Post by Robert on Jul 2, 2014 10:47:51 GMT -7
When mated with the drone, the combination of the M-21 and the D-21 was known as an "M/D-21." Contrary to some reports, both 941 and her sister ship 940 were built from the ground up to be M-21s, and were not "converted" from existing A-12s. Unlike 940, in most photos 941 appears painted all black, and was the only M/D-21 used in actual D-21 launches (all of 940's M/D-21 flights were load and aerodynamic test flights).
She was lost on Saturday, July 30, 1966. Prior to this flight, there had been 3 successful D-21 launches from 941, but all 3 had been executed with the mothership in a .9g "dive," flying slightly downward to assist in blackbird/drone separation. For the first 2 to 3 seconds of the drone launch, everything went normally. Unfortunately, the drone was not able to penetrate the shock wave coming off the mothership. The D-21 (#504) had almost cleared the M-21's rudders when it encountered the shock wave, bounced off, rolled 45 degrees to the port (left) side, and impacted the mothership almost directly at Station 715, where the forward fuselage attaches to the wing root. Between the impact and resulting explosion, #941 was for all intents and purposes cut cleanly in two.
Lockheed test pilot Bill Park and Launch Control Officer Ray Torick remained in the tumbling wreckage until a lower altitude where they ejected safely, but they landed in the open ocean, and Torick drowned when his pressure suit took on water.
All M/D-21 operations ended with the death of Ray Torick. All subsequent flights of the D-21 were as D-21B's, which were reconfigured to launch the drone from an underwing pylon of a B-52 (much like the X-15 had been), boosted to Mach 3 by a rocket motor that was jettisoned after the D-21B's Marquardt ramjet was started. (History courtesy of www.habu.org/m21-d21/06941.html)
This is the Revell/Monogram SR-71 with D-21 drone. To Make it the M-21, the tail cone needs to be shortened and the front chines need a little reshaping. Although, if you build it box stock; very few people will know the difference between the SR-71 and the M-21.
In some pics, you will see the D-21 with a red cover in place on the front. I chose not to use the cover and depict a launch ready drone.
A family photo; A-12, M-21, YF-12 & SR-71.
She was lost on Saturday, July 30, 1966. Prior to this flight, there had been 3 successful D-21 launches from 941, but all 3 had been executed with the mothership in a .9g "dive," flying slightly downward to assist in blackbird/drone separation. For the first 2 to 3 seconds of the drone launch, everything went normally. Unfortunately, the drone was not able to penetrate the shock wave coming off the mothership. The D-21 (#504) had almost cleared the M-21's rudders when it encountered the shock wave, bounced off, rolled 45 degrees to the port (left) side, and impacted the mothership almost directly at Station 715, where the forward fuselage attaches to the wing root. Between the impact and resulting explosion, #941 was for all intents and purposes cut cleanly in two.
Lockheed test pilot Bill Park and Launch Control Officer Ray Torick remained in the tumbling wreckage until a lower altitude where they ejected safely, but they landed in the open ocean, and Torick drowned when his pressure suit took on water.
All M/D-21 operations ended with the death of Ray Torick. All subsequent flights of the D-21 were as D-21B's, which were reconfigured to launch the drone from an underwing pylon of a B-52 (much like the X-15 had been), boosted to Mach 3 by a rocket motor that was jettisoned after the D-21B's Marquardt ramjet was started. (History courtesy of www.habu.org/m21-d21/06941.html)
This is the Revell/Monogram SR-71 with D-21 drone. To Make it the M-21, the tail cone needs to be shortened and the front chines need a little reshaping. Although, if you build it box stock; very few people will know the difference between the SR-71 and the M-21.
In some pics, you will see the D-21 with a red cover in place on the front. I chose not to use the cover and depict a launch ready drone.
A family photo; A-12, M-21, YF-12 & SR-71.
