Hometown pride for one of our classmates (Class of '48)

I grew up with this classmate as we both lived nearby. He had a consuming interest in aviation and had his Pilots License in his sophomore year (1946) at BHS. I was two class years behind him and I had my student pilots license when I was a freshman.  He became a member of  the Missouri National Air Guard and later joined the United States Air Force. This progressed into being a pilot in the US Air Force which gave him a front row seat in the Korean war. During the Korean war, he served and flew with General Benjamin O. Davis in the 51th Fighter Wing and piloted B-26 Light Attack Bombers of the 13th Bomb Squadron. General Davis was commander of "The Tuskeege Airmen", the famous "Red Tail Devils" who gave our WW II enemies a lot of "Hurt" with this superior piloting skills. Our classmate later tested new types of parachutes (6511 Parachute Development & Test Group). The next assignment was maintaining 10 RB-36 H Heavy Reconnaissance Bombers in the 5th Bomb Wing at Travis Air Force Base (AFB) then 15 B-52G Heavy Jet Bombers at Beale AFB in California. His next assignment was the 1st Strategic Recon Squadron and then the "Piece de Resistance"...the SR-71 Blackbird off and on for 10 years. After that assignment, he then was assigned to the Titan and Titan II program. His final assignment before retirement was flying a Desk! General MacArthur said, "Old Soldiers never die, they just fade away". When your retire from the Air Force, you just drop your landing gear for the last time, set the parking brakes and walk away into the wild blue yonder. This Officer and Gentleman is:

Lt. Col. David T. Spotswood

But this not the end of this biography, as you have to know what David flew to really get a feel for what he flew. He piloted the famed SR-71 Blackbird. The SR-71 was affectionately referred to by it's pilots as the "Sled".  This aircraft was an still is the fastest "Air-breathing Aircraft" ever flown. It had a design center speed of Mach 3.2  (Which is 3.2 times the speed of sound which roughly equals over 2,200 MPH).  When you fly an aircraft that fast, the airframe skin temperature would reach over 500 Degrees F. and the inside of the windshield would reach 250 Degrees F. requiring a robust coolant system. This was achieved with an air conditioner that used a heat exchanger to dump heat from the cockpit into the fuel prior to combustion. Two thirds of the fuselage and half the wing space was devoted to 84,180 pounds of  fuel (JP-7) which weighed in as 12,200 gallons of fuel. This fuel supply helped to regulate the plane's center of gravity as well as provide cooling for the aircraft.

Talk about skill... how would you like to "Gas up" at 500 + MPH?

"Fill 'er up with 3,500 gallons of Premium JP-7 and try not to spill any on my windshield!"

Now the scary part of this story is this aircraft flew at 80,000 feet above the Earth which required pressurization for the pilots survival. If the pilot would have to eject at this altitude and speed he would be subjected to temperatures over 450 Degrees F and a blast that would make a sledge hammer blow feel like a tap on the shoulder. Very special  pressurized suits were worn with a oxygen supply and a parachute that would open at 15,000 feet after a free fall from 75,000 to 80,000 feet. (Even if the pilot was unconscious ). David had to undergo Altitude Chamber training which would attempt to mimic these "Punch Out" conditions should he ever have to encounter this condition.

The SR-71 had two Pratt & Whitney J58-P4 engines which each produced 37,500 pounds of thrust static dry weight and 57,000 pounds of thrust each on afterburner. A rough rule of thumb, I believe is a direct conversion of one pound of thrust equals approximately 3/4 horsepower. If my rule holds water, David as astraddle a 100,000 Horse Power beast flying at Mach 3.2 +  and was surrounded with heat high enough to roast a Turkey in the cockpit for lunch if he had room for it. His takeoff weight was in the range of 100,000 to 120,000 pounds because of fuel leakage. Once airborne, the first thing he did after heating up the airframe was look for a "Big Gulp" tanker for a long drink. Once the airframe heated up, the fuel tank quit leaking. What an experience it must have been to fly this airborne miracle of design and engineering. David said the in-flight refueling was a stressful experience.

This refueling procedure had two variables in the equation. The Tanker was flying almost full bore at approx .9 Mach and the SR-71 had to slow down to .9 Mach to "Thread the needle" with the fuel connection into his refueling port. The match up of speed for this refueling must have been a nail biter.

The Blackbird was retired by the U.S. Air Force in 1990 after 25 years of service. I have had the chance to see Blackbird # 61-7976 (it's serial number) at the Wright-Patterson Air Force Museum in  Dayton, Ohio. I was in awe just standing along side of it and touching it's wings now at room temperature who's Titanium wing surface had many times reached over 1,000 Degrees F on the leading edges of the wings. This aircraft is one of the most unique airplanes ever built. It leaked fuel on the ground and had to be refueled after taking off because the fuselage panels had to be fitted loosely on the ground and became properly aligned and expanded once the aircraft's operating temperature was reached. When this happened, the fuel tanks quit leaking! The airframe of the SR-71 expanded several inches during this transition from take off temperature to operating temperature once cruising altitude and speed were reached.

 I could go on and on about this aircraft and the pilots who flew them as they were heroes each and ever time they took flight in this "Animal" ... The  Sled! This airplane demand the best and I am proud to say I know a boy from Berkeley who attained this degree of courage and skill to master the art of flying a SR-71 Blackbird. 

In closing, I will give you an idea of how fast this aircraft flew:

New York to London                                   1 hr., 54 min., 56.4 sec.

London to Los Angeles                              3 hr., 47 min., 20 sec.

West Coast to east Coast U.S.A.               1 hr., 7 min., 54 sec.

St. Louis to Cincinnati                                8 minutes

Kansas City to Washington D.C.              26 minutes

Lt. Col. David T. Spotswood we are very, very proud of you and your service to our country! We will have the pleasure to seeing David again at our reunion and I look forward snapping him a proud salute.

(David, I am proud of your piloting achievements and those of us who have piloted an aircraft realize the tremendous skill and coordination it took to master that aircraft. Consider me your number  #1 admirer!  -  Joe  H. Sowders)