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"Operational"
missions were those that flew through what was called a "sensitive
area". The majority of our operational sorties were flown repeatedly
with only minor changes to the track or sensor operations. Most of
these "routine" missions were flown to gather what was called
"Indications and Warnings" (I & W) intelligence on other
countries using sophisticated intelligence sensors. |
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All
of the intelligence sensors were of the "remove and replace"
type - none permanently stayed aboard the aircraft. They were
truly one of a kind, making them very expensive and required
extensive maintenance preparation between each mission. |
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primary imaging sensor was located in the removable nose of
the aircraft, while others were located in the various equipment
bays. With this equipment, the SR-71 could provide continuous
sensor coverage over the ground from 80,000 feet. With all sensors
operating, the SR-71 could gather intelligence over 150,000
miles every hour. |
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Click
on image to enlarge
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The
OBC was a high-resolution camera, used for taking panoramic photography.
It utilized a continuous moving roll of film. Camera operations were
automatic, but the RSO manually controlled its operating modes: vertical
exposure or stereo photography. In operation, the camera took photographs
while scanning from left to right across the SR-71's flight path.
The OBC's terrain coverage was 2 nm along the ground track and extended
36 NM to each side of the aircraft (further if banked). Sufficient
film was onboard to cover approximately 2,952 NM, or 1,476 NM in stereo
mode.
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Advanced
Synthetic Aperture Radar System
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ASARS
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ASARS
replaced the older CAPRE (Capability Reconnaissance) system in 1986.
ASARS was a state-of-the-art, high resolution radar imaging system,
which provided the intelligence community with all-weather, day/night
imagery. ASARS viewed terrain by means of radar to the left and
right of the ground track, at selected ranges. It had the capability
for search, acquisition (navigation update), and two high-resolution
spotlight modes. In search and spotlight modes, the imaged area
was perpendicular to the ground track, or it could be "squinted"
forward or aft up to 30 degrees. In the acquisition mode, the imaged
area for a navigation fix point was 37 degrees forward of perpendicular.
In
the search mode of operation, the terrain coverage was a 10 NM swath,
positioned 20 to 100 NM to the left or right of the ground track.
In the large spotlight mode, the terrain coverage was approximately
one NM square. In the small spotlight mode, a rectangle approximately
one NM by 1/3 NM Both spotlight modes could be positioned 20 to
85 NM to the sides of the ground track. The ASARS sensor required
the nose section to be slightly modified in the shape of a "duck's
bill", with obvious dimples on each side of the nose chine.
All operations were controlled automatically by the ASR (Astro-inertial
Navigation System) and/or manually controlled. Ground based processing
equipment produced high-resolution radar imagery from airborne-collected
digital data. The data link system had the ability to downlink ASARS
data when the flight path permitted.
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Technical
Objective Camera
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TEOC
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We
always flew with TEOCs (pronounced techs) onboard for specific target
areas. These high-resolution cameras were installed in the left and
right hand mission bays and could be pointed from 0 to 45 degrees
to the side of the aircraft. The ASR controlled the TEOC cameras automatically.
At 0 pointing angle, the TEOCs covered a 2.4 NM square area, and at
a 45 degree pointing angle, covered a 5 by 6 NM diamond shaped area,
14 NM from the side of the aircraft. Each TEOC had approximately enough
film for 1,428 NM of coverage. I've seen excellent photos from the
TEOCs showing MiGs falling out of the sky, from attempted intercepts
on the Blackbird, as they ran out of airspeed and ideas!
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Electronics
Intelligence
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ELINT
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ELINT
is the recording of electronic signals covering a broad range of
frequencies of the electromagnetic frequency spectrum. ELINT included
collecting signals from the Electronic Order of Battle at the low
end of the spectrum (like radar acquisition, tracking and guidance
signals) to the very high frequencies of the Soviet SA-10 missile.
The SR-71 was excellent for "stimulating" the enemy's
electronic environment. Every time Habus flew in a sensitive area,
all kinds of radars and other electronic wizardry were turned on
to see what was flying so quickly through their airspace.
To
receive and record signals we first used the Electromagnetic Reconnaissance
(EMR) system. Due to the fact that it had no discretion on what
signals it received, it was later replaced with the EMR Improvement
Program (EIP). The EIP was a highly sophisticated and programmable
scanning system capable of receiving only specific signals. It had
the logic to key off specific signals it found, then move on to
look for other associated radar frequencies. The EIP continuously
recorded signals from horizon to horizon along our flight path,
a distance of around 1,200 NM If the system recorded a specific
frequency for a short period of time, computer could plot the precise
position of the transmitter on the ground within approximately one
half mile, at a distance of 300 miles from the Blackbird.
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Flying
over the same sensitive areas on a regular basis allowed intelligence
analysts to determine such things as troop movements, changes
to the EOB, and the aircraft deployments-all good indications
and warnings that something was about to happen. If the intelligence
indicated a high level of activity, we could then focus our
intelligence gathering in greater detail on a particular geographic
area. |
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Return
to Technical Details |
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