TEB Counters in the SR-71 Blackbird

The Air Zoo is a world-class, Smithsonian-affiliated aerospace and science museum, in Kalamazoo, Michigan, with over 100 air and space artifacts, inspiring interactive exhibits, full-motion flight simulators, indoor amusement park rides, a theater and over 100 education programs!

[AirZoo]

They never told me what the alternative way was, but I could gather it wasn't something that was 'by the book'.

[literallyshaking]

I’d really like to hear about the “alternate ways” of lighting the afterburner.

[StRM]

"Today we have Jebediah Kerman flying in the cockpit of a SR-71, which only means one thing: Impending doom"

[rxsolomon]

Euan, when I flew the Habu, we pronounced it “T-E-B.”
Thanks for all the great content.

[richbahr]

Spent an incredible day yesterday at the Air Zoo. Never thought it would happen but got the opportunity to sit in two of the most iconic and recognizable aircraft ever - the SR-71 and F4U Corsair! Docents really knew their stuff and allowed me to babble on like an excited 58 year old child.

What an amazing place!

[xbvalkyriech]

Pure speculation, but I'd guess that the alternative ways were to run the engines dangerously hot, so that the afterburners would autoignite (much like how most other afterburners ignite when using more conventional fuel). Of course, running the engines that hard would definitely be frowned upon by the air force.

And the reason they needed a special igniting fluid like TEB was because the fuel for the SR71 was famously hard to ignite. There are videos of people dropping lit matches into it with no effect. They needed such a hard to ignite fuel to stop the fuel tanks from exploding as the entire airplane heated up to hundreds of degrees from supersonic flight.

[Stever-ilrb]

I can't imagine being a pilot in this aircraft and out running surface-to-air missiles that's just insane

[BattleCryMuted]

Worked on the SR-71 avionics in the mid to late 80's. My proudest moments, being a part of history, although a small part....still a part. Visited the Air Zoo two years ago, I swear I welled up when I got to touch it. It is legend!

[anonomyspizza]

Fun fact: TEB is also used (usually combined with another chemical) to ignite certain rocket engines, including the F-1 engines used on the 1st stage of the Saturn V

[IDontHaveAVideo]

TEB was used to start those engines too. A shot of TEB was hot enough to be the ignition source to light the fuel at engine start. The A/C carried about 1200cc of TEB onboard.

[dsdy]

One explanation for the alternative relight methods that doesn't involve running the engine hot or fart jokes, is unstarting the engine inlets.

An unstart will result in a choke somewhere along the inlet > compressor > bypass-duct > afterburner flow path, and this choking often greatly increases the temperature of the airflow. Given a large majority of the airflow follows this path near Mach 3, it's quite conceivable that the rapid increase in air temperature during an unstart would be hot enough to light the afterburners should they have been out. Obviously a very situational technique (you have to be at Mach 3 for the air to get hot enough, but also out of TEB), but it's theoretically possible I think.

More importantly, unstarts were sufficiently frequent and familiar to Blackbird pilots that I can imagine them discovering this method during flight, then passing it down as unspoken tricks of the trade. _Purposefully_ unstarting the engine is obviously not going to be endorsed by Lockheed, the CIA, or anyone involved in writing "the book"

[tscott]

Great clip. TEB created added green tint to the afterburner. It was very cool visual during takeoff.

[JETZcorp]

"I'm Scott Manley... Fly Safe"

[faerieSAALE]

I HOPE to GOD that the SR-71 on display there is a complete aircraft with nothing missing. That aircraft represents a pinnacle achievement in aviation and should be conserved in a complete status.

[RandallFletcher-giko]

This was home for seven years. I was mostly the EWO. However I did get stick time. What a ride!!!!

[davecrupel]

They use tab to get the engine going as well when they first started up.
The j58 literally explodes into life. Which is just ridiculously badass.

[staceybrown]

Was fortunate enough to sit in the cockpit of an F-18. One of my finest moments!!!

[Woody-ncru]

Everything in the cockpit was able to take extreme temperatures too. During one flight the pilot noticed that he saw little puffs of smoke in the cockpit. He started looking around when he noticed the little threads hanging off his flight suit were melting. He looked at the cockpit temperature was extremely high. His whole point was just how well made those flight/space suits were made. The cockpit was boiling and he was nice and comfy.

[jg]

Very cool video. And very few people get a chance to sit in an SR-71 cockpit these days!

[XRP]

When TEB is introduced (approximately 22cc per shot) a green flash blows out the back of the engine. Can see it clearly on startup.