# SR-71 Blackbird Safest plane in Airforce History? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 24, 2016, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sr-71-blackbird-safest-plane-in-airforce-history/760784 "2016-07-24T17:50:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![drewder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/57b2e6/32.png) [@drewder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewder)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2016, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sr-71-blackbird-safest-plane-in-airforce-history/760784/1 "2016-07-24T17:50:03Z")
I was watching a special on the history of the SR-71 blackbird and on the special it said that it was the only plane that the air force had ever built which never lost a plane or crew-member. Is this true? ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2016, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sr-71-blackbird-safest-plane-in-airforce-history/760784/2 "2016-07-24T18:08:26Z")
[http://www.sr-71.org/blackbird/losses.php](http://www.sr-71.org/blackbird/losses.php) ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2016, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sr-71-blackbird-safest-plane-in-airforce-history/760784/3 "2016-07-24T18:13:54Z")
Too late to edit: Three crew members were lost, two during or after ejection. ---
**Author:** ![watchwolf49](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e9c0ed/32.png) [@watchwolf49](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/watchwolf49)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2016, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sr-71-blackbird-safest-plane-in-airforce-history/760784/4 "2016-07-24T18:14:05Z")
That’s a 40% loss rate, as bad as the Space Shuttle … ---
**Author:** ![watchwolf49](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e9c0ed/32.png) [@watchwolf49](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/watchwolf49)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2016, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sr-71-blackbird-safest-plane-in-airforce-history/760784/5 "2016-07-24T18:19:04Z")
I don’t know if this really counts, but the T-43 is one of the safest aircraft ever built … also known as the Boeing 737. The 777 is running even safer but the USAF hasn’t bought any yet. ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2016, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sr-71-blackbird-safest-plane-in-airforce-history/760784/6 "2016-07-24T19:39:48Z")
> [@watchwolf49](#): > > I don’t know if this really counts, but the T-43 is one of the safest aircraft ever built … also known as the Boeing 737. The 777 is running even safer but the USAF hasn’t bought any yet. According to [this page](http://www.fearofflying.com/resources/safest-airliners-and-airline-safety.shtml), the 747 is even safer than the 737, and the Air Force has several - notably the two [VC-25](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boeing_VC-25) variants used as Air Force One. Also the [E-4 Advanced Airborne Command Post](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boeing_E-4). ---
**Author:** ![Airman\_Doors\_USAF](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e36b37/32.png) [@Airman\_Doors\_USAF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Airman_Doors_USAF)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2016, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sr-71-blackbird-safest-plane-in-airforce-history/760784/7 "2016-07-25T04:08:46Z")
Arguably the safest planes in Air Force history are prototypes, because they still exist. That’s not to say that they were actually safe (witness the [X-3](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Douglas_X-3_Stiletto)), but they sustained no hull losses. ---
**Author:** ![Raid1982](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bc79bd/32.png) [@Raid1982](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Raid1982)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2016, 7:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sr-71-blackbird-safest-plane-in-airforce-history/760784/8 "2016-07-25T07:55:52Z")
I’d guess that there were no losses as there were relatively few of them so the odds of losing one was far less. Maybe a bit of luck involved also. I know that once back on terra firma they used to leak fluid everywhere after the panels that made up the aircraft body had cooled and contracted post-supersonic flight. Read more about it here: [http://www.sr-71.org/blackbird/sr-71/](http://www.sr-71.org/blackbird/sr-71/)