Regards,
Bob...
--------------------------------------------------------
"Art is not a reflection of reality. it is the reality of a reflection."
-Jean Luc Godard
----- Original Message -----
From: "graywolf" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: "Pentax-Discuss Mail List" <[email protected]>
Sent: Saturday, October 20, 2007 10:34 AM
Subject: Re: Completely and totally OT: Politics
> A conspiracy theory there, Bob?
No, just the facts.
> Personally I like the one for the nucular
> engines for the B-1 Bomber. "When you are dealing with atomic energy and
> you get
> 10 times the power output you thought you were supposed to, you do not
> proceed
> with testing".
Never heard that nonsense before.
> The fact is that the Blackbird was retired because it was obsolete. The
> current
> crop of stealth aircraft can do everything it could, plus are operational
> combat
> aircraft. Also, current recon satellites are so good that it would be
> stupid to
> bother with replacing it.
Actually, it's obsolete for reasons other than speed or altitude supremacy.
And no, current the crop of stealth aircraft can't do everything it could.
It's still a Mach 3.2+, sustained flight aircraft with an 80,000+ ft
cruising altitude, 85,000+ ft ceiling. I know of no other existing aircraft
or drone capable of sustaining this type of heat, though there are rumors of
"Aurora". One day the government will remove the "pluses" and we'll have the
actual figures. The SR-71 is simply not cost effective any more. It uses
JP-7 fuel,which is somewhat ago a problem. Further, turnaround time of
intelligence is not adequate for tactical commanders. As to overhead
resources, keep in mind that satellites exist in predictable orbits. Hide
yourself and/or your activities when the SV's pass. The satellites can be
maneuvered, but this takes serious propellant and is expensive as it reduces
the life of the very costly satellites drastically. Further, though the
overheads have amazing capabilities, the photos are NOT as good as those
from reconnaissance aircraft. It's about altitude, that is distance. All
lenses are ultimately limited in angular resolution by diffraction as
expressed by the Airy disk phenomenon. This means that for a given aperture,
the ground resolution decreases with the altitude of the sensor.
the molds for the skin and other special jigs used in construction of the
craft were destroyed because the US isn't going to make any more and
Lockheed was charging a pretty penny for large volume classified storage at
the time.
>
> Bob Blakely wrote:
>> The top speed and altitude of the craft is still classified for some
>> reason.
>> Only NASA flies the few that are left. Under orders from the government,
>> all
>> the molds for the skin and other special jigs used in construction of the
>> craft were destroyed.
>>
>> Regards,
>> Bob...
>> --------------------------------------------------------
>> "Art is not a reflection of reality. it is the reality of a reflection."
>> -Jean Luc Godard
>>
>> ----- Original Message -----
>> From: "Tom C" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
>>
>>
>>> Yes the SR-71 was beautiful too. Almost science fiction.
>>>
>>> Tom C.
>>>
>>>
>>>> From: Godfrey DiGiorgi <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
>>>>
>>>> On Oct 18, 2007, at 1:14 PM, frank theriault wrote:
>>>>
>>>>>> Can we talk about the Lockheed F-104 Starfighter? Please Bob?
>>>>>> There's a
>>>>>> plane that is gorgeous. The B-58 Hustler gives me goosebumps too.
>>>>> That was the most beautiful aircraft ever designed, IMHO.
>>>>>
>>>>> Okay, there's the Spitfire, but it's the most beautiful (and dangerous
>>>>> looking) jet was (and is) the Starfighter.
>>>> The Starfighter is beautiful, but my personal favorite has been the
>>>> SR-71 Blackbird since I first saw a picture of one over 35 years ago.
>>
>>
>
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