To the edge of space in a spyplane
James May from Top Gear U.K. takes an emotional ride to the edge of space in a U2 spyplane. Amazing.
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13. richardhalo 212 days ago
Let's hope the humanity will understand the importance of Earth and make up their minds already and start the Space Age. So much to see, so much to discover.
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15. Comment rated too low. Show this comment s1nn0cence 212 days ago
best place everrr to smoke a joint at! /innocent
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The whole documentary is awesome. If you've got BBC iPlayer - James May at the Edge of Space. Highly recommend it. 
If you don't have iPlayer, I'm sure at least the intelligent ones among you are capable of figuring out how to use a torrent client.. 
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Wowza! 
I would love to experience that and since I probably wont, I sure am glad that this was filmed for it is the next best thing to being there. Awesome post and thanks for sharing.
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#15 'best place everr to smoke a joint at!' !?!? DUUUH!?
Who the fooook need a joint up there!? Dont believe there's anything that beats this! I would be beyond euphoric being up there. Totaly agree with #13 ... lets start the Space Age for real, not only sniffing around the edge of it but go for it to 100 % ... ... think of all the adventure that waits!!!!
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looks so peaceful up there, and beautiful
and then they had a conversation of what 'food' they wood eat 
was funny yet breathtaking
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Absolutely amazing, i wish i could do something lie that! Hopefully it will soon be a ride i can buy tickets for 
#11 Random guess but i think the rear view mirror is for when you taxi about on the ground, imagine trying to reverse park that
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22. Comment rated too low. Show this comment nemmie 211 days ago
Truly amazing! But so scary, just look at:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gy0QUwxY5mQ
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#21 U-2's do not have reverse,they are pushed backwards by another vehicle.
#22 What in the fu*k does that old footage of a 45 year old tragedy have to do with this video? (different plane,different age)
#23 Hopefully the US military would never allow a POS like bono to take a ride on such a high-tech plane. They might give him a free ride on a cruise missile or a smart bomb.
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Nice video. He reaches ~80,0000 feet then flies back down. There's a video on YouTube of a guy who flies to 102,800 feet then jumps out. Even nicer.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MQ7N6V-YKJ8&feature=related
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#22 ... ROFL! It's like watching a high flying swallow and then u goes on with something like an eagle. The vid u mention is about a D-21 drone piggybacking on a M-21, a forerunner to the more famous SR-71 Blackbird. Thou have to say its a very interesting piece of 'techno-history' ! ... Believe the only thing flying in the atmosphere that could beat this is a ride with the SR-71...
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i have the full thing, and i have watched it countless times now =) most be amazing to be up there. awesome
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#11 and #21: The U2 has only center line landing gear, with no permanently attached gear out at the end of those long, flexible wings. When the pilot taxis out for takeoff, the aircraft does have small wheels on short struts which are temporarily attached out at the wing tips. They're attached in such a way that they will both drop off (on the runway) upon takeoff.
I may be wrong, but I think that the rear view mirror is used by the pilot on his landing rollout, to confirm that the ground crew's truck is following closely, so that if any drooping of the wings might cause the wingtip(s) come close to touching the ground, the ground crew will be able to remedy the problem; they have the wing tip wheel/strut assemblies in their truck and will quickly install them to allow the aircraft to continue to taxi into its parking spot.
You're right, though, about the aircraft not being able to back up on its own. There are tugs with the proper equipment that will allow the ground crew to move the plane back into the hangar.
#17: The pilot/Major is possibly wearing glasses to correct a slight change in his eyesight from the 20/20 requirement that pilot trainees must have in order to be accepted into the USAF training program.
I was a graduate of the Undergraduate Pilot Training (UPT) Class 69-D at Webb AFB in Big Spring, Texas in December 1969; one member of the class had his eyesight tested about halfway through the 53-week program, and was found to have a slight change in the 20/20 requirement that he had initially met. He was allowed to continue, and wore glasses while flying from then on.
I think he went off to fly fighters after graduation, so just because an AF pilot wears glasses, they don't qualify him as a wimp. The Major flying the U2 while wearing glasses seems to bear this out, wouldn't you say?
(76 votes)
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1. Cavabardus 212 days ago
Where can I buy a ticket ?