Sleek, black and evil in appearance, the SR-71 Blackbird was THE masterpiece of Cold War engineering.

Flying faster and higher than any fighter, this stealthy reconnaissance aircraft could snoop where it wished with impunity. Despite first flying over sixty years ago, its performance remains unbeaten by crewed air-breathing aircraft today. With its malevolent beauty and almost supernatural performance, the Blackbird was astonishing.

To create such a machine, new technologies and ideas had to be forged; full of ingenious ideas and performing dare-devil missions of strategic importance, here are just 10 incredible features of the SR-71 Blackbird:

The Cold War, held roughly between 1947 and 1991, was a struggle for dominance between the United States and the Soviet Union. With both superpowers armed to the teeth with nuclear weapons and multiple proxy wars across the world, it was a time of great tension. The SR-71 was the capable strategic reconnaissance aircraft of the Cold War.

When I asked former SR-71 Blackbird pilot BC Thomas to explain why the SR-71 was so important, he noted that, “The SR-71 has the deserved reputation of being the most unique air-breathing aircraft ever built.  No other could fly as fast, as high, or carry thousands of pounds of equipment above 80,000 feet.”

“It was the primary strategic reconnaissance asset for the ‘West’ during the final 25 years of the Cold War. The SR-71 could sustain continuous Mach 3+ flight for over an hour while obtaining the highest quality reconnaissance information from multiple sensors, and with aerial refuelling (pictured), the aircraft could have circumnavigated the Earth in one flight.

The aircraft was one of the first to employ stealth technology, thereby ensuring that it was almost invisible to radar. Its speed and altitude also cloaked its presence. During this time of sparse reconnaissance satellite coverage over potential enemy targets, the SR-71 could sneak up, gather vital information, and leave the area without warning, and often without notice.”

The SR-71 was the fastest airbreathing crewed aircraft to fly, able to cruise at three times the speed of sound. To put this into perspective, this is around twice as fast as the fastest US Navy carrier fighter flying today.

“Our maximum speed limit, directed by the Flight Manual, was Mach 3.3, but the SR-71 was not power-limited, so it could fly faster; however, doing so would exceed the compressor inlet temperature limit, as well as other limits both heat-related and structural.”

“I am certain that no pilot ever put both throttles in maximum afterburner and let the aircraft accelerate to see how fast it would go. That would be a violation of military orders, the flight manual restrictions, and common sense. I, and most probably all other pilots, never purposely violated any published limits while flying the SR-71.”