Sled Driver

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The cockpit was my office. It was a place where I experienced many emotions and learned many lessons. It was a place of work, but also a keeper of dreams. It was a place of deadly serious encounters, yet there I discovered much about life. I learned about joy and sorrow, pride and humility, and fear, and overcoming fear. I saw much from that office that most people would never see. At times it terrified me, yet I could always feel at home there. It was my place, at that time in space, and the jet was mine for those moments. Though it was a place where I could quickly die, the cockpit was a ,lace where I truly lived.
SR-71, SR, Blackbird, HABU, Lady in Black, The Jet ... <strong>Sled</strong>
Page 2 and 3: Flying the World's Fastest Jet by B
Page 4 and 5: • 1 ) I I I
Page 6: CHAPTER IV Going Operationa1 . Supp
Page 12 and 13: Introduction In 1966, I was still i
Page 16 and 17: CHAPTER I First Meeting When I was
Page 18 and 19: Only with a feeling closely resembl
Page 20 and 21: The Buick V-8 Start Cart. Tetraethy
Page 22 and 23: In the run-up area, a Sled waits fo
Page 24 and 25: Mach indicator read 13.' Throughout
Page 26 and 27: A crew is formed: Brian and Walter,
Page 28 and 29: There was much to learn, and the bo
Page 30 and 31: J-58 casing glows red from intense
Page 32 and 33: Full thrust on takeoff- a sight and
Page 34 and 35: The "B", the only Sled on the ramp
Page 36 and 37: the cockpit passing through 52,000
Page 38 and 39: can slip into the blood stream. Thi
Page 40 and 41: straw to my mouth through a small o
Page 42 and 43: military jets I had flown. Normally
Page 44 and 45: The final closing of the canopy pri
Page 46 and 47: 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 100 and 101:
Ferrying the Jet from Beale AFB to
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
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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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