"Blackbird" (Lockheed Films, 1987)
aka "Blackbird - The Movie"
Thank god Lockheed and the USAF had the foresight to make this 40-minute film, so that our children will know what this plane looked like when it was alive. There are no actors (and no plot, but let's not go there); Lockheed made the entire film using the people who worked on the plane. See the crews suit up. See the airplane pre-flighted; watch it taxi and take off, rendesvous with the tanker, and land. The plot is tedious (although nothing like "Iron Eagle") but the photography and production are top-notch. If you've seen any of the several "Wings" videos on the Discovery channel, chances are the footage you saw was from this 1987 film. If you order it from Blackbird Airpark, the proceeds go directly to supporting the airpark.
Some editions also include "Letter to Kelly Johnson," a short but extremely moving open letter not so much to Kelly Johnson, but to all fans of blackbirds everywhere, from one of the cameramen (Devin Hawker) who worked on "Blackbird - The Movie."
For more info call the Flight Test Historical Foundation at 661-277-8050.
"Kelly's Way" (Flight Test Historical Foundation, 1992)
A beautifully produced documentary on the career of Kelly Johnson. Almost the entire 58-minute video is narrated, with an occasional film or audio clip of Johnson speaking. The two things that make this video so good are its down-to-earth, no-exaggeration-necessary telling of the facts as they occured, and its top-notch historical video, most of it in color and not the same shots you always see on the Learning/Discovery/History Channel. The producers worked with Lockheed's Skunkworks to get first-generation prints to transfer to video, and the quality shows through. If that's not reason enough to get this video, the proceeds go to supporting the Air Force Flight Test Historical Foundation, which supports both Blackbird Airpark and the AFFTC museum at Edwards AFB.
For more info call the Flight Test Historical Foundation at 661-258-1658, or fax them at 661-277-8051. You can also check out their web site at www.flighttest.org.
"Salute to Kelly Johnson" (Lockheed Films)
This film was made by Lockheed films as a tribute to the former head of the Skunk Works when he retired in January 1975. There are interviews with Kelly, as well as many of the people he worked with on projects ranging from the XP-80 to the YF-12 and SR-71. The film also includes footage of these aircraft, including Kelly's ride in 927.
"SR-71 Blackbird - The Secret Vigil"
Originally an episode of "Wings" on the Discovery channel, this 45-minute film from Aviation Week Video is a good overview of the SR-71 program. Includes video interviews with SR-71 crews (both current and "old school"), Pentagon and 9th SRW officials, Lockheed people (including both the late Kelly Johnson and Ben Rich), but most notably Viktor Belenko, former Soviet pilot who defected to the US by flying his Mig-25 Foxbat to a base in Japan. His recollections of the blackbird as seen from the other side steal the show. Most of the flying footage is stock from the National Archives and from Lockheed's 1987 film "Blackbird" (see above).
If your local museum or video store doesn't carry this title, you can order it online from the publisher by clicking here. This title is now available on DVD (available here among other places).
"SR-71: From SAC to NASA - Secrets Revealed" (CAV Video Productions)
Essentially this is the same video as "Blackbird" (see top of page). The producers of this video have sandwiched that video between some original video of NASA's LASRE program experiments. The LASRE footage is decent, but can't compare to Devin Hawker's "Letter to Kelly Johnson."
"Supersonics (Just Jets - All Audio)" - produced by Aircraft Records
The producers of this audio CD spent a day at Edwards Air Force Base recording the sounds of various aircraft, including the A-10, F-117A, C-5, F-15, F-16, and of course the SR-71. Extra emphasis is made on the blackbird, as there are recordings of the engine start, taxi/takeoff, and sonic booms. A 20-minute interview with NASA pilot Rogers Smith concludes the CD.
The recordings themselves are high quality, but without visual clues it sounds more or less like a day at the airport. This CD would make a good souvenier after attending an airshow.
Available at the Discovery Channel Store.
ISBN: 9900810082
"Wonderful World of Flying, v6 n23" - produced by Aviation Media
From the long line of well-produced and highly respected videos in this series, you'd expect a good treatment of the SR-71. You won't be disappointed. For 15 minutes, Capt. Barry Schiff takes the viewer on a walk-around of 971, pointing out the unique aspects of the plane. Unlike so many documentaries out there, Schiff gets all of his facts straight and doesn't embellish or exaggerate anything. He also does a very good job of simulating a check ride in the B-model, and to his credit he confesses to the ruse well before the end of the segment. Also includes beautiful shots of the B-model being pre-flighted (complete with cycling the inlet spikes in and out!!), engine start, takeoff, some nice in-flight footage, and a beautiful landing sequence showing complete chute deployment and release. Well done.
Available from Aviation Media (http://www.wwof.com/home.html)