Our A-12 Blackbird, 77835/06931 - code name "oxcart 128", was the 8th Blackbird off of Lockheed's production line. It became the fastest and highest flying of any airplane in the world, when it reached and maintained Mach 3.56 at 92,500 feet.

We were awarded our A-12 when the Blackbird project was declassified and the SR-71's, code name &quotSenior Crown", were retired. To get the plane from Palmdale, CA to Minneapolis, MN was a massive job. A team lead by our acquisition specialist, Jim Goodall, went to Palmdale and creatively disassembled the one-piece airframe by cutting 54 titanium I-beams and separating the wings just in-board of the engine nacelles. A C-5 Galaxy transport courtesy of the New York Air Guard 127th airlifted the Blackbird to its new nest. That flight set a record for the longest load ever carried inside of another airplane. The entire fuselage was rolled out on its own gear and the wings were reattached. Since all of the cutting and reassembly had been done under removable body panels, there are no visible scars from the trip.
Images:

• Right side of A-12 638x480 126kb .gif
• Left side of A-12, 640x473 112kb .gif
• A-12 Cockpit, 379x565 131k .gif

The A-12 may be viewed during any of our normal museum hours. Cockpit views are offered on special occasions or by prior arrangement.

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