This Plane “doesn’t exist” — SR-75 Penetrator
The SR-75 Penetrator is a rumored hypersonic aircraft that is said to be capable of flying at Mach 5 and reaching altitudes of 125,000 feet. It is also claimed that the SR-75 can launch a smaller aircraft, the SR-74 SCRAMP or XR-7 ThunderDart, which can fly at Mach 23 and reach 800,000 feet. However, there is no official confirmation or evidence that such aircraft exist or have ever flown. The SR-75 Penetrator is often associated with the Aurora project, a mysterious black budget program that allegedly developed a series of exotic aircraft in the 1980s and 1990s.
The Aurora Project
The Aurora legend started in 1985, when the Los Angeles Times and later Aviation Week & Space Technology magazine reported that the term “Aurora” had been inadvertently included in the 1985 U.S. budget, as an allocation of $455 million for “black aircraft production” in FY 1987. According to Aviation Week, Project Aurora referred to a group of exotic aircraft, and not to one particular airframe. Funding of the project allegedly reached $2.3 billion in fiscal 1987, according to a 1986 procurement document obtained by Aviation Week.
The U.S. government has consistently denied that such an aircraft was ever built or flown and it has been termed a myth. Former Skunk Works director Ben Rich confirmed that “Aurora” was simply a myth in Skunk Works (1994), a book detailing his days as the director. Rich wrote that a colonel working in the Pentagon arbitrarily assigned the name “Aurora” to the funding for the B-2 bomber design competition and somehow the name was leaked to the media.
However, some aviation enthusiasts and conspiracy theorists have continued to believe that the Aurora project was real and that it produced several advanced aircraft, including the SR-75 Penetrator. They have cited various sightings of unidentified aircraft flying over California and the United Kingdom involving odd-shaped contrails, sonic booms, and related phenomena that suggested the U.S. had developed such an aircraft. Nothing ever linked any of these observations to any program or aircraft type, but the name Aurora was often tagged on these as a way of explaining the observations.
The SR-75 Penetrator
One of the most popular and persistent claims about the Aurora project is that it produced the SR-75 Penetrator, a hypersonic aircraft that could replace the aging Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird. The SR-75 Penetrator is described as a large, triangular-shaped delta aircraft with a single vertical tail and two engines mounted on the rear. It is said to be powered by a combination of ramjets and scramjets, which allow it to fly at speeds of Mach 5 and above. It is also said to be able to launch a smaller aircraft, the SR-74 SCRAMP or XR-7 ThunderDart, from its belly. The SR-74 SCRAMP or XR-7 ThunderDart is described as a wedge-shaped aircraft with a 75-degree swept wing and a rocket engine, which allow it to fly at speeds of Mach 23 and reach altitudes of 800,000 feet. This aircraft is said to be used for reconnaissance and surveillance missions, especially over hostile territory.
The SR-75 Penetrator and the SR-74 SCRAMP are often depicted in drawings, models, and video games, but there is no photographic or physical evidence that they exist or have ever flown. The only source that claims to have seen them in action is Chris Gibson, a former British oil engineer who worked in the North Sea. In late August 1989, Gibson claimed to have seen an unfamiliar triangular-shaped delta aircraft, apparently refueling from a Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker and accompanied by a pair of F-111 fighter-bombers. Gibson sketched the aircraft and later identified it as the SR-75 Penetrator. He also claimed to have seen a smaller aircraft attached to the underside of the SR-75, which he assumed was the SR-74 SCRAMP or XR-7 ThunderDart. Gibson’s sighting was widely reported in the media and aviation magazines, and he was considered a credible witness by some experts. However, his sighting was never corroborated by any other source, and some critics have suggested that he may have misidentified a conventional aircraft or a prototype.
Conclusion
The SR-75 Penetrator is a fascinating and intriguing concept, but there is no conclusive evidence that it is anything more than a myth. The Aurora project, which is often linked to the SR-75 Penetrator, is also shrouded in mystery and controversy, and the U.S. government has denied its existence. While it is possible that the U.S. has developed some secret aircraft that are unknown to the public, the SR-75 Penetrator and the SR-74 SCRAMP or XR-7 ThunderDart are not likely to be among them.
