from any potential foul-ups that affect my life during the week, yay.
-The first week of the month will see the SAM Site Overview file updated.
-The second week of the month will see a new SAM Network Overview piece published (the new part is important, keep reading). There are still a lot of amusing nations to cover, like Libya, India, Vietnam, and many of the Asian former Soviet republics.
-The third week of the month will see some sort of analysis piece published. This can be something like I did with the Chinese Laser ASAT sites, or the piece on RCS ranges. These articles might also be covering topics thoroughly unrelated to imagery analysis, such as an assessment of the JSF program, or my take on the USAF's search for the next long-range bomber.
-The fourth week of the month will be left for updates to older articles, like when I updated the Iranian and Syrian SAM Network articles recently. This also gives me a cushion to work on some of the aforementioned bits for the upcoming month if I know I'll be busy.
-Anything else might appear totally at random. These can include things like the Reading Lists, or other amusing things that I feel the need to write on. The piece I did on the updated imagery coverage of KYMTR would fit into this category.
-The first day of the month or thereabouts (probably a Monday, but no later than the date which the SAM Site Overview is posted), I'll post a message listing my planned topics for the month. This will give you all a chance to chime in and let me know if there's something you want to see. I may cover your idea instead of mine, or I might use your ideas for a future month. Either way I do keep track of people's suggestions and I do try and get around to them eventually. By doing things in an organized fashion like this, I should be able to reduce the length of time corresponging to "eventually". In theory. As a result of this, I have also obliterated the "Forthcoming Articles" menu.
And now, on to some other notes.
Comments
Comments are still welcome and encouraged. Yes, they are still moderated, but that serves a purpose. About the time I hit 350,000 hits, I started getting blasted with comments which were advertisements for certain male-oriented pharmaceutical products. Moderating comments allows me to purge those before they ever get posted. I am not here to act as your personal censor. If you post a comment that relates to the site, I will approve it. I don't care if you agree with me, disagree with me, or whatever. Have your say, and I'll see it gets posted. Now, there are still some caveats to that which I'll bring up again:
-Comments may not appear immediately. For one, I have to log in and approve them. Duh. Also, some of them may be held for a day or two until I have a chance to formulate a reply if I think one is warranted, or if someone was asking a direct question. Keeping them in the que helps me to keep track of them. But they will appear, be patient.
-If you comment in some non-English language, it may or may not get posted. There are two reasons for this. One, if I cannot verify that it is relevant to the site (I can read some of them, and others I do translate), it won't get through. Two, if you post in something like Chinese, all I see are a bunch of squares where the characters should appear. So those get tossed as well, as I have no idea what you're trying to say.
All in all, I think the comments have worked well recently. Remember, just because they are moderated does not in any way shape or form mean I am trying to censor them. Yes, this is my site, but I want you to feel free to disagree and express your opinions as well.
The Forum
The forum still works. There hare been reports of it setting off people's anti-virus software recently. I have no clue what that is about. I've looked, and there is no reason why that should be happening. I've got no indications of anything nefarious on my end, nor have I ever gotten such a notification from my software. The issue probably has to do with the ads placed on the forum (which is what makes the forum free). My guess is that some anti-virus software just doesn't like some of the ads. If anybody has any other insight regarding this issue, definitely let me know. But as of right now, the forum is perfectly safe to the best of my knowledge. It certainly hasn't tried to assault my computer.
Another Webinar
I post these because they're free (and therefore awesome, like the forum), and because I was asked to as they might interest a lot of the readers here. Another one is coming up, and here are the details:
This month, Henley-Putnam University continues its exclusive, free webinar series with “Insider’s Guide to Intelligence & Interrogation,” led by former CIA polygraph examiner and deception detection expert Barry McManus. During the webinar, Mr. McManus will cover topics essential to anyone interested in a career in intelligence or deception detection.
“Insider’s Guide to Intelligence & Interrogation” will take place Friday, April 30, from 2:00 - 3:00 PM EDT. Those interested should register here.
If anybody has something else like this that they'd like me to post, send me an e-mail.
Helping you out
I've gotten quite a few requests from people for help in various projects, or for permission to use my material in presentations or journals. I'm always open to such things, just fire me an e-mail with the details. Usually all I care about are two things: credit if necessary, and a copy of whatever you stick my work into, if an actual non-electronic copy exists. Basically, I work for free, because I find it amusing.
That's about it for now. There will be some other tidbits filtering out over the next week, and the new schedule will apply starting in May. As always, send me any feedback you might have via email or a comment here.
Thursday, April 29, 2010
Thursday, March 25, 2010
Free Counterintelligence Webinar
Former USAF OSI Special Agent Colonel (Ret.) Michael Angley will be conducting a free webinar, Insider’s Guide to the Counterintelligence Community, on March 31 from 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM PST. Col. Angley, conducting the webinar on behalf of Henley-Putnam University, has over 25 years of experience conducting counterintelligence and counterterrorism operations around the world. Colonel Angley will provide a broad overview of the field of counterintelligence (CI), an often misunderstood and mysterious subset of both the intelligence and law enforcement communities. He will discuss the formal definition of CI as it appears in current Executive Orders, as well as break it down into more simplistic and practical terms. He will also discuss the differences between defensive and offensive approaches to CI, the major agencies that have a CI mission, and the limitations the U.S. government places on the conduct of CI activities.
Anyone interested in attending can register online here.
Anyone interested in attending can register online here.
Saturday, March 20, 2010
Menu Fail
Google has changed Google Earth's Layers menu. They've basically consolidated a lot of things into one "button", Places of Interest. Activating this will open what used to be city and town names, shops, restaurants, parks, schools, banks, train stations, airports, etc. In an effort to consolidate and make things more streamlined, they've basically made it far less useful and a lot more confusing.
First off, you'll notice that there are a good deal fewer placemarks now. For example, a lot of schools seem to have disappeared. These placemarks are all altitude restricted as well, meaning that certain things disappear once you zoom out far enough. This makes it a lot more complicated to do things like find schools or restaurants near your home, unless you're only concerned with what is practically right across the street. The only positive to this change is that certain places, like airports or restaurants, have kept their unique placemarks.
Secondly, the place names don't appear unless you click on the icon to display the ddescriptive balloon. This doesn't really matter for shops and the like, but is very irritating when it comes to displaying the names of population centers using this new feature. If you want to see the old-style city names and markers, you now have to activate the Labels "button" in the Borders and Labels folder. OK, doing this will activate ALL of the labels, including those for islands, water bodies, and the like, which isn't all that bad for the most part. The problem is that it also activates all of the alternate or foreign place names as well, giving you two names for a lot of locations. This can make images very cluttered. It also isn't consistant. Mountains, for example, are included in Places of Interest, while islands are in Labels. Shouldn't all the geographic features be in the same place?
Personally, I find the second problem far more irritating than the first. I wouldn't mind if they went with either the Western or native names for the cities and whatnot, but having to have both of them displayed if you want or need them on-screen makes life a little more difficult. The only solution at this point is to develop my own series of placemarks for these locations when I need them, adding more time and effort to any project. If the point of doing this is to make things more streamlined and simpler to use, Google has, in my opinion, failed. Something that is intended to be simpler should not require the expenditure of more time and effort to get it to do what you need.
There's also the issue that a lot of their placemarks draw data directly from Wikipedia, but we won't touch that one today.
Yeah, I know I'm what would probably be considered a "niche" user of Google Earth, exploiting it for very specific and specialized purposes, but the first point I discussed above makes life more complicated for everyone. Hopefully, this will turn out to be part of a rolling update to remake the entire Layers menu. But if not, Google just made life more difficult for a lot of users, and if you ask me, it was a completely unnecessary change. Unless, of course, they just had to clear out the disk space to throw up more new imagery, but the probability of that being the reason is ridiculously remote given the fact that Google could buy new servers with the same frequency that I buy obnoxious death metal CDs.
What are your thoughts? Post them in the comments!
First off, you'll notice that there are a good deal fewer placemarks now. For example, a lot of schools seem to have disappeared. These placemarks are all altitude restricted as well, meaning that certain things disappear once you zoom out far enough. This makes it a lot more complicated to do things like find schools or restaurants near your home, unless you're only concerned with what is practically right across the street. The only positive to this change is that certain places, like airports or restaurants, have kept their unique placemarks.
Secondly, the place names don't appear unless you click on the icon to display the ddescriptive balloon. This doesn't really matter for shops and the like, but is very irritating when it comes to displaying the names of population centers using this new feature. If you want to see the old-style city names and markers, you now have to activate the Labels "button" in the Borders and Labels folder. OK, doing this will activate ALL of the labels, including those for islands, water bodies, and the like, which isn't all that bad for the most part. The problem is that it also activates all of the alternate or foreign place names as well, giving you two names for a lot of locations. This can make images very cluttered. It also isn't consistant. Mountains, for example, are included in Places of Interest, while islands are in Labels. Shouldn't all the geographic features be in the same place?
Personally, I find the second problem far more irritating than the first. I wouldn't mind if they went with either the Western or native names for the cities and whatnot, but having to have both of them displayed if you want or need them on-screen makes life a little more difficult. The only solution at this point is to develop my own series of placemarks for these locations when I need them, adding more time and effort to any project. If the point of doing this is to make things more streamlined and simpler to use, Google has, in my opinion, failed. Something that is intended to be simpler should not require the expenditure of more time and effort to get it to do what you need.
There's also the issue that a lot of their placemarks draw data directly from Wikipedia, but we won't touch that one today.
Yeah, I know I'm what would probably be considered a "niche" user of Google Earth, exploiting it for very specific and specialized purposes, but the first point I discussed above makes life more complicated for everyone. Hopefully, this will turn out to be part of a rolling update to remake the entire Layers menu. But if not, Google just made life more difficult for a lot of users, and if you ask me, it was a completely unnecessary change. Unless, of course, they just had to clear out the disk space to throw up more new imagery, but the probability of that being the reason is ridiculously remote given the fact that Google could buy new servers with the same frequency that I buy obnoxious death metal CDs.
What are your thoughts? Post them in the comments!
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
SAM Site Overview Alteration
I've been exploiting Terra Server, Bing Maps, and a few other amusing online imagery sources to examine some areas of Google Earth that are either 1) not covered in high resolution, or 2) have not been updated with newer imagery for quite some time. I've discovered a number of things that will be included in the SAM Site Overview, beginning with the next update. This might be a little confusing at first glance. For example, I've found imagery from 2009 showing that the 64N6E site in China near Dalian is now active. I will be changing the placemarks in the file to reflect this, as Google Earth's imagery of that region is still a bit dated. So, you'll see an empty 64N6E location, but have a placemark telling you that it is active. No, I haven't lost my mind, I'm just beginning to incorporate other sources into the database on a larger scale. Anything potentially weird like that example will always be explained in the Notes section of the placemark. Just thought I'd give everyone a heads-up before I start doing something potentially confusing.
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
IMINT & Analysis Photo Archive
Digital Photography
I've been an amateur photographer for a few years now, and have built up a pretty large battery of images. I'm going to be using more of them in some upcoming projects for this site, but I figured I'd post a list of the military-themed objects I've photographed and make them available to readers here who are researching some of these items. What you'll find below is a list containing the location I took the photos and the year I was there, followed by the items photographed at that location. Most of these are static images, but some of them, particularly those taken at military open houses, are of aircraft in the air. I was as detailed as I could be from memory looking at the images, so if you see something like "F-4" instead of "F-4G", ask me and I can tell you what the specific model or variant is that I have images of from a given location. The majority of the subjects were shot from numerous angles, and most of them have a number of close-up detail shots as well (equipment bays, antennae, hardpoints, intakes, etc). Anything 2007 and later was taken with a Canon EOS30D DSLR, those images are of a bit better quality on average, particularly of aircraft in the sky. Also, some of them do feature dust spots, as it did take me a while to learn how to clean the sensor on the camera!
Obtaining Images
To obtain digital copies of any of these images for research or personal use, send me an e-mail with a listing of what it is you'd like and what you are requesting the images for, and I'll do my best to accomodate you as soon as possible.
If you wish to obtain images for publication in any fashion (web, periodical, book, etc), I don't charge a fee but I do request the following:
-Credit as the photographer; and
-A copy of the periodical or other hardcopy publication you use them in, or
-A link to this specific page of the website if the images are to be used online
Hampton Roads Air Power Park - 2005
AIM-4D
F-86D
F-89
F-101B
F-105
NIKE-AJAX
NIKE-ZEUS
RF-4E
XV-6A Kestrel
Langley AFB Open House - 2007
A-10
B-1B
B-2A
C-130
F-15C
F/A-18F
F-22A
F-35A mockup
F-86
F-117A
US Air Force Heritage Flight: A-10, F-15C, F-22A, F-86
US Air Force Thunderbirds
US Navy Heritage Flight: F/A-18F, F4F
Langley AFB Open House - 2008
A-10
B-1B
B-17
C-17
C-130
E-2C
F-4E
F-15C
F-15E
F-16
F/A-18F
F-22A
F-35 mockup
KC-10A
P-51
Spitfire
T-45A
Royal Air Force Red Arrows
US Air Force Heritage Flight: F-4E, F-15E, F-22A
Langley AFB Open House - 2009
A-4
B-52
C-17
C-130
F-4E
F-15C
F-16
F-21A Kfir
F-22A
F/A-18C
KC-135R
P-51
Sea Harrier FRS.2
T-33
US Air Force Heritage Flight: F-4E, F-15C, F-22A, P-51
US Air Force Thunderbirds
US Navy Heritage Flight: F/A-18C, F4F
McConnell AFB - 2003
C-130
KC-135R
Saab Gripen
McConnell AFB Open House - 2003
A-10
B-1B
B-17
B-25
B-52D
C-17
CF-188
CP-140
E-6A
F-16
F/A-18C
F-117A
M-109 Paladin
MiG-15UTI
MLRS
Tornado IDS Luftwaffe
T-38A
McConnell AFB Open House - 2004
A6M Zero
AT-6
B-1B
B-2
B-17
B-25
Canadian Air Force Snowbirds
DC-3
F-15
F-16
KC-135R
Learjet 23
P-51
Pearl Harbor Display Flight: A6M, P-51
US Air Force Heritage Flight: F-16, P-51
McConnell AFB Open House - 2006
US Air Force Thunderbirds
McGuire AFB BOMARC Site - 2007
Various shots from outside the now-contaminated site's fenceline
McGuire AFB Open House - 2007
A-10
F-4E
US Army Golden Knights
US Air Force Heritage Flight: A-10, F-4E, P-51
US Air Force Thunderbirds
National Air And Space Museum Udvar Hazy Annex - 2006
707
AGM-76A
AGM-86A
AGM-86B
AIM-120
ASM-135 ASAT
B-29 Enola Gay
Concorde
Corona capsule
Do-335A
F-4
Ho-111h
Homing Overlay Experiment
MiG-21
Reinochter R-1
RIM-8J Talos
Ruhrstahl
SA-2
Silkworm
Space Shuttle Enterprise
SR-71A
X-35B
XAAM-N-3 Sparrow II
XV-15
USAF Museum - scans of old photos taken before I went digital
AIM-4A
AIM-4C
AIM-4D
AIM-4F
AIM-4G
AIM-7
AIM-9
AIM-26B
AIM-120
AIR-2
B-1A
CIM-10
MiG-23MLD
USAF Museum - 2003
A-10
A-37
AC-130
ADM-20
AGM-28
AGM-86B
AGM-129
AGM-131
AIM-4A
AIM-4D
AIM-4F
AIM-4G
AIM-9M
AIM-26B
AIR-2
AN/TPS-1B
Apollo capsule
B-1B
B-2 Iron Bird
B-29 Bock's Car
B-58
Bird Of Prey
BLU-82
C-45H
C-54C
C-118
C-121
CIM-10
D-21B
EF-111A
F-4G
F-15
F-16 AFTI
F-16 Thunderbird
F-100D Thunderbird
F-101B
F-102A
F-105
F-106
F-107A
F-111A
F-111F
F-117A
Fritz-X
GBU-15
Gemini capsule
J-3C-65-8
LANTIRN
MiG-21
MiG-23MLD
Mercury capsule
Model 24 C8F
NT-33A
PA-48
P-51D
P-59B
P-80R
R-13 Atoll
RF-4C
RQ-1
RQ-3
RQ-4
SA-2
SR-71A
T-39A
TACIT BLUE
TACT RAINBOW
Tornado GR.1 RAF
U-4B
UH-13J
V-1
V-2
VC-6A
VC-137A
VC-140B
X-1B
X-3
X-4 Ruhrstahl
X-4
X-5
X-10
X-15
X-24A
X-24B
X-25A
X-29
X-36
X-45
XB-70 Valkyrie
XC-142A
XF-84H
XF-85
XF-91
XF-92
XGAM-63
XH-20
XV-6A
YF-12A
YF-22A
YFH-84H
ZPU-2
ZPU-4
USAF Museum - 2004
AIM-4A
AIM-4D
AIM-4F
AIM-4G
AIM-120
B-2 Iron Bird
B-47
B-57
B-58
BGM-109
D-21B
EF-111A
F-16 Thunderbird
F-101B
F-117A
GBU-24
Mark 41
MiG-23MLD
RF-4C
SR-71A
TACIT BLUE
TACIT RAINBOW
Tornado GR.1 RAF
X-45
USAF Museum - 2005
A-7
ADM-20
AGM-28
AGM-129
B-26K
B-66
CF-100
CGM-13
D-21B
EC-121
EC-135E
Fat Man device
F-4G
F-84
F-100
F-111F
EF-111A
F-117A
MiG-17
MiG-19
Minuteman RV test shape
NKC-135
Peacekeeper railcar
RF-4C
SA-2
SICBM TEL
SR-71A
U-2
USAF Museum - 2007
AGM-129
AGM-131
B-2 Iron Bird
Bird Of Prey
CBU-58
D-21B
DH.89 Dominie
F-16 AFTI
F-102A
F-107A
GBU-12
LoFLYTE
MiG-19
SR-71A Blackbird
TACIT BLUE
X-10
X-13
X-29
XB-70 Valkyrie
XF-91 Thunderceptor
XH-20
XV-6A Kestrel
YF-12A Blackbird
YF-22A
YQM-94A
USAF Museum - 2009
AC-130A
AGM-129
AGM-131
Avrocar
Bird Of Prey
C-119J
C-141C
D-21
EC-135E
F-4G
F-22A
F-106A
F-107A
F-117A
Ju-52
MiG-29
NC-131H
NKC-135A
Peacekeepeer railcar
SA-2
SICBM TEL
SR-71A
TACIT BLUE
TACIT RAINBOW
Tornado GR.1 RAF
X-40A
X-45
XB-70A
XV-3
YC-125B
YF-12A
YF-23A
USS Intrepid Sea, Air, and Space Museum - 2005
A-4
A-6F
A-12 Blackbird
AGM-84
AV-8A
BGM-109
Concorde
Dassault Etendard IVP
F7U
F-4
F-8
F-14B
Gemini capsule
IAI Kfir F-21A
Mb-339
Mercury capsule
RGM-6
Standard SM-1
T-72
Virginia Aviation Museum - 2005
SR-71A
I've been an amateur photographer for a few years now, and have built up a pretty large battery of images. I'm going to be using more of them in some upcoming projects for this site, but I figured I'd post a list of the military-themed objects I've photographed and make them available to readers here who are researching some of these items. What you'll find below is a list containing the location I took the photos and the year I was there, followed by the items photographed at that location. Most of these are static images, but some of them, particularly those taken at military open houses, are of aircraft in the air. I was as detailed as I could be from memory looking at the images, so if you see something like "F-4" instead of "F-4G", ask me and I can tell you what the specific model or variant is that I have images of from a given location. The majority of the subjects were shot from numerous angles, and most of them have a number of close-up detail shots as well (equipment bays, antennae, hardpoints, intakes, etc). Anything 2007 and later was taken with a Canon EOS30D DSLR, those images are of a bit better quality on average, particularly of aircraft in the sky. Also, some of them do feature dust spots, as it did take me a while to learn how to clean the sensor on the camera!
Obtaining Images
To obtain digital copies of any of these images for research or personal use, send me an e-mail with a listing of what it is you'd like and what you are requesting the images for, and I'll do my best to accomodate you as soon as possible.
If you wish to obtain images for publication in any fashion (web, periodical, book, etc), I don't charge a fee but I do request the following:
-Credit as the photographer; and
-A copy of the periodical or other hardcopy publication you use them in, or
-A link to this specific page of the website if the images are to be used online
Hampton Roads Air Power Park - 2005
AIM-4D
F-86D
F-89
F-101B
F-105
NIKE-AJAX
NIKE-ZEUS
RF-4E
XV-6A Kestrel
Langley AFB Open House - 2007
A-10
B-1B
B-2A
C-130
F-15C
F/A-18F
F-22A
F-35A mockup
F-86
F-117A
US Air Force Heritage Flight: A-10, F-15C, F-22A, F-86
US Air Force Thunderbirds
US Navy Heritage Flight: F/A-18F, F4F
Langley AFB Open House - 2008
A-10
B-1B
B-17
C-17
C-130
E-2C
F-4E
F-15C
F-15E
F-16
F/A-18F
F-22A
F-35 mockup
KC-10A
P-51
Spitfire
T-45A
Royal Air Force Red Arrows
US Air Force Heritage Flight: F-4E, F-15E, F-22A
Langley AFB Open House - 2009
A-4
B-52
C-17
C-130
F-4E
F-15C
F-16
F-21A Kfir
F-22A
F/A-18C
KC-135R
P-51
Sea Harrier FRS.2
T-33
US Air Force Heritage Flight: F-4E, F-15C, F-22A, P-51
US Air Force Thunderbirds
US Navy Heritage Flight: F/A-18C, F4F
McConnell AFB - 2003
C-130
KC-135R
Saab Gripen
McConnell AFB Open House - 2003
A-10
B-1B
B-17
B-25
B-52D
C-17
CF-188
CP-140
E-6A
F-16
F/A-18C
F-117A
M-109 Paladin
MiG-15UTI
MLRS
Tornado IDS Luftwaffe
T-38A
McConnell AFB Open House - 2004
A6M Zero
AT-6
B-1B
B-2
B-17
B-25
Canadian Air Force Snowbirds
DC-3
F-15
F-16
KC-135R
Learjet 23
P-51
Pearl Harbor Display Flight: A6M, P-51
US Air Force Heritage Flight: F-16, P-51
McConnell AFB Open House - 2006
US Air Force Thunderbirds
McGuire AFB BOMARC Site - 2007
Various shots from outside the now-contaminated site's fenceline
McGuire AFB Open House - 2007
A-10
F-4E
US Army Golden Knights
US Air Force Heritage Flight: A-10, F-4E, P-51
US Air Force Thunderbirds
National Air And Space Museum Udvar Hazy Annex - 2006
707
AGM-76A
AGM-86A
AGM-86B
AIM-120
ASM-135 ASAT
B-29 Enola Gay
Concorde
Corona capsule
Do-335A
F-4
Ho-111h
Homing Overlay Experiment
MiG-21
Reinochter R-1
RIM-8J Talos
Ruhrstahl
SA-2
Silkworm
Space Shuttle Enterprise
SR-71A
X-35B
XAAM-N-3 Sparrow II
XV-15
USAF Museum - scans of old photos taken before I went digital
AIM-4A
AIM-4C
AIM-4D
AIM-4F
AIM-4G
AIM-7
AIM-9
AIM-26B
AIM-120
AIR-2
B-1A
CIM-10
MiG-23MLD
USAF Museum - 2003
A-10
A-37
AC-130
ADM-20
AGM-28
AGM-86B
AGM-129
AGM-131
AIM-4A
AIM-4D
AIM-4F
AIM-4G
AIM-9M
AIM-26B
AIR-2
AN/TPS-1B
Apollo capsule
B-1B
B-2 Iron Bird
B-29 Bock's Car
B-58
Bird Of Prey
BLU-82
C-45H
C-54C
C-118
C-121
CIM-10
D-21B
EF-111A
F-4G
F-15
F-16 AFTI
F-16 Thunderbird
F-100D Thunderbird
F-101B
F-102A
F-105
F-106
F-107A
F-111A
F-111F
F-117A
Fritz-X
GBU-15
Gemini capsule
J-3C-65-8
LANTIRN
MiG-21
MiG-23MLD
Mercury capsule
Model 24 C8F
NT-33A
PA-48
P-51D
P-59B
P-80R
R-13 Atoll
RF-4C
RQ-1
RQ-3
RQ-4
SA-2
SR-71A
T-39A
TACIT BLUE
TACT RAINBOW
Tornado GR.1 RAF
U-4B
UH-13J
V-1
V-2
VC-6A
VC-137A
VC-140B
X-1B
X-3
X-4 Ruhrstahl
X-4
X-5
X-10
X-15
X-24A
X-24B
X-25A
X-29
X-36
X-45
XB-70 Valkyrie
XC-142A
XF-84H
XF-85
XF-91
XF-92
XGAM-63
XH-20
XV-6A
YF-12A
YF-22A
YFH-84H
ZPU-2
ZPU-4
USAF Museum - 2004
AIM-4A
AIM-4D
AIM-4F
AIM-4G
AIM-120
B-2 Iron Bird
B-47
B-57
B-58
BGM-109
D-21B
EF-111A
F-16 Thunderbird
F-101B
F-117A
GBU-24
Mark 41
MiG-23MLD
RF-4C
SR-71A
TACIT BLUE
TACIT RAINBOW
Tornado GR.1 RAF
X-45
USAF Museum - 2005
A-7
ADM-20
AGM-28
AGM-129
B-26K
B-66
CF-100
CGM-13
D-21B
EC-121
EC-135E
Fat Man device
F-4G
F-84
F-100
F-111F
EF-111A
F-117A
MiG-17
MiG-19
Minuteman RV test shape
NKC-135
Peacekeeper railcar
RF-4C
SA-2
SICBM TEL
SR-71A
U-2
USAF Museum - 2007
AGM-129
AGM-131
B-2 Iron Bird
Bird Of Prey
CBU-58
D-21B
DH.89 Dominie
F-16 AFTI
F-102A
F-107A
GBU-12
LoFLYTE
MiG-19
SR-71A Blackbird
TACIT BLUE
X-10
X-13
X-29
XB-70 Valkyrie
XF-91 Thunderceptor
XH-20
XV-6A Kestrel
YF-12A Blackbird
YF-22A
YQM-94A
USAF Museum - 2009
AC-130A
AGM-129
AGM-131
Avrocar
Bird Of Prey
C-119J
C-141C
D-21
EC-135E
F-4G
F-22A
F-106A
F-107A
F-117A
Ju-52
MiG-29
NC-131H
NKC-135A
Peacekeepeer railcar
SA-2
SICBM TEL
SR-71A
TACIT BLUE
TACIT RAINBOW
Tornado GR.1 RAF
X-40A
X-45
XB-70A
XV-3
YC-125B
YF-12A
YF-23A
USS Intrepid Sea, Air, and Space Museum - 2005
A-4
A-6F
A-12 Blackbird
AGM-84
AV-8A
BGM-109
Concorde
Dassault Etendard IVP
F7U
F-4
F-8
F-14B
Gemini capsule
IAI Kfir F-21A
Mb-339
Mercury capsule
RGM-6
Standard SM-1
T-72
Virginia Aviation Museum - 2005
SR-71A
Monday, March 15, 2010
The Blackbird Reading List
INTRODUCTION
Blackbird. Habu. Cygnus. OXCART. SENIOR CROWN. Anyone with even a passing interest in Cold War military history or aviation history knows what those names represent. This reading list will provide historians, researchers, and aviation fans with some of the best reading materials and reference sources available on these most fascinating of aircraft. All of these titles have been taken straight from the author's personal library (in other words, this is not meant to represent every single published work, just the ones that I've bought and read) and will be reviewed in brief. Titles will be divided by decade, demonstrating to an extent how they seemed to land on the market in bunches, ostensibly due to the discovery or release of new information previously unavailable.
THE 1980S
Blackbird-related titles began to arrive on the shelves in earnest in the 1980s. The aircraft had been operating for a sufficient length of time for authors to start devoting attention to Lockheed's Mach 3 legends. The addition to the USAF Museum of the surviving YF-12A in 1979 also precipitated speeches by key personnel divulging further information. The main sticking point about the 1980s was that not much was known about the CIA's Blackbirds, and details of their operational exploits were still highly clasified for the most part. The first photographs and basic details of CIA-operated Blackbirds were released in 1982, nearly 15 years after Agency operations concluded.
SR-71 Blackbird in action, Lou Drendel, 1982 My first Blackbird book! Not much more than a photo chronicle, it does provide some details on flying the Sled thanks to interviews with crewmembers, and provides the first bit of speculation on what exactly the A-12s sitting in the California sun at Palmdale were for. A very brief section also theorizes on the purpose and operation of the D-21, accompanied by the sole photo of the M-21/D-21 combination released for publication at the time.
Lockheed SR-71, Jay Miller, 1985 This Aerofax title seems to be one of the more sought-after titles on the Blackbird. Apparently tailored more towards the modeling community rather than the enthusiast community, a number of detail photographs highlight this book, showcasing such airframe bits as the nacelles, landing gear, and canopies. The text is naturally a bit sparse being that this is primarily a photographic work, but some interesting bits of data, such as a complete production list of all Blackbirds, were included.
Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird, Paul F. Crickmore, 1986 Crickmore's first Blackbird work (as far as I know) and arguably the best book written on the subject for many years to come. I first ran across this one in the library at 2 ATAF HQ at RAF Rheindahlen in the mid 80's and was determined to find a copy. Coming in at 200 pages, it contained the most detailed look at the entire program published during the '80s. A brief paragraph even mentioned CIA operational sorties out of Kadena with the A-12.
Lockheed Blackbirds, Anthony M. Thornborough and Peter E. Davies, 1988 Not much is included in this work, which covers both the Blackbird and the U-2/TR-1 families, that isn't found in far greater detail in Crickmore's work. However, some large three-view drawings are provided which are pretty impressive, with different three views provided for the YF-12A, "M-12" (the M-21 designator hadn't been discovered yet), and SR-71, with scrap side views of the A-12, "A-12 two seater" (again, TA-12, undiscovered), and SR-71B provided as well.
By the end of the 1980s, when the Blackbird program was nearing its first official end, the reference works available provided a great deal of insight into the YF-12A and SR-71 development and operational histories. It was also becoming known that the CIA had something to do with flying single-seat Blackbirds around in the Far East, and that they were trying to do strange things with what basically amounted to the World's Fastest Biplane (thank you, I'll be here all night) as well.
THE 1990S
Three significant books on the Blackbird appeared in the 1990s, basically due to an increase in interest coinciding with the brief return to operational service of the SR-71A. By this time far more information on the A-12 program had been declassified, allowing a much clearer picture of the CIA's operation of the Blackbird to be presented for the first time.
SR-71 Blackbird, James Goodall, 1995 Aside from Crickmore's 1986 work, this became a standard reference for the Blackbird until the 21st Century. A great deal of information on the CIA's Blackbird operations was included, as well as a host of new photographs. This also marked the first time that the SR-71A Big Tail modification was detailed in a Blackbird book.
SR-71 Revealed: The Inside Story, Richard H. Graham, 1996 Who else but a former Sled driver, who became a Blackbird squadron commander and later the commander of the 9th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing, would be a better choice to pen a book on the SR-71? After reading Col. Graham's book, the answer is nobody. Col. Graham tells the Blackbird's story the way only an insider can, from his recruitment into the program, all the way to the politics behind the Blackbird's retirement while he was the 9th SRW's CC. This book is not a purely technical overview, with the Blackbird's family history relegated to a mere four pages, but rather a detailed accounting of the program from a pilot's perspective. Col. Graham's personal tales and anecdotes are what make this a must-read for any Cold War aviation enthusiast.
Lockheed SR-71/YF-12 Blackbirds, Dennis R. Jenkins, 1997 At first glance there doesn't appear to be much in the way of new textual information that Jim Goodall didn't cover in 1995 in this book. However, the real strength of this book was the inclusion of a great deal of technical schematics and reference drawings taken from flight manuals and other official sources. Many of these dealt with the YF-12, including schematics detailing the loading procedures for inserting AIM-47 missiles into the weapon bays.
2000-2010
With the turn of the century, the Blackbird again found itself out of operational service, and no longer in use by NASA. Despite the fact that no Blackbird would ever take to the air again (unless somebody wants to convice Bill Gates or Richard Branson that it'd just be really fun to restore one to flying status for the airshow circuit...anybody?), newly declassified information began to flow out of the CIA and SENIOR CROWN coffers with more regularity. This was in part due to the fact that the aircraft family was completely out to pasture, and likely in no small part due to the fact that researchers were continuing to bombard the relevant FOIA offices with requests for information!
A-12 Blackbird Declassified, Jeanette Remak and Joseph Ventolo Jr., 2001 The first Blackbird-themed book to emerge in the 21st Century was certainly one of the finest. It was also the first book to deal primarily with the A-12 program. Making through use of newly declassified information, a nearly complete operational history of the aircraft with the CIA was reconstructed, as well as numerous flight test details. Token mention of the USAF's KEDLOCK and SENIOR CROWN programs is made, as well as a brief overview of the TAGBOARD/SENIOR BOWL experimentation with the D-21 drone.
Combat Legend: SR-71 Blackbird, Paul F. Crickmore, 2002 This work was part of a series called Combat Legends published by Airlife. It reads like an abridged and updated version of Crickmore's 1986 work, and is bolstered by numerous color profiles.
Lockheed's SR-71 Blackbird Family, James Goodall and Jay Miller, 2002 This is a thoroughly updated and greatly expanded edition of Jay Miller's first Aerofax title from the 1980s, and is not to be missed. This work probably made the best use of the declassified material available at the time, covering the design process of the A-12 in far greater detail than any previous work. This is one of the few Blackbird books that still stands up even today, due to the wealth of historical and technical data included. This was also the first publication to depict some of the declassified schematics for armed SR-71 iterations.
Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird, Bill Holder, 2002 This book is nothing special, featuring minimalist text and too many poor-quality images. This one is only recommended for the serious collector, and can be overlooked by the researcher or historian. One interesting inclusion, however, is a series of photos depicting most of the Blackbirds at their display locations at the time of publication. This, of course, precipitated my own campaign to eventually photograph every surviving Blackbird myself.
SR-71 Blackbird Walk Around, James Goodall, 2003 This title is exactly what it sounds like, a photographic history of the Blackbird family. While there are a number of detail photographs like the title suggests, there are also a number of in-flight and static images as well. If there is a detail feature of the Blackbird, it is likely covered here, including the different cockpit configurations of nearly every variant. This should be regarded as the primary source for any modeler interested in creating the Blackbird.
Lockheed Blackbird: Beyond the Secret Missions, Paul F. Crickmore, 2004 A revised edition of a Crickmore book I managed to somehow miss, this is a serious volume and should be on the shelf of every Blackbird enthusiast. At 400 pages this is easily the largest book on the Blackbird family yet published. Nearly every operational detail is covered, and the development and test histories of the aircraft programs are certainly not glossed over. The real strength of this book is in the descriptions of various operational sorties flown by Blackbird crews around the globe, as well as intercepts flown by Soviet and Russian interceptor pilots. The interview with a former MiG-31 pilot is very nearly worth the cover price alone.
Lockheed Blackbirds, Tony R. Landis and Dennis R. Jenkins, 2004 This is an expanded and far better illustrated version of Jenkins' 1997 book. Many new photographs are included from Tony Landis's collection of Blackbird images, and there are a host of new technical diagrams as well.
Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird, Steve Pace, 2004 This was a welcome addition to the Blackbird library. Pace's work is a well written, relatively concise history of the Blackbird family, backed up by numerous data tables describing test occurrences (such as AIM-47 firings), and significant historical references (such as Kelly Johnsons's A-12 flight log, albeit in an abridged form). The most interesting section details numerous unbuilt Blackbird iterations, many of which were meant to be armed. A hypothetical F-12B intercept scenario is also included. While there isn't much "new" information when compared to earlier works, the presentation and the interesting bits mentioned above still make this an interesting and worthwhile read.
Lockheed SR-71 Operations in the Far East, Paul F. Crickmore, 2008 Crickmore returns to the Blackbird with Volume 76 of Osprey's Combat Aircraft series. This is an up-to-date reference detailing the operational service of the A-12 and SR-71 flying reconnaissance sorties over targets in the Far East. This is basically an abridged update of his last work, making use of the most up-to-date declassified information available. In this case, the history of the aircraft is only briefly detailed, as the focus is on the operational side of things.
Flying the SR-71 Blackbird: In the Cockpit on a Secret Operational Mission, Richard H. Graham, 2008 Colonel Graham, in his second Blackbird book, provides the reader with a step-by-step look at flying an operational sortie in the SR-71A. Each chapter is broken down based on the pilot's checklist steps for that particular segment of the sortie. This is a unique and insightful look at actually flying the Blackbird and includes numerous historical bits and amusing stories from Colonel Graham's Blackbird career.
From Archangel to Senior Crown: Design and Development of the Blackbird, Peter W. Merlin, 2008 For the first time, an author has decided to focus entirely on the technical and technological aspects of the Blackbird family. Merlin's work is outstanding, the only complaint being that this could have easily surpassed 500 pages! While the text is outstanding and well researched, the real treat is the included CD containing numerous flight manuals, documents, images, and videos. The information here is substantial and valuable enough to almost make the book an afterthought, but that would be to ignore the well written insight into the technology of the Blackbird family that Merlin has authored.
The Archangel and the OXCART, Jeanette Remak and Joseph Ventolo, 2008 Remak and Ventolo have provided us with a complete rehash of their 2001 work, incorporating a host of newly declassified material. The most interesting new bits and pieces deal with the ECM systems on the A-12. There are a lot of issues with the editing, but Jeanette Remak has been kind enough to explain them here. Any Blackbird enthusiast would be well advised to see past these issues and pick this up, as it represents the most detailed look at the A-12 published to date.
Archangel: CIA's Supersonic A-12 Reconnaissance Aircraft, David Robarge, 2008 This is the printed version of the official CIA history of the A-12 published online in 2007 here. It is a concise look at the Agency's involvement in Mach 3 reconnaissance.
Lockheed SR-71 Operations in Europe and the Middle East, Paul F. Crickmore, 2009 Crickmore's most recent work is a companion piece to his 2008 volume on operations in the Far East. Primarily focused on operations out of RAF Mildenhall, sorties staged from the United States over the Middle East are also detailed. This book reads like a second volume of his 2008 book, jumping right into operations without any mention of the program's history, and that's just fine. The only potential omission is a reference to OXCART preparations for missions over Cuba, but that's more of a nitpick than a true drawback, as those missions were, after all, never flown.
From RAINBOW to GUSTO: Stealth and the Design of the Lockheed Blackbird, Paul A. Suhler, 2009 This represents the single most fascinating book yet published on the Blackbird family. Suhler takes the reader through the various designs which led to the final A-12, including competing designs from Convair and proposed successors. Most of the usual technical aspects of the programs are glossed over or simply ignored, and with very good reason. For the first time, a book has been written focusing primarily on the program's efforts to defeat Soviet radar systems. This is definitely a must-read for any Blackbird enthusiast, or anyone interested in low RCS aircraft design.
Lockheed Blackbird Family: Photo Scrapbook, Tony Landis, 2010 This is exactly what it sounds like, a 126 page picture book featuring the Blackbird family. Don't expect a rehashing of the Blackbird's development, that's not the point here, and the actual text is very sparse. There are a number of amusing anecdotes in some of the captions, but the main focus is simply the images of the Blackbirds. There are a ton of images that have not been published before, and most of the book is presented in glorious full color. The highlights are images of two A-12s in formation flight, and a D-21 RCS model depicting a very early shape far removed from what was actually built. Most of the images depict the actual aircraft, with very few detail shots, although there are numerous new drawings of sensor systems and other items included as well. This book serves as an ideal, updated complement to Jim Goodall's SR-71 Blackbird Walk Around from 2003.
OTHER REFERENCES
There are, of course, other excellent Blackbird references to consider apart from books. Wings/Airpower magazine did a four-part piece, each focusing on a different Blackbird variant, a few years ago that was a great source of photographs and interesting bits of information. The Red Star volume on Soviet and Russian UAVs features a section on the Soviet D-21 clone, the Tupolev Voron, which makes for very interesting reading. And there is always the CIA's FOIA internet page, to see what the latest round of declassified documents brings to the OXCART historical knowledge base.
MAIN ERRORS
Two errors seem to propagate themselves among Blackbird books with relative regularity. These are not merely examples of honest educated guesswork refuted by the declassification of information, but rather more blatant errors that have apparently stuck around thanks to their persistence over time often despite the declassification of accurate information. Firstly, the AIM-47 missile carried by the F-12 was not armed with a nuclear warhead. A 0.25 kiloton warhead was investigated early on, but dropped when more accurate homing systems made the need for a nuclear warhead unnecessary. The history of the AIM-47 can be found in brief here (hey, who wrote that?). Secondly, the probes extending forward from the leading edges of the D-21's wings were not associated with the D-21B modification. While captive carry articles seen on M-21 60-6940 did not feature these probes, at least one D-21 launched from the back of M-21 60-6941 did feature them. This can be seen in a video depicting M-21 launch operations, including the fatal accident which destroyed 60-6941. The video is available online here. Look at screenshot M21_009 and the leading edge probes are clearly visible.
FUN ITEMS
Books are great, but a serious Blackbird fan can branch out into all sorts of fun territory. Many people like to collect patches, squadron and aircraft memorabilia, and the like. This is all well and good, and certainly enjoyable, but there are two items which are seriously recommended.
The first is a Century Wings diecast display model of the SR-71A, depicting the famous Ichi Ban Blackbird. Details and photos of this very large and very well detailed model can be seen here. It is over a foot in length, and looks very serious sitting on display among a diecast aircraft collection. Good luck, though, as they have sold out from the manufacturer and can only be obtained through a retailer who has them in stock!
The second item is another diecast aircraft. This one isn't as massive or detailed as the Century Wings Blackbird, but I personally find it to be far more amusing. Plus, and you all should appreciate this after my last example, you can usually find one for just a few dollars. Back in the early 80's you could find the Dyna Flites diecast airplane toys in stores. Pretty simple, usually around four inches long, little metal wheels for undercarriage. Well, check out the image below:
Cut-back chines, short tail...that's a YF-12A! If you can find one of these (I've got three...two from decades ago and a third from EBay), they are pretty unique and well worth it.
Of course, if you're seriously hardcore, you can always buy a piece of certified Blackbird titanium!
CONCLUSION
The source material available on the Blackbird family is increasing with each passing year, and it is fascinating to note how each new publication seems to shed new light on a previously unknown aspect of the aircraft's development or operational use. Until the OXCART, KEDLOCK, TAGBOARD, and SENIOR CROWN files are totally declassified, we likely will not know the complete history of an aviation icon. But it sure is fun to wade through the knowledge that the aforementioned authors have already pieced together for our benefit.
If you want to know where these aircraft are currently located so you can view one for yourself, check out the article here.
Blackbird. Habu. Cygnus. OXCART. SENIOR CROWN. Anyone with even a passing interest in Cold War military history or aviation history knows what those names represent. This reading list will provide historians, researchers, and aviation fans with some of the best reading materials and reference sources available on these most fascinating of aircraft. All of these titles have been taken straight from the author's personal library (in other words, this is not meant to represent every single published work, just the ones that I've bought and read) and will be reviewed in brief. Titles will be divided by decade, demonstrating to an extent how they seemed to land on the market in bunches, ostensibly due to the discovery or release of new information previously unavailable.
THE 1980S
Blackbird-related titles began to arrive on the shelves in earnest in the 1980s. The aircraft had been operating for a sufficient length of time for authors to start devoting attention to Lockheed's Mach 3 legends. The addition to the USAF Museum of the surviving YF-12A in 1979 also precipitated speeches by key personnel divulging further information. The main sticking point about the 1980s was that not much was known about the CIA's Blackbirds, and details of their operational exploits were still highly clasified for the most part. The first photographs and basic details of CIA-operated Blackbirds were released in 1982, nearly 15 years after Agency operations concluded.
SR-71 Blackbird in action, Lou Drendel, 1982 My first Blackbird book! Not much more than a photo chronicle, it does provide some details on flying the Sled thanks to interviews with crewmembers, and provides the first bit of speculation on what exactly the A-12s sitting in the California sun at Palmdale were for. A very brief section also theorizes on the purpose and operation of the D-21, accompanied by the sole photo of the M-21/D-21 combination released for publication at the time.
Lockheed SR-71, Jay Miller, 1985 This Aerofax title seems to be one of the more sought-after titles on the Blackbird. Apparently tailored more towards the modeling community rather than the enthusiast community, a number of detail photographs highlight this book, showcasing such airframe bits as the nacelles, landing gear, and canopies. The text is naturally a bit sparse being that this is primarily a photographic work, but some interesting bits of data, such as a complete production list of all Blackbirds, were included.
Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird, Paul F. Crickmore, 1986 Crickmore's first Blackbird work (as far as I know) and arguably the best book written on the subject for many years to come. I first ran across this one in the library at 2 ATAF HQ at RAF Rheindahlen in the mid 80's and was determined to find a copy. Coming in at 200 pages, it contained the most detailed look at the entire program published during the '80s. A brief paragraph even mentioned CIA operational sorties out of Kadena with the A-12.
Lockheed Blackbirds, Anthony M. Thornborough and Peter E. Davies, 1988 Not much is included in this work, which covers both the Blackbird and the U-2/TR-1 families, that isn't found in far greater detail in Crickmore's work. However, some large three-view drawings are provided which are pretty impressive, with different three views provided for the YF-12A, "M-12" (the M-21 designator hadn't been discovered yet), and SR-71, with scrap side views of the A-12, "A-12 two seater" (again, TA-12, undiscovered), and SR-71B provided as well.
By the end of the 1980s, when the Blackbird program was nearing its first official end, the reference works available provided a great deal of insight into the YF-12A and SR-71 development and operational histories. It was also becoming known that the CIA had something to do with flying single-seat Blackbirds around in the Far East, and that they were trying to do strange things with what basically amounted to the World's Fastest Biplane (thank you, I'll be here all night) as well.
THE 1990S
Three significant books on the Blackbird appeared in the 1990s, basically due to an increase in interest coinciding with the brief return to operational service of the SR-71A. By this time far more information on the A-12 program had been declassified, allowing a much clearer picture of the CIA's operation of the Blackbird to be presented for the first time.
SR-71 Blackbird, James Goodall, 1995 Aside from Crickmore's 1986 work, this became a standard reference for the Blackbird until the 21st Century. A great deal of information on the CIA's Blackbird operations was included, as well as a host of new photographs. This also marked the first time that the SR-71A Big Tail modification was detailed in a Blackbird book.
SR-71 Revealed: The Inside Story, Richard H. Graham, 1996 Who else but a former Sled driver, who became a Blackbird squadron commander and later the commander of the 9th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing, would be a better choice to pen a book on the SR-71? After reading Col. Graham's book, the answer is nobody. Col. Graham tells the Blackbird's story the way only an insider can, from his recruitment into the program, all the way to the politics behind the Blackbird's retirement while he was the 9th SRW's CC. This book is not a purely technical overview, with the Blackbird's family history relegated to a mere four pages, but rather a detailed accounting of the program from a pilot's perspective. Col. Graham's personal tales and anecdotes are what make this a must-read for any Cold War aviation enthusiast.
Lockheed SR-71/YF-12 Blackbirds, Dennis R. Jenkins, 1997 At first glance there doesn't appear to be much in the way of new textual information that Jim Goodall didn't cover in 1995 in this book. However, the real strength of this book was the inclusion of a great deal of technical schematics and reference drawings taken from flight manuals and other official sources. Many of these dealt with the YF-12, including schematics detailing the loading procedures for inserting AIM-47 missiles into the weapon bays.
2000-2010
With the turn of the century, the Blackbird again found itself out of operational service, and no longer in use by NASA. Despite the fact that no Blackbird would ever take to the air again (unless somebody wants to convice Bill Gates or Richard Branson that it'd just be really fun to restore one to flying status for the airshow circuit...anybody?), newly declassified information began to flow out of the CIA and SENIOR CROWN coffers with more regularity. This was in part due to the fact that the aircraft family was completely out to pasture, and likely in no small part due to the fact that researchers were continuing to bombard the relevant FOIA offices with requests for information!
A-12 Blackbird Declassified, Jeanette Remak and Joseph Ventolo Jr., 2001 The first Blackbird-themed book to emerge in the 21st Century was certainly one of the finest. It was also the first book to deal primarily with the A-12 program. Making through use of newly declassified information, a nearly complete operational history of the aircraft with the CIA was reconstructed, as well as numerous flight test details. Token mention of the USAF's KEDLOCK and SENIOR CROWN programs is made, as well as a brief overview of the TAGBOARD/SENIOR BOWL experimentation with the D-21 drone.
Combat Legend: SR-71 Blackbird, Paul F. Crickmore, 2002 This work was part of a series called Combat Legends published by Airlife. It reads like an abridged and updated version of Crickmore's 1986 work, and is bolstered by numerous color profiles.
Lockheed's SR-71 Blackbird Family, James Goodall and Jay Miller, 2002 This is a thoroughly updated and greatly expanded edition of Jay Miller's first Aerofax title from the 1980s, and is not to be missed. This work probably made the best use of the declassified material available at the time, covering the design process of the A-12 in far greater detail than any previous work. This is one of the few Blackbird books that still stands up even today, due to the wealth of historical and technical data included. This was also the first publication to depict some of the declassified schematics for armed SR-71 iterations.
Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird, Bill Holder, 2002 This book is nothing special, featuring minimalist text and too many poor-quality images. This one is only recommended for the serious collector, and can be overlooked by the researcher or historian. One interesting inclusion, however, is a series of photos depicting most of the Blackbirds at their display locations at the time of publication. This, of course, precipitated my own campaign to eventually photograph every surviving Blackbird myself.
SR-71 Blackbird Walk Around, James Goodall, 2003 This title is exactly what it sounds like, a photographic history of the Blackbird family. While there are a number of detail photographs like the title suggests, there are also a number of in-flight and static images as well. If there is a detail feature of the Blackbird, it is likely covered here, including the different cockpit configurations of nearly every variant. This should be regarded as the primary source for any modeler interested in creating the Blackbird.
Lockheed Blackbird: Beyond the Secret Missions, Paul F. Crickmore, 2004 A revised edition of a Crickmore book I managed to somehow miss, this is a serious volume and should be on the shelf of every Blackbird enthusiast. At 400 pages this is easily the largest book on the Blackbird family yet published. Nearly every operational detail is covered, and the development and test histories of the aircraft programs are certainly not glossed over. The real strength of this book is in the descriptions of various operational sorties flown by Blackbird crews around the globe, as well as intercepts flown by Soviet and Russian interceptor pilots. The interview with a former MiG-31 pilot is very nearly worth the cover price alone.
Lockheed Blackbirds, Tony R. Landis and Dennis R. Jenkins, 2004 This is an expanded and far better illustrated version of Jenkins' 1997 book. Many new photographs are included from Tony Landis's collection of Blackbird images, and there are a host of new technical diagrams as well.
Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird, Steve Pace, 2004 This was a welcome addition to the Blackbird library. Pace's work is a well written, relatively concise history of the Blackbird family, backed up by numerous data tables describing test occurrences (such as AIM-47 firings), and significant historical references (such as Kelly Johnsons's A-12 flight log, albeit in an abridged form). The most interesting section details numerous unbuilt Blackbird iterations, many of which were meant to be armed. A hypothetical F-12B intercept scenario is also included. While there isn't much "new" information when compared to earlier works, the presentation and the interesting bits mentioned above still make this an interesting and worthwhile read.
Lockheed SR-71 Operations in the Far East, Paul F. Crickmore, 2008 Crickmore returns to the Blackbird with Volume 76 of Osprey's Combat Aircraft series. This is an up-to-date reference detailing the operational service of the A-12 and SR-71 flying reconnaissance sorties over targets in the Far East. This is basically an abridged update of his last work, making use of the most up-to-date declassified information available. In this case, the history of the aircraft is only briefly detailed, as the focus is on the operational side of things.
Flying the SR-71 Blackbird: In the Cockpit on a Secret Operational Mission, Richard H. Graham, 2008 Colonel Graham, in his second Blackbird book, provides the reader with a step-by-step look at flying an operational sortie in the SR-71A. Each chapter is broken down based on the pilot's checklist steps for that particular segment of the sortie. This is a unique and insightful look at actually flying the Blackbird and includes numerous historical bits and amusing stories from Colonel Graham's Blackbird career.
From Archangel to Senior Crown: Design and Development of the Blackbird, Peter W. Merlin, 2008 For the first time, an author has decided to focus entirely on the technical and technological aspects of the Blackbird family. Merlin's work is outstanding, the only complaint being that this could have easily surpassed 500 pages! While the text is outstanding and well researched, the real treat is the included CD containing numerous flight manuals, documents, images, and videos. The information here is substantial and valuable enough to almost make the book an afterthought, but that would be to ignore the well written insight into the technology of the Blackbird family that Merlin has authored.
The Archangel and the OXCART, Jeanette Remak and Joseph Ventolo, 2008 Remak and Ventolo have provided us with a complete rehash of their 2001 work, incorporating a host of newly declassified material. The most interesting new bits and pieces deal with the ECM systems on the A-12. There are a lot of issues with the editing, but Jeanette Remak has been kind enough to explain them here. Any Blackbird enthusiast would be well advised to see past these issues and pick this up, as it represents the most detailed look at the A-12 published to date.
Archangel: CIA's Supersonic A-12 Reconnaissance Aircraft, David Robarge, 2008 This is the printed version of the official CIA history of the A-12 published online in 2007 here. It is a concise look at the Agency's involvement in Mach 3 reconnaissance.
Lockheed SR-71 Operations in Europe and the Middle East, Paul F. Crickmore, 2009 Crickmore's most recent work is a companion piece to his 2008 volume on operations in the Far East. Primarily focused on operations out of RAF Mildenhall, sorties staged from the United States over the Middle East are also detailed. This book reads like a second volume of his 2008 book, jumping right into operations without any mention of the program's history, and that's just fine. The only potential omission is a reference to OXCART preparations for missions over Cuba, but that's more of a nitpick than a true drawback, as those missions were, after all, never flown.
From RAINBOW to GUSTO: Stealth and the Design of the Lockheed Blackbird, Paul A. Suhler, 2009 This represents the single most fascinating book yet published on the Blackbird family. Suhler takes the reader through the various designs which led to the final A-12, including competing designs from Convair and proposed successors. Most of the usual technical aspects of the programs are glossed over or simply ignored, and with very good reason. For the first time, a book has been written focusing primarily on the program's efforts to defeat Soviet radar systems. This is definitely a must-read for any Blackbird enthusiast, or anyone interested in low RCS aircraft design.
Lockheed Blackbird Family: Photo Scrapbook, Tony Landis, 2010 This is exactly what it sounds like, a 126 page picture book featuring the Blackbird family. Don't expect a rehashing of the Blackbird's development, that's not the point here, and the actual text is very sparse. There are a number of amusing anecdotes in some of the captions, but the main focus is simply the images of the Blackbirds. There are a ton of images that have not been published before, and most of the book is presented in glorious full color. The highlights are images of two A-12s in formation flight, and a D-21 RCS model depicting a very early shape far removed from what was actually built. Most of the images depict the actual aircraft, with very few detail shots, although there are numerous new drawings of sensor systems and other items included as well. This book serves as an ideal, updated complement to Jim Goodall's SR-71 Blackbird Walk Around from 2003.
OTHER REFERENCES
There are, of course, other excellent Blackbird references to consider apart from books. Wings/Airpower magazine did a four-part piece, each focusing on a different Blackbird variant, a few years ago that was a great source of photographs and interesting bits of information. The Red Star volume on Soviet and Russian UAVs features a section on the Soviet D-21 clone, the Tupolev Voron, which makes for very interesting reading. And there is always the CIA's FOIA internet page, to see what the latest round of declassified documents brings to the OXCART historical knowledge base.
MAIN ERRORS
Two errors seem to propagate themselves among Blackbird books with relative regularity. These are not merely examples of honest educated guesswork refuted by the declassification of information, but rather more blatant errors that have apparently stuck around thanks to their persistence over time often despite the declassification of accurate information. Firstly, the AIM-47 missile carried by the F-12 was not armed with a nuclear warhead. A 0.25 kiloton warhead was investigated early on, but dropped when more accurate homing systems made the need for a nuclear warhead unnecessary. The history of the AIM-47 can be found in brief here (hey, who wrote that?). Secondly, the probes extending forward from the leading edges of the D-21's wings were not associated with the D-21B modification. While captive carry articles seen on M-21 60-6940 did not feature these probes, at least one D-21 launched from the back of M-21 60-6941 did feature them. This can be seen in a video depicting M-21 launch operations, including the fatal accident which destroyed 60-6941. The video is available online here. Look at screenshot M21_009 and the leading edge probes are clearly visible.
FUN ITEMS
Books are great, but a serious Blackbird fan can branch out into all sorts of fun territory. Many people like to collect patches, squadron and aircraft memorabilia, and the like. This is all well and good, and certainly enjoyable, but there are two items which are seriously recommended.
The first is a Century Wings diecast display model of the SR-71A, depicting the famous Ichi Ban Blackbird. Details and photos of this very large and very well detailed model can be seen here. It is over a foot in length, and looks very serious sitting on display among a diecast aircraft collection. Good luck, though, as they have sold out from the manufacturer and can only be obtained through a retailer who has them in stock!
The second item is another diecast aircraft. This one isn't as massive or detailed as the Century Wings Blackbird, but I personally find it to be far more amusing. Plus, and you all should appreciate this after my last example, you can usually find one for just a few dollars. Back in the early 80's you could find the Dyna Flites diecast airplane toys in stores. Pretty simple, usually around four inches long, little metal wheels for undercarriage. Well, check out the image below:
Cut-back chines, short tail...that's a YF-12A! If you can find one of these (I've got three...two from decades ago and a third from EBay), they are pretty unique and well worth it.Of course, if you're seriously hardcore, you can always buy a piece of certified Blackbird titanium!
CONCLUSION
The source material available on the Blackbird family is increasing with each passing year, and it is fascinating to note how each new publication seems to shed new light on a previously unknown aspect of the aircraft's development or operational use. Until the OXCART, KEDLOCK, TAGBOARD, and SENIOR CROWN files are totally declassified, we likely will not know the complete history of an aviation icon. But it sure is fun to wade through the knowledge that the aforementioned authors have already pieced together for our benefit.
If you want to know where these aircraft are currently located so you can view one for yourself, check out the article here.
Friday, January 22, 2010
Free Intel Career Webinar
On Thursday, 28 January, at 1100 PST, Professor Edward M. Roche, Ph.D., J.D. will lead a free "Insider's Guide" webinar on the impact of social networking and virtual worlds on intelligence collection. During the webinar Professor Roche will discuss topics including methods of intelligence gathering and surveillance through social networks, actions being taken by law enforcement and intelligence agencies to monitor and combat terrorism through social networks, and the legal implications of using the Internet as a medium on intelligence gathering.
Anyone interested in attending can register online here.
A press release containing more information can be downloaded here.
An Op-Ed piece by Professor Roche, titled “Virtual Worlds and the Intelligence Community”, a look at how virtual technology is being used to combat terrorism, can be downloaded here.
Anyone interested in attending can register online here.
A press release containing more information can be downloaded here.
An Op-Ed piece by Professor Roche, titled “Virtual Worlds and the Intelligence Community”, a look at how virtual technology is being used to combat terrorism, can be downloaded here.
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