USAF Declared SR-72 Darkstar Is Finally Ready To Fly

[Familyties]

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USAF Declared SR-72 Darkstar Is Finally Ready To Fly When the legendary SR-71 Blackbird ended its service in the US Air Force, many thought that aerial reconnaissance had reached its peak, not even knowing that its successor, the SR-72, would soon appear! This hypersonic drone from Lockheed Martin is designed to embody the most daring technological ideas of the recent decades, becoming a ghost

 

[Taboma]

Other than youtube videos making claims and Aviation week's recently upgraded optimism, I'm struggling to find any actual USAF declaration or press release to confirm anything.
Anybody ?

 

[DarkHorseRacing]

Why would they even show pictures of the plane? It’s far better to just announce the existence and then let imaginations run wild if they don’t see it.

That’s been the case for most of the spy planes history, such as Project Aurora.

 

[DrunkenSailor]

I have no idea what I'm talking about but I love this shit.

I think this is a basic rundown on what's been confirmed.

Rob Weiss lockheeds evp and GM of advanced development programs:

“We’ve been saying hypersonics is two years away for the last 20 years, but all I can say is the technology is mature and we, along with DARPA and the services, are working hard to get that capability into the hands of our warfighters as soon as possible… I can’t give you any timelines or any specifics on the capabilities. It is all very sensitive. Some of our adversaries are moving along these lines pretty quickly and it is important we stay quiet about what is going on. We can acknowledge the general capability that’s out there, but any program specifics are off limits."

Brad leleand lockheeds program manager for hypersonics:

“Hypersonic aircraft, coupled with hypersonic missiles, could penetrate denied airspace and strike at nearly any location across a continent in less than an hour… Speed is the next aviation advancement to counter emerging threats in the next several decades. The technology would be a game-changer in theater, similar to how stealth is changing the battlespace today.”

Lockheed CEO Marilyn Hewson:

"Lockheed martin has a history of making fast aircraft. We are now producing a controllable, low drag aerodynamic configuration capable of stable operations from takeoff to subsonic, transonic, supersonic and hypersonic, to mach 6."

Budget reports for Lockheed have shown some 380mm in cost over runs since 2022 on pre contract development work for a top secret project.

Lockheed built building 648 in Palmdale and hired 2300 new employees to build something...

My guess is that the military decided it made more sense to utilize a much cheaper and potentially more effective close surveillance drone platform for surveillance.

When Russia debuted their hypersonic missile platforms the chatter out of Lockheed stopped and my guess is serious work began to build not a new high speed recon plane but a high speed weapons platform.

Again no idea what I'm talking about but secret fast shit is cool.

 

[Sleek-Jet]

We don't need hypersonic spy planes, a subsonic stealth drone like Boeing has been flying will do the job nicely. It isn't sexy but it would get the job done that couldn't be handled by satellite.

I would agree that any hypersonic research is going into weapons development.

 

[adam909]

Why would they even show pictures of the plane? It’s far better to just announce the existence and then let imaginations run wild if they don’t see it.

That’s been the case for most of the spy planes history, such as Project Aurora.

They are letting out to the public cause its probaly old technology by now and already onto the next secret weapon.

 

[lbhsbz]

Why would they even show pictures of the plane? It’s far better to just announce the existence and then let imaginations run wild if they don’t see it.

That’s been the case for most of the spy planes history, such as Project Aurora.

That's probably why it took them 50 years to tell us about it...it's probably already been retired and something way better is up there

 

[clark]

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USAF Declared SR-72 Darkstar Is Finally Ready To Fly When the legendary SR-71 Blackbird ended its service in the US Air Force, many thought that aerial reconnaissance had reached its peak, not even knowing that its successor, the SR-72, would soon appear! This hypersonic drone from Lockheed Martin is designed to embody the most daring technological ideas of the recent decades, becoming a ghost

This looks like one badass MOFO, if it is true then china better pull their knees up around thier ears AND KISS THEIR ASS GOOD BY

 

[pronstar]

That plane looks to be in Milwaukee power tools livery

 

[Xtrmwakeboarder]

We don't need hypersonic spy planes, a subsonic stealth drone like Boeing has been flying will do the job nicely. It isn't sexy but it would get the job done that couldn't be handled by satellite.

I would agree that any hypersonic research is going into weapons development.

Shit, we don’t even need that. Look at how deep those slow moving balloons got. Just float a few of those around. Super cheap too.

 

[BoatCop]

About 15-20 years ago, on one of our many trips from Parker to the IE, driving eastbound on I-10 between Desert Center and Chiriaco Summit, caught something out of the corner of my eye, toward the mountains on South side of the freeway. It was a flash of something white in the air. We were driving around 80 MPH, and the thing in the air, traveling the same direction as we were looked to be going at least 4-5 times as fast as us. I'd been buzzed by AF jets numerous times, and spent several years at CG Air Station Barbers Point, which was on the grounds of the Naval Air Station. I was very familiar with Military aircraft, and even worked with them at sea, under (simulated) combat conditions in numerous RIMPAC Exercises. But the thing I saw was smaller and faster than anything I'd ever seen in the sky before. As we continued the drive, I saw "it" and several of its friends, fleeting around the mountains on both sides of the freeway. They were so fast, that I couldn't pick them out, just by watching for them. I could only catch them through my peripheral vision, and it was impossible to follow them, due to the speed and arc of their turns.

While I never figured out exactly what they were, I presume (now) that they were drones, operating out of 29 Palms. If that's what they had, 1-2 decades ago, the newest equipment must be REALLY incredible.

 

[FROGMAN524]

About 15-20 years ago, on one of our many trips from Parker to the IE, driving eastbound on I-10 between Desert Center and Chiriaco Summit, caught something out of the corner of my eye, toward the mountains on South side of the freeway. It was a flash of something white in the air. We were driving around 80 MPH, and the thing in the air, traveling the same direction as we were looked to be going at least 4-5 times as fast as us. I'd been buzzed by AF jets numerous times, and spent several years at CG Air Station Barbers Point, which was on the grounds of the Naval Air Station. I was very familiar with Military aircraft, and even worked with them at sea, under (simulated) combat conditions in numerous RIMPAC Exercises. But the thing I saw was smaller and faster than anything I'd ever seen in the sky before. As we continued the drive, I saw "it" and several of its friends, fleeting around the mountains on both sides of the freeway. They were so fast, that I couldn't pick them out, just by watching for them. I could only catch them through my peripheral vision, and it was impossible to follow them, due to the speed and arc of their turns.

While I never figured out exactly what they were, I presume (now) that they were drones, operating out of 29 Palms. If that's what they had, 1-2 decades ago, the newest equipment must be REALLY incredible.

Ever seen a cruise missile at close range?

 

[TrollerDave]

That plane looks to be in Milwaukee power tools livery

H2O Toie’s next pack-out thread.

 

[Yoshiro]

I'm having flashbacks to Top Gun Maverick, the Darkstar...

 

[Sleek-Jet]

Shit, we don’t even need that. Look at how deep those slow moving balloons got. Just float a few of those around. Super cheap too.

Normally you don't want to be seen, I think the balloons were more about judging a reaction than spying.

 

[CLdrinker]

I’m just going to say this.

Spoiler alert: We are the aliens.

 

[DarkHorseRacing]

I’m just going to say this.

Spoiler alert: We are the aliens.

Now you sound like rmarion.

 

[CLdrinker]

Now you sound like rmarion.

I’m somewhat serious.

Look what drone technology is available to the public. Pretty sure the military has cooler shit than that.

The ability to change direction stop and Hoover at a commercial level is impressive. Imagine what the military can do.

 

[DarkHorseRacing]

I’m somewhat serious.

Look what drone technology is available to the public. Pretty sure the military has cooler shit than that.

The ability to change direction stop and Hoover at a commercial level is impressive. Imagine what the military can do.

So what you’re saying is we should see a resurgence of reported flying saucer sightings?

Certainly not hard to dress up a modern drone as a flying saucer so how come I’m not hearing about that more?

Is it just the general public is more blasé about objects in the sky? Or they just don’t care at this point that drones from China are a daily part of their lives?

 

[CLdrinker]

So what you’re saying is we should see a resurgence of reported flying saucer sightings?

Certainly not hard to dress up a modern drone as a flying saucer so how come I’m not hearing about that more?

Is it just the general public is more blasé about objects in the sky? Or they just don’t care at this point that drones from China are a daily part of their lives?

I’m saying it sure as shit as far fetched as it was in the past.

 

[attitude]

I say the SR-72 is old news. Look how’s fast technology advanced from the 40s to the 60s. We went from the P51 being the pinnacle of engineering to flying rockets into space and spying at Mach 3 with the SR-71. Since the 60s the only technology advancements we have been shown are electronics and stealth. Our cars and boats are even fly by wire now, is that really cutting edge fighter technology still lol.

What changed? Are engineers and scientists getting dumber? No, we are no longer in the dick measuring contests of the Cold War/Space Race and governments have became tight lipped.

 

[hallett21]

I say the SR-72 is old news. Look how’s fast technology advanced from the 40s to the 60s. We went from the P51 being the pinnacle of engineering to flying rockets into space and spying at Mach 3 with the SR-71. Since the 60s the only technology advancements we have been shown are electronics and stealth. Our cars and boats are even fly by wire now, is that really cutting edge fighter technology still lol.

What changed? Are engineers and scientists getting dumber? No, we are no longer in the dick measuring contests of the Cold War/Space Race and governments have became tight lipped.

“We” either found or learned something special. There’s no way we go from achieving flight to “landing” on the moon inside of 100 years.

 

[attitude]

“We” either found or learned something special. There’s no way we go from achieving flight to “landing” on the moon inside of 100 years.

That could be, but technology advancement also snowballs. If we found or learned something, it was definitely more advanced than a rocket engine and mathematics. So where is that technology being used?

 

[hallett21]

That could be, but technology advancement also snowballs. If we found or learned something, it was definitely more advanced than a rocket engine and mathematics. So where is that technology being used?

I absolutely don’t know the answers but I think the 1950s SR71 still hold the official speed record? 70 years later lol.

 

[attitude]

I absolutely don’t know the answers but I think the 1950s SR71 still hold the official speed record? 70 years later lol.

Exactly, the F35 being the baddest flying object we have is bullshit lol.

 

[Sleek-Jet]

“We” either found or learned something special. There’s no way we go from achieving flight to “landing” on the moon inside of 100 years.

I always wonder why we have such little regard for the human mind.

The physics of how to travel to another planet or moon have been known for hundreds of years. Once we figured out rocket technology it was only a matter of time before we did it. Newton laid the ground work. Robert Goddard started us down the path to workable rockets and with a few World Wars for the capital to establish the technology and we went to the moon.

 

[DarkHorseRacing]

“We” either found or learned something special. There’s no way we go from achieving flight to “landing” on the moon inside of 100 years.

I’m going to be 50 here soon which means I was born in the 70’s when a Personal Computer didn’t exist and computers were still mainframes and terminals and only big business could own one. Now 50 years later everyone carries a computer and is surrounded by computers in almost everything. Anyone at any time can effectively reach out to anyone else anywhere in the world and share information.

I don’t think this, or flight/rocketry, is any different. This technology was nascent and homegrown and then through a series of wars was rapidly developed. What came out of the wars was then applied to business and eventually personal lives.

Not to mention no one was spending time coming up with and being concerned by DEI than they were with achieving lofty goals and getting jobs done. It was a can do attitude and it was god and country came first.

 

[yerstoopidstahp]

Ok referred still of a concept only, to date, aircraft.

 

[pixrthis]

My BIL is 2nd generation Lockheed Skunkworks and when I say “I can’t imagine what you’re building now” he says “you can’t”. I love that answer.