When A Secret US Drone Flew Over China In 1960s #shorts
5,576In October 1962, the US Air Force and CIA asked Kelly Johnson to make a drone. This one will reach Mach 3.5, 90,000 feet of altitude, and a 3000 nautical mile range. But Kelly Johnson came up with the D-21 drone, enabled by a ramjet engine, but it couldn't reach such high speeds and altitudes until it was in the atmosphere just before space, so it was launched from an A-12 Oxcart mothership, and later, it will be used why a the wings of the B-52 bomber. The program launched operational reconnaissance flights over China in 1968 with four D-21 drones. They had only one high-resolution camera, and would self-destruct themselves to prevent capture, dropping film containers over the ocean for US Navy ships to recover. Two drones finished their flights but failed to release their films. The other two flights were shot down or lost shortly after release. Program cancellation occurred on July 15, 1971. Though the D-21 failed over China, it was still a futuristic approach.
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