The CIA's A-12 was Basically Obsolete Before it Could Fly

There are two people on YouTube who are able to hold my attention throughout the video: Amy Shira Teitel and Scott Manley. They show what it's like to make a video with passion and a desire to share it with your audience. Please never become those individuals asking for likes or subscriptions. Keep doing it with your heart, and even if you don't get countless compliments, know that a hell of a lot of people admire your dedication.

what made the a-12 obsolete as a reconnaissance plane was the fact that it had a single pilot that already had a lot of work to do even without trying to operate any cameras. the sr-71 fixed that problem with a second crew member dedicated to operating the camera and lens systems while the pilot focused on flying the plane. the a-12 was theoretically much faster than the sr-71 due to being shorter and lighter because of the single cockpit.

Loving that you're doing aerospace content Amy :)

I'll ,never, hear (or say the word) "Reconnaissance" the same again.

Can’t believe this documentary is free! Thank you so much Amy!

The Oxcart program played such an enormous role in shaping modern machining and manufacturing techniques still used today. Kelly Johnson was one of my favorite figures from the mid twentieth century.

Thousands of missions , thousands of missiles fired at it. Record: zero shootdows, zero hits. Ten years of flights, in three different decades. I call that a solid WIN.

On a scale of 1 to 10, I think I'll give this video "A 12". 😉 Seriously, Amy, good job! And don't apologize for going to a Part 2, if the subject matter requires it feel free to do it.

Do not forget that the U-2 and the SR-71 were at the pinnacle of what was technologically possible at the time so it is a bit unfair to say they were obsolete before they got off the ground. It was clear from the outset that sam missiles would eventually catch up with the slow high flyer but the pure speed of the SR-71 at altitude means it was never successfully intercepted or hit by a sam. That is a very good record.

Yes the A-12 was needed, Darth Vader needed SOMETHING to ride around in.

Got to see the SR71 in person, it did a flyby right in front of me at an air show then blasted straight up and disappeared. It was amazing.

Imagine how mind-blowing it would be if this information were in a Discovery channel documentary like twenty-five years ago. Since at that time it was speculation and fuzzy details.

Thank you, Amy. As usual, your information is thorough while being entertaining. Hopefully we won’t have too long to wait for the final episode! 😉

Love your content! Pro tip: Your microphone keeps peaking and it’s pretty harsh (at least listening with earbuds). The microphone sensitivity could probably come down at least 6db to 12db depending on your unit. I set my Sennheiser wireless transmitter and receiver sensitivity between -18db and -24db. I then adjust my audio levels on the camera with a target peak range of -12db. 👍🏻

always found it amusing that the very material made to make the A-12 and SR-71.. came from the very place that it was being spied on.

I was TOTALLY wondering as the video was starting, if and when Mr. Pete was going to make an appearance!! 😂🤣😂

It's totally amazing that Kelly Johnson's crew at Lockheed's Skunk-Works designed the SR-71 Blackbird using just Blueprint Paper, Drafting Squares & portable electric Calculators.... Plus the CIA having to make 2 layers of Shell Companies in order to pass not being detected by the Soviet Union, where we obtained all the needed Titanium....

I love the content and appreciate the amount of research you do!

Amy's videos provide better quality content than anywhere else. She's eloquent and presents a clear explanation of the facts while making everything so interesting. The Vintage Space channel needs to be syndicated on the Discovery Channel or on mainstream TV. I always make sure to give her videos a smashing LIKE and thumbs up. Everyone needs to remember to give her credit for all her impeccable work.

I was born in 1959. I remember visiting the National Museum of the Air Force once, happening to be there during an anniversary when they had lots of aircraft out where you could walk up to them. I walked up to a YF-12A and stuck my head up inside the nose gear compartment, and saw a part with a manufacturing date of 1958. I have no idea if that was because it was almost a prototype, or if they installed it at the museum to make it functional if not 100% accurate. It didn't matter; here was a plane roughly as old as I was, with all its capabilities and design beauty. A very memorable experience.