the runway. The next day, the official flight took place with the landing gear down, just in case. The flight lasted about 40 minutes. The takeoff was perfect, but after the A-12 got to about it started shedding all the "pie slice" fillets of titanium on the left side of the aircraft and one fillet on the right. (On later aircraft, those pieces were paired with triangular inserts made of radar-absorbing composite material.) Technicians spent four days finding and reattaching the pieces. Nonetheless, the flight pleased Johnson. 13 June 1962: SR-71 mock-up reviewed by USAF. 30 July 1962: J58 engine completes pre-flight testing. October 1962: A-12s first flown with J58 engines 28 December 1962: Lockheed signs contract to build six SR-71 aircraft. Earlier in the month, on 17 December the 5th A-12 arrived at Groom Lake and the Air Force expressed an interest in obtaining reconnaissance versions of the Blackbird. Lockheed begins weapons systems development for the AF-12. Kelly Johnson obtained approval to design a Mach 3 Blackbird fighter/bomber. January 1963: A-12 fleet operating with J58 engines 24 May 1963: Loss of first A-12 (#60-6926) 20 July 1963: First Mach 3 flight tracked by MSQ 39 Radar on an RBS Train stationed at the Army Depot at McAlester, OK. The A-12 flew above 83,000 feet, at 2,250 MPH ground speed. 7 August 1963: First flight of the YF-12A with Lockheed test pilot James Eastham at Groom Lake. June 1964: Last production A-12 delivered to Groom Lake. 25 July 1964: President Johnson makes public announcement of SR-71. 29 October 1964: SR-71 prototype (#61-7950) delivered to Palmdale. 22 December 1964: First flight of the SR-71 with Lockheed test pilot Bob Gilliland at AF Plant #42. First mated flight of the MD-21 with Lockheed test pilot Bill Park at Groom Lake. 28 December 1966: Decision to terminate A-12 program by June 1968. 31 May 1967: A-12s conduct Black Shield operations out of Kadena 3 November 1967: A-12 and SR-71 conducted a reconnaissance fly-off, codenamed NICE GIRL. Between 20 October and 3 November 1967, A-12s and SR-71s flew three identical routes along the Mississippi River about one hour apart with their collection systems on. The results were inconclusive. The A-12's camera had a wider swath but the SR-71 collected types of intelligence the A-12 could not of a good quality; however, some sensors would typically be removed to make room for ECM gear. There