At Mach 3.2, Standard Jet Fuel Would Have Exploded Inside the US Air Force SR-71 Blackbird’s Tanks. Shell’s JP-7 Flashed at 140 Degrees, Boiled at 550 and Cooled the Whole Jet

At Mach 3.2, Standard Jet Fuel Would Have Exploded Inside the US Air Force SR-71 Blackbird’s Tanks. Shell’s JP-7 Flashed at 140 Degrees, Boiled at 550 and Cooled the Whole Jet

A lit match dropped into a bucket of JP-7 went out. The fuel dissolved hose linings, demanded its own fleet of 56 modified KC-135Q tankers, and was pumped through the Blackbird as coolant before it ever reached the J-58 engines.