LA SPEED STORY - SR-71 Pilot Brian Shul USAF (Ret.)
Video from the channel Stitch's Loft about Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird, linked on its Above Ten Thousand entry. Duration: 5:58. Language: English. Video type: News.
What it covers
A recording of Brian Shul, retired United States Air Force major and SR-71 Blackbird pilot, telling the anecdote known as the Los Angeles speed story. It's another version of the same tale he usually includes in his talks.
Context
Shul and Walter, his back-seat crewmate, were flying a training flight across the western United States to log hours and work on crew coordination. They refueled in flight over Idaho and passed over Montana, Denver, Albuquerque, Los Angeles and Seattle before returning to Sacramento. Over Tucson, at about 89,000 feet according to his account, Shul was listening to the Los Angeles air traffic control frequency. A Cessna asked for its ground speed and was given 90 knots, and a twin-engine Beech was given 120. Afterwards, a Navy F-18 out of Lemoore asked just to show off and got 620 knots. Walter then radioed in asking for his, using the call sign Aspen. The controller gave him a figure close to 2,000 knots, and Walter added that his readout was even closer to that figure.
What it means
According to Shul, nobody transmitted on that frequency again until the coast. He closes the story saying that moment bonded the crew and that, for once, being the fastest was mostly just fun.