At Mach 3.2, the A-12 Blackbird was the fastest aircraft in the world when it first flew in 1962. Four decades later, it still is. The A-12 was designed from the beginning to be a pure surveillance plane for the CIA, capable of shooting nothing but high-resolution film. It excelled in that role, although some details of its performance and missions remain classified. Now, using CIA connections and a lot of persistence, the authors used the Freedom of Information Act to unveil and declassify much of the information found in this book. Find out why the SR-71 was chosen as the successor to the A-12, and learn about the previously top-secret capabilities and missions these aircraft accomplished.
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17 of 21 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Only Book on the A-12?,
By A Customer
This review is from: A-12 Blackbird Declassified (Motorbooks ColorTech) (Paperback)
This is a great book! I've been interested in Blackbird spy planes since I was a kid. I'd heard about the A-12 but I thought it was a secret Navy plane that never got built. What a surprise to find out it was really the granddaddy of the SR-71 spy plane. I learned things about the Blackbirds that I never even suspected. For instance, I never even knew there was a Blackbird drone. The book is pretty technical in places, but if you read it carefully, it all makes sense. The writing is very good, and the photos are super. I saw a few typos, but they didn't take away from the book's value in any way. I recommend it highly for people who are crazy about airplanes. You don't have to be an expert to enjoy the book, but I think aviation experts will enjoy it, too.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Who is Brad Simpson? He's Not the Author of this Book!,
By J A Ventolo (Ohio, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: A-12 Blackbird Declassified (Motorbooks ColorTech) (Paperback)
This listing should show Jeannette Remak and Joseph Ventolo as the co-authors. This was the second of three books by those authors, and the first to have been published on the A-12 Blackbird. At least it was not badly ruined on publication as was their last one.
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Inside This Book
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First Sentence:
The Lockheed A-12 Blackbird was, by any measure, an astonishing airplane. Read the first page Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
chine bays, heat sink system, test hours, sun compass, ground resolution, inlet duct Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Air Force, Lockheed Martin Skunk Works, Kelly Johnson, North Vietnam, United States, Black Shield, Pete Merlin, North Korea, Jack Weeks, Soviet Union, Hai Phong, Joseph Ventolo, Kirk Davenport, World War, Fan Song, Groom Lake, Kadena Air Base, Southeast Asia, Ken Collins, Lop Nor, National Reconnaissance Office, President Johnson, President Nixon, Richard Bissell New!
Books on Related Topics | Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
The Lockheed A-12 Blackbird was, by any measure, an astonishing airplane. Read the first page Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
chine bays, heat sink system, test hours, sun compass, ground resolution, inlet duct Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Air Force, Lockheed Martin Skunk Works, Kelly Johnson, North Vietnam, United States, Black Shield, Pete Merlin, North Korea, Jack Weeks, Soviet Union, Hai Phong, Joseph Ventolo, Kirk Davenport, World War, Fan Song, Groom Lake, Kadena Air Base, Southeast Asia, Ken Collins, Lop Nor, National Reconnaissance Office, President Johnson, President Nixon, Richard Bissell New!
Books on Related Topics | Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
Citations (learn more)
This book cites 16
books:
See all 16 books this book cites
- Cold War by David Brierley in Back Matter (1), and Back Matter (2)
- Skunk Works: A Personal Memoir of My Years of Lockheed by Ben R. Rich on page 113, and Back Matter
- The Cold War (Cambridge Perspectives in History) by Mike Sewell in Back Matter
- In Retrospect: The Tragedy and Lessons of Vietnam by Robert S. McNamara in Back Matter
- The United States Air Force: A Turbulent History by Herbert Molloy. Mason in Back Matter
See all 16 books this book cites
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