I read somewhere that the SR-71 needs regular flights at Mach 2.8+ to relieve stress buildup in the airframe and on flights out of Vandenberg AFB it's turning circle around the air base is so large it cannot keep within the boundaries of the state.
The SR-71 actually grows in length by about 6 inches, and one supposes that because of the fuselage chines, flies itself straight in the process.
As to the "can't keep it in the state" from Vandenburg, this is likely true, but also a worthless conclusion, since Vandenburg AFB is only about 2 miles from the coast, and the Pacific Ocean is, well, technically, "out of state". In the approach the SR-71 is hovering above 200Kts IAS, so yeah, it probably leaves the state in a big, big, hurry.
An SR-71 stationed at Vandenburg, would almost have no practical mission involving overflight of the US. In air refueling after launch (it's not really practical or safe to try and leave with "a full tank of gas"), would be over the ocean anyway.
The more the sweep back of the wing of any aircraft, the harder it is to get it turned around, and the less effective the rudder becomes, since roll yaw coupling decreases dramatically, and is aggravated by low dihedral angles.
This is the only annoyance of watching the Blue Angels or the Thunderbirds, as after a high speed pass, they necessarily have to fly out of sight to get turned around. With the Blue Angels this is offset by the magic, smoke, and noise of a twelve afterburner, full power blast off!
Fun facts: JP-7 is solid at 86F, and the aircraft has no fuel bladders. So, the top and bottom of the tanks are the skin of the aircraft. Hence the leaks. Nitrogen is pumped in as the fuel is burned off, logically to prevent the skin of the aircraft from igniting it at flight temperatures
The SR-71 rotates for takeoff at about 210 Kts, and touches down at around 155 Kts. Zero to 210 Kts occurs in about 20 seconds.
Somehow we left out Mustang ...... its relatively good looking especially when you consider it was designed and built in just what 3 and bit months.
Well, that's not anywhere true. The Mustang was developed from the existing A-36, which in itself looks as though it was the product of industrial espionage relative to the P-40 "Warhawk. The early Mustangs delivered to Britain, actually created a bunch of bad feelings, and were called the "Castrated Mustangs", since the Allison engine lacked the high altitude possibilities of the Spits and others. The early Mustangs were thus often utilized in a ground attack role. Luckily, Great Britain had a bunch of RR "Merlins" laying around, and the rest is history.
I don't know if it's true of all Mustangs, but the "D" model brought a "laminar flow" airfoil to the fighter arena. It contributed to range and maximum speed. This because of a reduction in drag. This is so because the air boundary layer is "laminated" to the wing across the full chord. The flow in more standard airfoils separates at the rear and creates turbulence, thereby inducing drag. Laminar flow airfoils peak thickness occurs @ 40% or greater of wing chord vs. 25 % or so in ordinary "normal" airfoils. And that boys and girls, (plus the drop tanks), is how they flew fighter escort all the way to Berlin. And looked good doing it!
