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February 7, 2021 We asked a former RC-135 pilot to choose the Top 10 ‘Spy-Planes’ (though don’t call them that!) When we asked former Blackbird, B-57 and U-2 pilot BC Thomas for his thoughts on the Top 10 spy planes he wasn’t comfortable with the term , noting “The SR-71 was a Strategic Reconnaissance Aircraft, not a ‘spy plane.’ The practice of calling the SR-71 a ‘spy plane’ is so prevalent that I have stopped trying to correct the error, and it is no longer important since the SR-71 is no longer flying, although the U-2 pilots have cause to resent their being called ‘spy pilots.’ We have resented that moniker because of the formal, international consequences of being captured as a spy, as opposed to a military man flying a marked military aircraft, while wearing a military uniform with name and rank displayed, and carrying a military identification card which is also a Geneva Convention Identification card. Our status as a military pil ....