Key Points and Summary: The SR-71 Blackbird’s high-speed missions were fraught with challenges, including catastrophic engine failures at Mach 3.
-Crews like Colonel Richard Sheffield and his pilot faced intense situations, navigating fires, bucking descents, and Soviet threats.
-In one instance, a right engine fire at 68,000 feet nearly destroyed the aircraft, but quick thinking saved the crew. In another, Swedish pilots escorted a failing SR-71 to safety, avoiding Soviet MiG-25s.
-These incidents underscore the resilience of the aircraft and the skill of its crews. Despite its advanced design, the SR-71’s legacy is also about overcoming danger with ingenuity and bravery.
What to Do When An SR-71 Blackbird Engine Fails at Mach 3
The SR-71 Blackbird is a fantastic aircraft. It was designed and built by Clarence “Kelly” Johnson’s Lockheed “Skunk Works” in Burbank, California, and intended to be a long-range, high-altitude, Mach 3+ strategic reconnaissance aircraft.
The CIA approached Johnson about finding a replacement for the U-2 spy plane, which could fly at extreme altitudes but was slow. Johnson’s Skunk Works produced the aircraft, first called the YF-12. However, General Curtis LeMay, the Air Force Chief of Staff, wanted it renamed the SR-71, with the SR referring to the aircraft type as “Strategic Reconnaissance.”
A total of 32 SR-71s were built: 29 SR-71As, two SR-71Bs, and one SR-71C. Johnson designed the aircraft with the smallest cross-radar section possible, one of the earliest attempts at stealth. Two Pratt and Whitney J-58 engines powered it, allowing it to reach a speed of Mach 3.2+, or about 2,200 mph. The service ceiling was 85,000 feet.
What Happens When an Engine Fails At Mach 3?
Linda Sheffield Miller posted a fantastic story about her father, Colonel (ret) Richard “Butch” Sheffield, an RSO (Reconnaissance Systems Officer) on an SR-71. Before he passed away in 2018, he retrieved some of his old papers that detailed what happened when he and his pilot had to nurse an SR-71 back to base after a catastrophic engine failure flying at nearly Mach 3 at 68,000 feet, fifty years prior.
On July 29, 1968, Sheffield wasn’t supposed to fly that day, but a fellow RSO got sick and failed his preflight physical. Sheffield raced to flight ops and suited up to take off with pilot Ben Bowles on time. He was so rushed that he didn’t have time to write out his checklist, so he used the grounded SRO’s.
Near-Disaster at 68,000 Feet
The pair flew at Mach 2.88 and 68,000 feet over Oklahoma when the right engine suffered a catastrophic failure. The aircraft became very hard to control, and the right engine was burning even though they shut off its fuel. Bowles asked Sheffield if he wanted to “get out” or eject. Sheffield’s back was still sore from ejecting the year before, and he feared ejecting again, that it might break his back, and he declined.
The descent from 68,000 feet was very rough. The aircraft was bucking badly. The pair ran lots of different checklists: (1) engine fire, (2) engine failure, (3) generator failure, (4) hydraulics failure, (5) descent and (6) others (still classified).
Sheffield had declared an emergency with Air Traffic Control on the UHF radio, giving Bowles the heading to Carswell, AFB, Texas. He told Bowles, “I wish I had my checklist,” because the other RSO’s checklist was set up for a left-handed person.
The duo could see the fire and smoke coming out of the engine even after they had shut off the fuel. The fuel tanks in the wing of the SR near the engine were close to the fire, and if the fire reached the fuel tanks, the aircraft and both crewmen would blow up.
Issues With the Fire Chief and Accident Safety Board
As the pair landed in the SR-71, the fire chief indicated there was a big hole in the right engine by making a big circle with his arms. With the engine no longer on fire, they landed and taxied to a hangar. The fire chief and the pilot got heated because the fire chief wouldn’t allow an aircraft leaking fuel to be taken inside any hangar.
The heat was so bad from the engine fire that the right wing was badly warped. The accident review board asked Sheffield why he didn’t have his checklist. He insisted that he did. The board then asked, “Why did you say, ‘I wish I had my checklist.”’ At that moment, Sheffield realized that the aircraft recorded everything they had said.
He told the board that he had the other RSO’s checklist and that it was set up a little differently than his, which apparently satisfied the accident board. The SR-71 remained at Carswell AFB for a while before being fitted with a new wing and then flown to Beale AFB, where it took several months to repair.
Other Incidents Involving Catastrophic Engine Failure
A Swedish Viggen pilot told his story of escorting an SR-71 aircraft that suffered engine failure flying at Mach 3 at 68,000 feet with several MiG-25s in hot pursuit. The Soviet pilots were demanding that the SR-71, which had decelerated and dropped in altitude to 25,000 feet, land at the nearest Soviet airfield or be shot down.
The Swedish pilot escorted the stricken SR-71 to Danish airspace, where he later said, “It was almost unbelievable to fly close to this beautiful and impressive machine. We kept that position for the next 6min or so, until we reached Danish airspace. I then landed back at in Ängelholm, but my wingman landed in Karlsborg after having some minor problems with his avionic systems. Throughout the incident, my intention was to try to help fellow pilots who were in trouble.”
Another incident with RSO Richard Sheffield took place over South Korea in 1971. Sheffield and pilot Colonel Spencer took off from Okinawa and overflew the Soviet SA-5 Anti-aircraft missile batteries at Vladivostok. They had to make emergency maneuvers after the loss of an engine.
The crew headed for Taegu, South Korea, but the flight crew was informed that the base was closed. After declaring an inflight emergency with loss of fuel, the runway lights were finally turned on. The airbase commander arrived half-dressed and demanded to know why they chose to land there.
As Sheffield recalled, when they landed, they looked out the window and saw scores of people in kimonos with machine guns; Spencer said: “Butch, are you sure we’re in South Korea?”
SR-71 Blackbird: A Photo Essay
SR-71. SR-71 photo taken at the National Air and Space Museum. Taken by 19FortyFive on 10/1/2022.
SR-71. SR-71 photo taken at the National Air and Space Museum. Taken by 19FortyFive on 10/1/2022.
SR-71 photo taken at the National Air and Space Museum. Taken by 19FortyFive on 10/1/2022.
SR-71 photo taken at the National Air and Space Museum. Taken by 19FortyFive on 10/1/2022.
SR-71 photo taken at the National Air and Space Museum. Taken by 19FortyFive on 10/1/2022.
About the Author:
Steve Balestrieri is a 19FortyFive National Security Columnist. He served as a US Army Special Forces NCO and Warrant Officer. In addition to writing for 19FortyFive, he covers the NFL for PatsFans.com and is a member of the Pro Football Writers of America (PFWA). His work was regularly featured in other military publications.
