I interview James Goodall, aerospace engineer, good friend of John Lear and SR-71 expert. Author of 29 books…
James C. Goodall USAF (Ret.) is a world-renowned expert on the SR-71 Blackbird spy plane, the F-117 Stealth Fighter and Area 51. Goodall became fascinated with airplanes in general when he was 5 years old and saw twenty-four Convair B-36 Peacemaker heavy bombers flying to Travis AFB after a stint in Korea. Goodall said that after seeing this “I was hooked.” This brief encounter would lead Goodall to becoming one of the worlds’ leading experts on the Lockheed Skunk Works, Area 51 and things that go “bump” in the night.
Goodall is a recognized expert on Area 51; Tonopah Test Range (TTR); Stealth Aircraft and Technologies, and was a Docent at Kitt Peak National Observatories outside of Tucson. His last “real job” was that of Curator of the Pacific Aviation Museum Pearl Harbor, Hawaii until he retired in the Fall of 2013.
He has been honored to have met some of the worlds top aviation designers, pilots, maintenance guys and support staff working for the likes of Lockheed Martin; Northrop Grumman; Boeing and a few of the old aviation industries that were merged or no longer here.
Jim is a recognized expert on Area 51; Tonopah Test Range (TTR); Stealth Aircraft and Technologies, and was a Docent at Kitt Peak National Observatories outside of Tucson. His last “real job” was that of Curator of the Pacific Aviation Museum Pearl Harbor, Hawaii until he retired in the Fall of 2013 and moved to the greater Tucson area.
Goodall is the author of such books as: “Sr-71 Pilot’s Manual: The Official Us Air Force Sr-71a Flight Manual/Declassified,” “Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird: The Illustrated History of America’s Legendary Mach 3 Spy Plane,” “America’s Stealth Fighters and Bombers,” and the upcoming “The US Navy’s Fast-Attack Submarines,” and “75 years of the Lockheed Martin Skunk Works.”
