I've gotten a broad view of the various aircraft out there today, and have been involved in the design or manufacture of many too. All photos are mine or public domain.

No F-15 without the XB-70 (via the MiG-25)  This is the second post in an occasional series on aviation, so far mostly military and looking back historically. Previously, we talked about bombers: why some will make it 100 years while the newest get retired . Today: how we see our opponents' actions affects what we're doing, and how we might not have the F-15 Eagle without the XB-70 Valkyrie.   XB-70 Valkyrie :  USA Mach-3 intercontinental bomber MiG-25 Foxbat :  Soviet Mach-3 anti-bomber interceptor       F-15 Eagle :  USA Mach-2.5 anti-fighter fighter The bomber... In the 1950s, the United States needed a new intercontinental bomber. In order to maintain deterrence with the Soviet Union, the US needed a bomber which could reliably deliver nuclear weapons across huge distances through extensive Soviet air defenses. If the Soviets thought that they could intercept all or most of the US bombers before they hit their targets, then they might thi...