The Projects of Skunk Works by Steve Pace

Author:Steve Pace
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: MBI
Published: 2016-03-18T04:00:00+00:00

First production SR-71A (61-7950) in three-view as it appeared on its December 22, 1964, first flight date. Artwork by Giuseppe De Chiara

The first three SR-71As under construction in Burbank. LMSW

Kelly Johnson kept a log on the SR-71 program that he succinctly titled SR-12 LOG. In it he referred to the SR-12 as R-12. Johnson’s first entry is dated January 5, 1962, and he wrote,

Met with Dr. Charyk, Geary, and Lew Myer to discuss starting the bomber. We were given a verbal go-ahead, confirmed later, to do six months of engineering, to do a producibility study, and to move into Buildings 309 and 310 [in Burbank]. (We had started this previously.) I told them that Lockheed would build a million dollar engineering building on the strength of the proposed program, if they considered it a good bet. Dr. Charyk agreed it was a good bet and that there would be some form of a fighter or bomber version produced.

Dr. Joseph V. “Joe” Charyk was chief scientist of the USAF; Col. Leo P. Geary was USAF A-12 program manager; and Lew Myer was a USAF financial officer.

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