blackbird airpark

Visitors stop to see the A-12 on display at Blackbird Air Park located at U.S. Air Force Plant 42 in Palmdale, Calif. The Lockheed A-12 was a reconnaissance aircraft built for the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) by Lockheed's famed Skunk Works, based on the designs of Clarence "Kelly" Johnson. The aircraft was designated A-12, the 12th in a series of internal design efforts with the A referring to "Archangel", the internal code name of the aircraft. It competed in the CIA's Oxcart program against the Convair Kingfish proposal in 1959, and won for a variety of reasons. It was the first in the development of the SR-71 Blackbird. (U.S. Air Force photo by Rebecca Amber)

PHOTO BY: Rebecca Amber
VIRIN: 140428-F-IW159-006.JPG
FULL SIZE: 4.78 MB
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