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The fascinating story of the spy plane SR-71 Blackbird -- the fastest manned aircraft in the history of aviation. The SR-71 Blackbird, the famed "spy" jet, was deliberately designed to be the world's fastest and highest-flying aircraft -- and its success has never been approached since. It was conceived in the late 1950s by Lockheed Martin's highly secret 'Skunk Works' team under one of the most (possibly the most) brilliant aero designers of all time, Clarence "Kelly" Johnson. Once fully developed in 1964, the Blackbird represented the apogee of jet-powered flight. It could fly at well over three times the speed of sound above 85,000 feet and had an unrefueled range of 3,200 nautical miles. It flew with great success until 1999) .