These two little toys come from an Albany QBO estate and represent real planes. Affectionately nicknamed “Warthog” (the green camouflage) and “Blackbird” (the all-black one, naturally) they were (and are) flown by the US Air Force. The A-10 Warthog is officially named the Thunderbolt but supposedly ended up being called Warthog because it’s just so ugly. While the elegant Blackbird needs no explanation, it was also sometimes called “Habu” after a venomous pit viper in Okinawa, Japan, where some were stationed. There’s no brand name on these models but they were probably produced in the early 1990s by prolific Chinese toy maker Zylmex, when both of the real planes were still in service. The Warthog’s undercarriage reads “Fairchild Republic” (the real plane’s manufacturer) and “A-10A”, one iteration of the real aircraft. The Blackbird’s undercarriage just says “Lockheed”. That would be Lockheed Martin, contractor for NASA, because their experience with space technology does pertain to the design of this plane.
For diecast toys these are quite accurate, with the exception of being not at all to scale. The A-10 Warthog is, in real life, 53 ft 4″ long, while the SR-71 Blackbird is twice as long at 107 ft, 5″. The A-10 is a single-pilot ground support combat plane, while the SR-71 carried both a pilot and reconnaissance officer as it was a spy plane that spent its first years shrouded in secrecy.
Although the two toys were no doubt priced the same, in real life the two airplanes are at opposite ends of the cost spectrum. The Warthog went into service in 1976. Designed as an economical, ground-support plane, it is used in battle to aid troops fighting on the ground. The Warthog flies terrain-huggingly low and uses rockets, missiles, bombs and an GAU-8 30 mm rotary cannon (basically a gatling gun) mounted under its nose to destroy tanks and engage attacking planes and enemy troops. Many have a ‘false canopy’ painted on the underside to confuse enemy planes during evasive maneuvers. (The canopy is the clear bubble over the pilot.) The Warthog’s awkward-looking wing design allows for the option of slow speeds and tight turns when needed, giving it a maneuverability that makes it a favorite with pilots. And because it often shows up to assist soldiers in trouble, the Warthog also has fans in the Infantry.
And what can we say about the SR-71 Blackbird, surely one of the most astonishing planes ever built? It first went into service in 1966. It was only ever designed as a spy plane and carried NO armaments whatsoever, although the aircrew had pistols in case they were shot down. But they never were, even though they ‘overflew’ hostile territory many, many times. The entire concept of the SR-71 was that it could fly so fast and so high that no enemy plane or missile could reach it. Because of extreme altitudes, both pilot and reconnaissance officer (who worked the high-resolution spy cameras) had to wear what were essentially space suits as the plane traveled the outer layers of the atmosphere. It could fly at Mach 3.5, or three and a half times the speed of sound! Although there may be a top-secret plane somewhere that has recently done better, officially the Blackbird STILL holds both sustained altitude (85,069 ft) and speed records for an airplane. Because of its specialized application and cost, only 32 were ever made. The Air Force flew them until 1989, with NASA continuing to fly one for high altitude research until 1999. That’s 33 years; not bad for a plane designed in the late 1950s! And what about the Warthog? Well, there’s talk of retiring it by 2029, which would give it a run of 38 years! In these days of hastily-designed, throw-away tech, both the ugly hog and the elegant bird are fine examples of something better. And the sturdy little vintage toys aren’t half bad, either! See you soon.
Tuesday Treasures was started by our staff member, Jeanne Lusignan. Each week she will be featuring items that have been found at our estate sales. If you would like to submit a treasure for Jeanne to feature in a future installment of “Tuesday’s Treasures”, please follow the button below and send us an email! Please attach a few photos of your treasure in a beautiful setting as well as any details you have about your item such as manufacturer, use, age, region of origin. If you don’t know about the piece, that’s okay! We still might be able to research it for you! Don’t forget to tell us what makes this item such a treasure to you!