Lieutenant Colonel R. Edward Yeilding

Lieutenant Colonel R. Edward Yeilding. United States Air Force. This F-4D Phantom is displayed in honor of Lt. Col. Edward Yeilding and all Veterans who served with the Phantom aircraft. Captain Ed Yeiding’s name is painted on the front canopy to honor his nine years flying Phantoms similar to this F-4D and because of his unusual six years as a SR-71 Blackbird pilot., Born 1949 and raised in Florence, Alabama, Lt. Col. Yeilding was an active-duty Phantom pilot from 1974-1983, with assignments in the RF-4C, F-4D, and F-4E. During his Okinawa assignment in 1979, then Captain Yeilding was crewed for several months with Lt. Ralph E. Gholson, a Weapons System Officer from Texas. Lt Col. Yeilding chose Gholson’s name for the rear canopy to honor Gholson’s enthusiasm for their mission, and to commemorate Lt. Gholson’s life, which ended in 1981 during a RF-4 war game exercise in Nevada while practicing for the defense of our country and our freedoms., After Lt. Col. Yeilding’s Phantom assignments, he was selected in 1983 for assignment to Beale Air Force Base, CA to fly SR-71 Blackbirds. Lt. Col. Yeilding flew 93 overseas Blackbird reconnaissance missions and became an SR-71 instructor and developmental test pilot. When the SR-71 Blackbird fleet was retired in 1990, Lt. Col. Yeilding and Lt. Col. J.T. Vida, a Reconnaissance Systems Officer of CA were tasked with delivering an SR-71 to the Smithsonian Institution and to set an official speed record enroute to honor all of the highly dedicated Americans who designed, maintained, supported, and flew the amazing SR-71 Blackbird during its 25 years of vital service., On March 6, 1990, Yeilding, Vida, and their Blackbird set an official coast-to-coast aircraft speed record of 67 minutes 54 seconds, cruising at mach 3.3, 2,190 mph, and reaching an altitude of 83,000 feet. That SR-71, tail #64-17972, is on display at the Smithsonian’s Udvar-Hazy Center, west of Washington, D.C.