26 years after its retirement from the US Air Force and 25 years after its retirement from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird (unofficially nicknamed the “Habu” for a species of venomous pit viper endemic to the Ryukyu Islands of Japan) is still the fastest air-breathing aircraft ever made, with a top recorded speed of Mach 3.56 (2,731.478 mph; 4,395.887 km/h; 2373.59 kn).