Sled Driver

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Ferrying the Jet from Beale AFB to England, my three hours of flying in darkness were rewarded by a spectacular sunrise over Iceland.
intercept attempt was in progress. I would scan a blank sky for signs of the interceptor but rarely saw them. At our speed and altitude, picking out a single jet far below me was difficult. On two different occasions though, I saw the brilliant white contrails of hostile fighters. I knew they would probably love to be the first to claim an SR-71 kill. They scrambled, hoping something would go wrong with my aircraft. We would be easy prey if we had to slow down and descend. With this thought in mind, I took pleasure in looking down at the rising contrails. By nudging the throttles forward I destroyed the straining fighters' opportunity for a successful intercept angle. In moments, the MIGs fell from view, wallowing in the thin air of upper altitudes. I couldn't help smiling as Walt's scope went blank and we darted toward home. I felt gratitude and pride in what Americans could build when given the chance. We had just mocked the finest modern-day MIGs in the world, with a jet nearly three times their age. John Wayne would have loved this airplane. THE RETURN Going to Okinawa on our first deployment was personally significant for me. Twelve years earlier, I arrived in Okinawa on a medical transport. I was transported to the intensive care unit at the Navy hospital located a few miles from the Air Force base. As one of the last casualties of the Vietnam campaign, I spent two months at the hospital before my condition improved enough so that I could endure the long flight back to the States. From my bed on the burn ward, I could see the East China Sea, a rocky beach, and a green soccer field. Many afternoons the turf filled with kids shouting and chasing a black and white ball from goal to goal. During that long two months, looking outside my window and seeing the rest of the world functioning normally took my mind off the pain. I felt differently when I returned to that island, now flying the SR-71. I no longer saw the island through a small window from a hospital bed. I now saw it as a normal duty location and place where I could bike and swim in my free time. I was grateful for all that had transpired in the intervening years that had brought me back in this way. I found the green field again. Different kids played soccer with the same joy and normalcy. I watched and I wept. Though few noticed, every time I took off from the Air Force base, I banked sharply during the departure turn, taking my flight path towards the Naval base. I knew I covered a certain green field with a blanket of powerful sound.
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Flying the World's Fastest Jet by B
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• 1 ) I I I
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CHAPTER IV Going Operationa1 . Supp
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Introduction In 1966, I was still i
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The cockpit was my office. It was a
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CHAPTER I First Meeting When I was
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Only with a feeling closely resembl
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The Buick V-8 Start Cart. Tetraethy
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In the run-up area, a Sled waits fo
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Mach indicator read 13.' Throughout
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A crew is formed: Brian and Walter,
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There was much to learn, and the bo
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J-58 casing glows red from intense
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Full thrust on takeoff- a sight and
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The "B", the only Sled on the ramp
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the cockpit passing through 52,000
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can slip into the blood stream. Thi
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straw to my mouth through a small o
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military jets I had flown. Normally
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The final closing of the canopy pri
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Regardless of the weather or the mi
Page 49 and 50: 25,000 feet. Normally, military jet
Page 51 and 52: at refueling in the B-model were hu
Page 53 and 54: Sled driver's view of the approachi
Page 55 and 56: Streaked with fuel, a satisfied Bla
Page 59: THE DEEP BLUE It felt good to level
Page 63 and 64: SYSTEMS Though the RSO was responsi
Page 65: Mach 3 if the autopilot failed, as
Page 68 and 69: eflections and could more easily se
Page 70 and 71: "We did Nebraska in 7Y2 minutes tod
Page 72 and 73: Passing by Mount Lassen the rigors
Page 74 and 75: She was an armful in the landing pa
Page 76 and 77: Sled taxis in after flight. Open dr
Page 78 and 79: f"' Once training was completed, th
Page 80 and 81: The HABU patch was a prized collect
Page 82 and 83: The guys that kept us flying. Long
Page 84 and 85: Every landing required a chute, and
Page 86: Beale tanker displays nose art refl
Page 89 and 90: Climbing out on a foggy day in Engl
Page 92 and 93: After hours in a clear blue sky, co
Page 95 and 96: helmet, overshooting my mouth and p
Page 97: THE UNPREDICTABLE One night near th
Page 103 and 104: Most of our sorties from Okinawa to
Page 105 and 106: A barren hostile Iandi with no sign
Page 107 and 108: A self portrait, helmet visor refle
Page 110: path through the evening sky. The c
Page 113 and 114: T-38, the sports car of Beale. Auth
Page 116 and 117: CHAPTER VI On Display I was fortuna
Page 118 and 119: I really enjoyed talking to these y
Page 120 and 121: Flying the SR in front of thousands
Page 122 and 123: folks on the ground as we thundered
Page 124 and 125: A flurry of excitement greeted us o
Page 126: he could take his people in the wea
Page 129: the program couldn't last forever.
Page 133 and 134: hoping somehow to keep her alive, b
Page 137 and 138: Photography Notes All the photograp
Page 139 and 140: Like the Jet my cameras had to be r
Page 141: make if only there was more light.
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Sled Driver

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