Born out of Lockheed's (Black Project) "Skunk Works" division, the SR-71 was developed as the ultimate reconnaissance aircraft during the 1960s. Another fine example of innovative concepts in aeronautical engineering by Clarence "Kelly" Johnson's team. The SR-71 aircraft were in military service from 1964 - 1998 and to many of us, it still looks futuristic today.
This kit was introduced by Italeri back in the early 1980s, and then re-offered by Testors a few years later. Rumours have another 1/48th kit in the makes by Modelcollect as well as Revell, however I'll believe it when I see it. If they do appear hopefully they will be an improvement over this kit. I built my version as "Rapid Rabbit" of the Vietnam era.
This is a BIG model in 1/48th scale so you may be surprised at how few parts constitute this kit. That may seem a bonus until you try and fit these pieces together and find that they don’t come close. Between gaps of 2-3 mm, often compounded by steps of 1-3 mm ...this kit takes some work to produce a decent display example. Oh, and did I mention the injection point in the middle of the upper fuselage which will require repair? You will be thankful that the kit will be painted black, helping to hide these overworked joints in the end.
On the positive side, this kit is an attention grabber on display as the SR-71 has many fans.