Because I Fly

Because I fly

I laugh more than other men.

I look up and see more than they.

I know how the clouds feel,

What it's like to have the blue in

my lap,

to look down

on birds,

to feel freedom in a thing called

the stick ...

Who but I

can slice between God's

billowed legs,

and feel then laugh and crash

with His step?

Who else has seen the

unclimbed peaks?

The rainbow's secret?

The real reason birds sing?

Because I Fly,

I envy no man on earth.

— Brian Shul *

*Brian Shul ( born 8 February 1948 - died 20 May 2023) was an American pilot and photographer. A Vietnam War-era attack pilot and a major in the United States Air Force (USAF).

Brian Shul in the mid-1980s in front of an SR-71, which could fly at more than three times the speed of sound and survey 100,000 square miles of the Earth’s surface in a single hour.

LLESA Author Series | "Sled Driver: Flying the World's Fastest Jet" by Brian Shul

At Livermore Lab Events.

I have recently received news of the passing of Major Brian Shul, and it deeply saddens my heart to see one of, if not a legendary, aviators leave this floating ball of dirt we call home. My deepest condolences to the family. Rest in peace, Mr. Shul.

How the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird Works

Lockheed A-12 | Speed matters

Brian Shul - From Butterflies to Blackbirds

The Pratt & Whitney J58 - The Engine of the SR-71 Blackbird

Major Brian Shul, USAF (Ret.) SR-71 Blackbird 'Speed 

SR71 Blackbird | USA Mach 3+ Wonder Aircraft | Fastest Planes In The World 

Author Brian Shul on piloting the SR-71

LLESA Author Series | "Sled Driver: Flying the World's Fastest Jet" by Brian Shul

This talk was presented on Nov. 15, 2016. Watch YOUTUBE video here 

In this talk at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Vietnam-era attack pilot and retired Air Force major Brian Shul, author of "Sled Driver: Flying the World's Fastest Jet," reveals fascinating details of piloting the SR-71. Using his rare aviation slides and stories as a vehicle, he tells a broader inspired story of hope, overcoming obstacles and daring to dream.

Shul graduated from East Carolina University in 1970 with a degree in history and anthropology. After graduation, for the next 20 years he served as an Air Force fighter pilot. During the Vietnam War, he flew 212 close air support missions. During one of these missions, Shul was shot down near the Cambodian border and was unable to eject, so he was forced to fly his plane into the jungle. He was severely burned in the crash. Shul was rescued by Special Forces and endured one year in military hospitals where he underwent 15 surgical procedures and was told he would never fly again. 

           

After much physical therapy, Shul miraculously returned to active duty flying. He flew the A-7D, was an instructor in the A-10 and went on to teach at the Air Force's Top Gun School. He culminated his Air Force career by flying our nation's top secret spy plane, the SR-71 Blackbird, the fastest aircraft ever built. He flew covert missions in the Blackbird for four years and was the pilot who provided President Reagan with detailed photos of Libyan terrorist camps in 1986. During that time, he became the only SR-71 pilot in history to fly three missions in three consecutive days. 

  

Retiring from the Air Force in 1990, Shul pursued his writing and photography interests. He was the first pilot to write a book about flying the Blackbird, which is completely illustrated with his own photography. The book won Aviation Book of the Year honors and is today the single most popular book on that plane worldwide. He is also the only man to fly extensively with both the Navy Blue Angels and Air Force Thunderbirds as a photojournalist.