SEPTEMBER 1, 1974

An SR-71 Blackbird sets the record for flying from New York to London in one hour, 54 minutes and 56.4 seconds at a speed of 1,435.587mph.

The Blackbird was a US strategic reconnaissance aircraft which operated at high speed and high altitude.

The fastest commercial Concorde flight time was 2 hours 52 minutes and the Boeing 747 averages 6 hours, 15 minutes.