(Lea Greene – GFAFB Public Affairs) – Under arctic temps that also bring ideal atmospheric conditions for flight, Maj. Roger Smith taxied a highly modified F-15A Streak Eagle with tail number 72-119 to the runway here with one goal in mind: to break vertical time-to-climb records.
It was January 16, 1975, amid the Cold War as the Air Force sought to show off its technological superiority and air dominance to the world.
Stripped of 50 pounds of paint, the bare “Streak Eagle” was powered by Pratt & Whitney F100-PW-100 engines producing more thrust than the aircraft’s basic weight. After removing all weaponry, noncritical systems and the tailhook, Project Streak Eagle crews revised the oxygen system, added support equipment for the full pressure suit worn by the pilots and fabricated an explosive bolt attached to steel cable. This innovative strap system held the aircraft down to the Grand Forks Air Force Base runway until full afterburner before releasing — launching pilot Smith into rotation speed within 3 seconds.
Even though there were several unsuccessful runs in between, perseverance won as the two-week series of climbs broke eight world records. Finally, on February 1, 1975, Smith reached an altitude of 30,000 meters (over 18.6 miles) within three minutes and 45 seconds, proving global air dominance.
By achieving these records under scrutiny of the Federation Aeronautique Internationale, the United States broadcast its technological superiority on a world stage. Project Streak Eagle wasn’t just about pride and recruitment, it was a psychological tool in a strategy of integrated deterrence.
Nearly five decades later, air crews at Grand Forks Air Force Base still push boundaries of aircraft capabilities by utilizing the RQ-4B Global Hawk in new ways to collect and conduct intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance.
The 348th Reconnaissance Squadron set a new airframe and unit record when they stopped the clock at a record-breaking 34.8 hours in flight while conducting a tactics, techniques and procedures training sortie with an RQ-4 Global Hawk Block 40 on April 3, 2024.
Pilots accomplished the longer flight time by executing small climbs and keeping the engine at an optimized burn rate. This technique allowed more loiter time on station, resulting in additional hours of collection for combatant commanders.
This flight’s time tops the unit’s previous endurance flight, also set by 348th RS on March 29, 2014, with a 34.4-hour flight known as “Lady Hawk” which was conducted by an all-female crew in recognition of Women’s History Month. It also surpassed Northrop Grumman’s official Federation Aeronautique Internationale March 2001 record of 30 hours, 24-minute flight with an earlier model of the RQ-4.
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