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Author
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Topic: Bob Gilliland, SR-71 test pilot (1926-2019)
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SpaceSteve
Member Posts: 434
From: San Antonio TX, USA
Registered: Apr 2004
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posted 07-07-2019 12:46 PM
   
I just saw on Facebook the news that Bob Gilliland, who piloted the first flight of the SR-71 in 1964, died on July 4, 2019. On a near-cloudless Dec. 22, 1964, a brawny, broad-shouldered Memphian strapped into what was then the world's fastest aircraft at a secret airstrip in California.The entire life of 38-year-old Robert J. Gilliland — an unassuming "Bob" on the ground and "Dutch 51" in the air — had brought him to this moment, sitting in this airplane he'd helped develop as its chief test pilot for military contractor Lockheed. This spy plane — the stealthy, high-altitude SR-71 Blackbird — was built to win the U.S. the Cold War. |
ManInSpace
Member Posts: 195
From: Brooklin, ON Canada
Registered: Feb 2018
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posted 07-07-2019 01:20 PM
Thanks. The SR-71 was a great program and the men who flew the aircraft set records that still stand today.R.I.P. |
GACspaceguy
Member Posts: 2641
From: Guyton, GA
Registered: Jan 2006
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posted 07-07-2019 01:59 PM
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MSS
Member Posts: 753
From: Europe
Registered: May 2003
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posted 07-07-2019 02:09 PM
Robert Jordan RIP. |
SpaceCadet1983
Member Posts: 301
From: Pacific NW, United States
Registered: May 2012
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posted 07-07-2019 02:43 PM
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LM1
Member Posts: 771
From: New York, NY
Registered: Oct 2010
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posted 07-07-2019 02:46 PM
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star51L
Member Posts: 402
From: Vilano Beach, FL, USA
Registered: Aug 2002
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posted 07-07-2019 03:04 PM
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Kite
Member Posts: 915
From: Northampton UK
Registered: Nov 2009
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posted 07-07-2019 03:21 PM
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fredtrav
Member Posts: 1736
From: Birmingham AL
Registered: Aug 2010
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posted 07-07-2019 03:27 PM
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randy
Member Posts: 2364
From: West Jordan, Utah USA
Registered: Dec 1999
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posted 07-07-2019 04:54 PM
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Panther494
Member Posts: 475
From: London UK
Registered: Jan 2013
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posted 07-07-2019 05:19 PM
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oly
Member Posts: 1131
From: Perth, Western Australia
Registered: Apr 2015
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posted 07-07-2019 06:41 PM
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Jurg Bolli
Member Posts: 1054
From: Albuquerque, NM
Registered: Nov 2000
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posted 07-07-2019 09:04 PM
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David C
Member Posts: 1215
From: Lausanne
Registered: Apr 2012
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posted 07-07-2019 09:55 PM
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Kevin T. Randall
Member Posts: 1255
From: Chesham, Bucks UK
Registered: Dec 2008
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posted 07-07-2019 11:34 PM
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Delta7
Member Posts: 1600
From: Bluffton IN USA
Registered: Oct 2007
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posted 07-08-2019 05:46 AM
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NeilPearson
Member Posts: 164
From: UK
Registered: May 2013
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posted 07-08-2019 08:18 AM
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David Carey
Member Posts: 858
From:
Registered: Mar 2009
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posted 07-08-2019 09:00 AM
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East-Frisian
Member Posts: 602
From: Germany
Registered: Apr 2005
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posted 07-08-2019 10:22 AM
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Philip
Member Posts: 6078
From: Brussels, Belgium
Registered: Jan 2001
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posted 07-08-2019 03:31 PM
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dss65
Member Posts: 1219
From: Sandpoint, ID, USA
Registered: Mar 2003
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posted 07-11-2019 06:03 PM
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alcyone
Member Posts: 148
From: Ontario, Canada
Registered: Sep 2010
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posted 07-11-2019 07:07 PM
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Grounded!
Member Posts: 421
From: Bennington, Vermont, USA
Registered: Feb 2011
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posted 07-11-2019 09:16 PM
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ejectr
Member Posts: 1808
From: Killingly, CT
Registered: Mar 2002
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posted 07-12-2019 12:01 PM
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albatron
Member Posts: 2804
From: Stuart, Florida
Registered: Jun 2000
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posted 07-12-2019 07:05 PM
A Tribute to Bob Gilliland (video) |
DG27
Member Posts: 192
From: USA
Registered: Nov 2010
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posted 07-13-2019 02:43 AM
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gareth89
Member Posts: 316
From: Ireland
Registered: May 2014
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posted 07-13-2019 02:57 AM
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astro-nut
Member Posts: 1014
From: Washington, IL
Registered: Jan 2006
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posted 07-28-2019 02:46 PM
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cspg
Member Posts: 6241
From: Geneva, Switzerland
Registered: May 2006
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posted 12-29-2020 10:17 AM
His biography, "Speed: The Life of a Test Pilot and Birth of an American Icon," due next June: In Speed one of America's greatest test pilots collaborates with acclaimed journalist Keith Dunnavant to tell his remarkable story: How he was pushed to excel by his demanding father. How a lucky envelope at the U.S. Naval Academy altered the trajectory of his life. How he talked his way into U.S. Air Force fighters at the dawn of the jet age, despite being told he was too tall. How he made the conscious decision to trade the security of the business world for the dangerous life of an experimental test pilot, including time at the clandestine base Area 51, working on the Central Intelligence Agency's Oxcart program.The narrative focuses most intently on Gilliland's years as the chief test pilot of the SR-71, as he played a leading role in the development of the entire fleet of spy planes while surviving several emergencies that very nearly ended in disaster. |
Spacepsycho
Member Posts: 863
From: Huntington Beach, Calif.
Registered: Aug 2004
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posted 12-31-2020 11:45 AM
I attended a few of Bob's presentations, he was an awesome speaker who entertained and captivated his audience, whether it was a room of kids, industry execs or his fellow test pilots. Not only was Bob a phenomenal speaker and pilot, he was an equally nice guy who happily gave his time and energy to anyone who asked. God Speed to an amazing man. |
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