#TBT

For this #ThrowbackThursday our historians take us back to the Spring of 1965 for a behind the scenes look at the YF-12A. We hope you enjoy this #TBT video in which we find crews and testers at Edwards in the midst of a speed run as well as the loading and deployment of a missile during a test.

Here is additional information about this once super secretive aircraft:

The Lockheed YF-12A began as an off-shoot of the secretive A-12 program managed by the CIA. Repurposed as a high-altitude Mach 3 long-range interceptor for defense against supersonic bombers for the U.S. Air Force, the YF-12A carried AIM-47 air-to-air missiles rather than sophisticated reconnaissance equipment. President Lyndon B. Johnson announced the existence of the YF-12A in February 1964. The resulting publicity provided a plausible cover for ongoing A-12 operations and development of the SR-71 Blackbird.

Photos and more details about this aircraft are available at the website of the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force: http://www.nationalmuseum.af.mil/fact...