The U-2 is still being used.

[Swampy]

I still think, however, that the SR-71 is superior. I love planes.

[Swampy]

After a Soviet surface-to-air missile battery showdown with a USAF U-2 spy plane near the closed city of Sverdlovsk in 1960, the US government realised they needed a reconnaissance plane that could fly even higher – and outrun any missile and fighter launched against it.

The answer was the SR-71 Blackbird. It was closer to a spaceship than an aircraft, made of titanium to withstand the enormous temperatures from flying at 2,200mph (3,540kph). Its futuristic profile made it difficult to detect on radar – even the black paint used, full of radar-absorbing iron, helped hide it.

That's more my cup of tea. And I like the idea of it being more a spaceship than plane.

[piobaireachd]

NOAA Earth System Research Lab was using two U-2 aircraft, but I believe they replaced them with ER-2 aircraft a while ago.

[Swampy]

I wonder why the U-2 would be better than the SR-71.

[piobaireachd]

One reason is that it per flight hour cost is less than an SR-71

[Swampy]

Dec 20, 2020 17:52:30 GMT -5 piobaireachd said:

One reason is that it per flight hour cost is less than an SR-71

True, but I would presume the Blackbird could go faster and higher, so it cannot be shot down, unlike the U-2.

I would love to fly one of those.