Is SR-72 DarkStar in Production? Can it Fly at Hypersonic Speeds of Mach 10?

By Kris Osborn, President, Center for Military Modernization

Maverick may have flashed across the screen accelerating in a as-of-yet unseen high-speed stealth fighter jet, capturing the attention and imagination of millions of fans. 

Yet, was Tom Cruise appearing to travel in his Lockheed DarkStar SR-72 “Son of Blackbird” at unprecedented “hypersonic” speeds? The hollywood portrayal ignited massive amounts of speculation and enthusiasm for the future of manned stealth fighter attack, but how much of what Maverick displayed was, is, or could soon be real? 

Numerous Reports now speculate a bit, wondering if the SR-72 program has encountered budget challenges, yet the sense is that the program is moving forward. An interesting essay in SandBoxx news speculates the plane is moving forward and may possibly be in production, yet the essay also raises questions about budget challenge. The SR-72 is both a drone and, potentially, a manned aircraft — or both. The movie depicted manned hypersonic flight, yet it remains unknown as to whether the aircraft variants include merely a drone, a dual-capable drone/jet fighter or a fully manned-fighter.

Is manned hypersonic flight already upon us? Can a human being actually survive in a hypersonic stealth jet traveling more than 6-times the speed of sound?  Perhaps fiction is imitating reality? Or maybe reality will at some point soon replicate fiction? 

Many reports an public essays say Lockheed’s stealthy, mysterious sleek-looking SR-72 is both real and acknowledged by the Air Force. Lockheed distributed poster images of the “conceptual” aircraft at the premier of the movie Maverick.  What is the concept and what has Lockheed’s famous Skunk Works already engineered? Such questions likely continue to find a lasting resting place in the minds of fans and weapons enthusiasts. 

At this point, there may not be a clear or definitive answer.  In recent years, Warrior has talked to many  US military scientists and innovators in regarding progress and the “realm” of possibility when it comes to hypersonic flight. 

 Army & Air Force Research Laboratories … a History of Possibility