Nearly twenty years ago, Lockheed Martin (IW 500/29) retired its SR-71 Blackbird from U.S. Air Force service and since has disclosed no information about a replacement.
Until now.
Lockheed Martin's Skunk Works has revealed plans for SR-72, a hypersonic intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance and strike platform that could be ready for development by 2018.
"Guided by the U.S. Air Force’s long-term hypersonic road map, the SR-72 is designed to fill what are perceived by defense planners as growing gaps in coverage of fast-reaction intelligence by the plethora of satellites, subsonic manned and unmanned platforms meant to replace the SR-71. Potentially dangerous and increasingly mobile threats are emerging in areas of denied or contested airspace, in countries with sophisticated air defenses and detailed knowledge of satellite movements," writes Guy Norris of Aviation Week, IndustryWeek's sister publication that had the exclusive on the development.
The full story, "Skunk Works Reveals SR-71 Successor Plan," can be read on Aviation Week.
