{"product_id":"9781846033193","title":"Lockheed SR-71 Operations in the Far East","description":"Even before the first operational flight of the legendary Lockheed U-2 spy plane, aircraft design genius Kelly Johnson began work with his team at the company's \"Skunk Works\" plant on the type's replacement. The result was the SR-71. First deployed on March 9, 1968, this tri-sonic 'hotrod' flew its first operational sortie over North Vietnam just 12 days later. On that debut mission, the Blackbird overflew surface-to-air missile sites with complete impunity, collecting the detailed intelligence that led directly to the end of the siege of Khe Sanh in the process. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThereafter, the SR-71 roamed freely over areas previously denied to the vulnerable U-2, capturing photographic, radar and electronic intelligence. This book examines the immense impact this revolutionary aircraft had, not only on North Vietnam (Vietnam War, 1955-1975) but during the Cold War (1946-1991) as a whole, gathering information about the Soviet nuclear submarine fleet based in Vladivostok as well as the port's defenses, monitoring the actions of North Korea and flying four 11-hour, non-stop sorties into the Persian Gulf during the Iran-Iraq War in the late 1980s.","brand":"Osprey Publishing, Limited","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47039116837104,"sku":"9781846033193","price":22.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/9781846033193_p0.jpg?v=1763744953","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/9781846033193","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}