The SR-71 was the world’s fastest and highest flying aircraft in history. At altitudes around 80,000 feet, it reached speeds in excess of Mach 3 (2000 mph).  In 1976, it set a record of almost 2,200 mph at a record-breaking altitude of just over 85,000 feet (16 miles).

To provide an idea of the incredible speed the Blackbrid was capable of, a trans-Atlantic flight in a typical Boeing 747 took approximately 6 hours and the same trip on the supersonic Concorde took about 3½ hours. The SR 71 Blackbird covered the same distance in only 64 minutes.

The Blackbird is on display along with many other aircraft including the B-29 “Enola Gay” that dropped the first atomic bomb to end World War II, the Space Shuttle Enterprise, a Learjet 23, a P-51 Mustang, Mig 15 and a Concorde.

National Air & Space Museum, Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center
14390 Air and Space Museum Parkway
Chantilly, Virginia 20151

Hours
10:00 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. daily

Admission is free, but parking is $12.00 per car.

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Post from: The DC Traveler

The U-2 is famous for being flown over Cuba in 1962 during regular reconnaissance missions.  In early fall of 1962, they photographed Soviet nuclear missiles being deployed and erected, which led to the October Cuban missile crisis.

In 1962 1960, during a spy mission over Soviet airspace, a U-2 piloted by Gary Powers was shot down over Soviet airspace by a surface-to-air missile.  He was convicted of espionage by the Soviets and sentenced to three years in prison and seven years of hard labor.  After 21 months of imprisonment, he was exchanged for a KGB colonel who, after setting up an art gallery in Brooklyn as a front for spying and recruiting agents, was captured by the FBI and convicted of espionage.

National Air & Space Museum
Independence Ave at 4th Street, SW
Washington, DC 20560

Hours
10:00 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. daily

Admission is free

Parking
Parking in the mall area can be challenging, however metered spaces turn over frequently.

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Cuba map source: National Security Archive

Post from: The DC Traveler

After working for the CIA for over 13 years, Ames walked into the Soviet Embassy and offered CIA contacts and secrets in exchange for cash. 

Ames took over $2.5 million from the Soviets to provide the KGB with a list of virtually every Soviet-based American agent and informant. 

Chadwicks
3205 K Street NW, (2 blocks south of Wisconsin Ave. NW) 
Washington, D.C. 20007

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Post from: The DC Traveler

Some of the more noteworthy traitors that provided top-secret information to the Soviets included John Anthony Walker, a communications specialist for the U.S. Navy.  He sold a highly-classified radio cipher card to the Soviets for just a few thousand dollars. The decoding card allow the Soviets to decipher over one million classified U.S. documents causing Walker to be considered one of the most devastating modern spies in U.S. history.

In 1980, Ronald Pelton, an NSA (National Security Agency) communications analyst, used his photographic memory to pass top-secret information to the Soviets. After initially walking in the Soviet Embassy, he offered classified information to help pay off debt from his bankruptcy.  Over 3½ years, he received around $35,000 yet never once provided the Soviets with a single document.  One of the secrets he informed the Soviets about was the successful tapping of an underwater telecommunications cable which carried Soviet military communications.

In 1973, the U.S. offered the Soviets a new site for their new embassy, located on one of the highest hills in Washington, Mt. Alto (elevation 350 feet).  The location provided to the Soviets was the third highest point in DC and offered a line-of-site to the Capitol, the White House the State Department and even the Pentagon.  At the time, 1973, techniques of electronic surveillance were not widely developed. It was however, feared that over time, the site would have allowed the Russians to successfully intercept secret U.S. radio signals.

The current Embassy of Russia, which was not occupied until 1991 is located at 2650 Wisconsin Ave NW, Washington, DC 20007.

The old Russian Embassy
1125 16th Street, NW (between L and M Streets NW)
Washington DC, 20036

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Photo credits: photo 1 flickr, photo 2 flickr

Post from: The DC Traveler

Behind only Star Wars, the Bond franchise is the second all-time highest grossing film franchise in history. 

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Actors who played James Bond – 007, in order of appearance…

Sean Connery — Dr. No, From Russia with Love, Goldfinger, Thunderball, You Only Live Twice, Diamonds Are Forever

George Lazenby — Her Majesty’s Secret Service

Roger Moore — Live and Let Die, The Man with the Golden Gun, The Spy Who Loved Me, Moonraker, For Your Eyes Only, Octopussy, A View to a Kill

Timothy Dalton — The Living Daylights, Licence to Kill

Pierce Brosnan — GoldenEye, Tomorrow Never Dies, The World Is Not Enough, Die Another Day

Daniel Craig — Casino Royale