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SR71 Blackbird Aviation Art Prints by Stan Stokes and Philip West.
PCK2022. SR71 Blackbird Aviation Art Prints by Stan Stokes and Philip West. Aviation Print Pack.
Items in this pack : Item #1 - Click to view individual item STK0154. First Flight of the Blackbird by Stan Stokes. Construction of the first SR-71 Blackbird (61-7950) was completed by Lockheed at its Burbank California Skunk Works in October of 1964. The aircraft was then broken down for shipment to Palmdale, California where it was reassembled. Kelly Johnson, the famous aircraft designer for Lockheed, had oversight responsibility for this project, and Kelly gave specific instructions to Robert Gilliland, the pilot chosen for the first flight of the Blackbird. The first flight was originally scheduled for December 21, 1964. Bad weather had caused a one-day postponement. During the first flight only Gilliland would be on board, and a trio of F-104 fighters would fly chase. Following take off Gilliland performed a number of stability and handling checks. He then took the Blackbird up to 30,000 feet and easily went supersonic (hitting Mach 1.2) before some caution lights came on. Determining that he faced no serious problems Gilliland accelerated to Mach 1.5 and climbed to 50,000 feet. Returning to Palmdale he made a subsonic flyby before lining up for his landing. Gillilands first flight is commemorated in Stan Stokes painting. The first six SR-71s produced were assigned to flight-testing at Edwards AFB. The first successful aerial refueling of a Blackbird occurred on April 25, 1965, and two pilot training aircraft (designated SR-71B) were delivered in 1965. A set back to the program occurred in January 1966 when an SR-71 was lost over New Mexico and a year later the original Blackbird (61-7950) was destroyed when the craft caught fire during braking tests at Edwards. Overall ten Blackbirds were lost during the first six years of the program. A total of thirty-two SR-71A aircraft were produced. In March of 1990 an SR-71 was flown from California to Washington before being retired to the Smithsonians Air and Space Museum. This flight was interesting because it set a coast-to-coast speed record of 68 minutes. The aircraft took off from Southern California and flew north to rendezvous with a tanker near San Francisco. The craft then flew south while refueling. It passed over its official starting point for the trip near Ventura. Accelerating to Mach 2.5 the Blackbird reached Kansas City in 39 minutes. Climbing to 85,000 feet the aircraft reached a top speed of Mach 3.2 as it passed the official finish line near Baltimore. After slowing to subsonic speeds the bird needed another shot of fuel prior to making its final approach into Dulles Airport. This truly amazing aircraft had once again demonstrated its capabilities more than two decades after its first flight. Supplied with signed and numbered certificate of authenticity. Signed limited edition of 4750 prints. Print size 16 inches x 11.5 inches (41cm x 30cm)
Item #2 - Click to view individual item DHM2041. Habu 972 at Mach 3.0 by Philip West. Richard Graham and RSO Don Emmons cruising their SR-71 in after-burner, gathering intelligence over the Soviet nuclear facility at Kamchatka, December 15, 1976. At 80,000ft Rich Grahams SR-71 Blackbird is all but invisible to the three MiG fighters seen contrailing at 45,000 ft below. Under radar control, the MiGs make a futile attempt to intercept, but with the SR-71 travelling at three times the speed of sound along the edge of the stratosphere, there is nothing they can do. At this great height the crew of Habu 972 can clearly see the pronounced curvature of the earth and, in broad daylight above them, the brightest stars shining in the heavens. The SR-71 Habu 972, now resides in the National Air & Space Museum, Washington DC. Last 4 prints of this sold out edition. Signed limited edition of 500 prints. Paper size 27 inches x 18 inches (69cm x 46cm)
Website Price: £ 120.00
To purchase these prints individually at their normal retail price would cost £160.00 . By buying them together in this special pack, you save £40
All prices are displayed in British Pounds Sterling
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| Artist Details : Stan Stokes | | Click here for a full list of all artwork by Stan Stokes |
 Stan Stokes
Stan Stokes is a California native with more than 37 years as a full time professional artist, who developed a passion for vintage cars, trains and airplanes at an early age. Model building and RC planes filled the many hours of the young enthusiasts free time. However, unlike most other young aviation enthusiasts Stokes also displayed a great gift for artistic talent. After studying art in College, Stan decided to pursue a career as a professional artist. Stokes initially focused his great talents on depicting uniquely realistic landscapes of the western desert and mountain scenes. More than thirty years ago a good friend suggested that Stan combine his passion for aviation history and flying with his artistic talents, and render an aircraft or two. The rest is history. Stan has won many prestigious awards including the Benedictine Art Award in 1975 and the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museums Golden Age of Flight award in 1985. In May of 2000, Stan was honored with the National Museum of Naval Aviations R. G. Smith Award for Excellence in Naval Aviation Art. Commissioned by the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, California, Stans 12 x 120 foot mural of the History of the Flying White House is on permanent display in the Air Force One Pavilion. In addition Stans painting of the USS Ronald Reagan is hanging in the Legacy Room of the library. In 2005 Stan also completed a painting of our nations next aircraft carrier, the USS George H. W. Bush, which is on permanent display at the George H. W. Bush Presidential Library in College Station, Texas. Stan has also completed several impressive murals for the Palm Springs Air Museum including: The Tuskegee Airmen at 12 x 60 feet and contains 51 portraits of the original Tuskegee Airmen. Dauntless at Midway at 12 x 34 feet and Corsair on Approach at 19 x 55 feet. Stans work also hangs in the Air Force art collection, the Pentagon, San Diego Aerospace Museum, and the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum in Washington DC. Stan has had the pleasure of meeting and working with many of his boyhood aviation heroes, including the late General Jimmy Doolittle, the late Pappy Boyington, Chuck Yeager, and many many others. A true aviation history buff, Stan often spends more time pouring over research materials for his paintings to assure their accuracy to the smallest detail than he does behind the canvas. Noted for his incredible detail and strikingly realistic illustration, Stans canvases have a life-like three-dimensional effect that often leaves viewers spellbound. Today his work encompasses not only aviation and space but also portraits, landscapes, ships, classic cars and his new collection of cat-related fine art paintings. Stan particularly enjoys the tough assignment. During his 37 years as a professional artist, he has been asked to produce literally hundreds of paintings documenting historical events, people and places. Although Stan has logged many hours flying his own airplanes, in recent years pleasure flying has had to take a backseat to the artistic demands of his backlog. Stan was commissioned to paint more than twenty original paintings for an aviation museum being in the Philippines. Since the mid-1980s NASA has also tapped Stans talents from time to time and he has completed more than fifteen paintings ranging from the space shuttles to the SR 71 Blackbird. Stan has also painted numerous works for the cutting edge genius in aviation and space design, Burt Rutan.
More about Stan Stokes
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