The Flickr Northamericanxb70Valkyrie Image Generatr

When looking at North American Aviation XB-70A (A/V-1) inflight photos…those taken either just before touchdown or just after takeoff - I, like you - have difficulty ascertaining of which it is. Unfortunately, at least 75% of such photos have no useful associated description…either because they didn’t know, or I guess, care. Neither reason, or whatever the reason, is acceptable…these were/are some of the most dramatic & awe-inspiring images of this jaw-dropping beast.
Disappointingly, it is what it is.

However, for a brief moment, I thought I’d “figured it out”. From the caption associated with a similarly pitched XB-70 on approach (at just a slightly higher altitude), in the September 28, 1964 issue of AW&ST, was the following:
“Note canard flaps behind cockpit deflected downward.”
“A-HA” I thought…downward deflected canard flaps = landing! Exclusively, I foolishly thought. WRONG. There are photos identified as the XB-70 taking off…with those flaps deflected downward. UGH.
I don’t know jack about lift & drag, but deflecting them downward for landing made sense…as you’d want to slightly increase drag in order to bring the nose down. Right? Maybe, you also want some drag during takeoff, to prevent the nose from pitching up too far/fast, like when those hydroplanes catch too much air. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

So, my above pointless bullshit aside, I’m going with this being a takeoff.

Finally, check out that crazy & lucky SOB photographing…whatever is that’s happening here! I think he’s filming with a motion picture camera. If so, whatever the hell happened to the I’m sure spectacular footage he captured. And, based on the appearance of the “no. 7” runway marker, I think this is at Edwards Air Force Base.

I’d never seen this rare & spectacular image before. The ‘chewed-up’ portion of the white border on the right does not detract nor encroach on the image, which is still of superior gloss.

www.thearmorylife.com/north-american-xb-70-valkyrie/ The article "North American XB-70 Valkyrie — America’s Cold War Supersonic Speed Bomber" by Friedrich Seiltgen examines the history and development of the XB-70 Valkyrie, a planned supersonic bomber intended to replace the Boeing B-52 Stratofortress and the Corvair B-58 Hustler. Designed to fly faster and higher than its predecessors to evade interceptors, the Valkyrie faced challenges due to advances in Soviet surface-to-air missile technology, which necessitated a shift in U.S. bomber tactics. Despite impressive design specifications, including a cruising speed of Mach 3 and an over-target altitude of 70,000+ feet, the project was ultimately doomed by high costs and the advent of intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs). After the program was canceled in 1961, two prototypes were used for research. A major setback occurred in 1966 when one prototype was destroyed in a mid-air collision, resulting in several deaths. The remaining Valkyrie contributed valuable data to future aerospace projects and now resides at the National Museum of the United States Air Force.

At the National Museum of the USAF

At the National Museum of the USAF

This photo shows the XB-70A #1 rolling out after landing, employing drag chutes to slow down. In the photo, the outer wing panels are slightly raised. When the XB-70 was flying at high speed, the panels were lowered to improve stability. The XB-70 was the world's largest experimental aircraft. It was capable of flight at speeds of three times the speed of sound (roughly 2,000 miles per hour) at altitudes of 70,000 feet. It was used to collect in-flight information for use in the design of future supersonic aircraft, military and civilian. The major objectives of the XB-70 flight research program were to study the airplane's stability and handling characteristics, to evaluate its response to atmospheric turbulence, and to determine the aerodynamic and propulsion performance. In addition there were secondary objectives to measure the noise and friction associated with airflow over the airplane and to determine the levels and extent of the engine noise during takeoff, landing, and ground operations.

The XB-70 was about 186 feet long, 33 feet high, with a wingspan of 105 feet. Originally conceived as an advanced bomber for the United States Air Force, the XB-70 was limited to production of two aircraft when it was decided to limit the aircraft's mission to flight research. The first flight of the XB-70 was made on September 21, 1964. The number two XB-70 was destroyed in a mid-air collision on June 8, 1966. Program management of the NASA-USAF research effort was assigned to NASA in March 1967. The final flight was flown on February 4, 1969. Designed by North American Aviation (later North American Rockwell and still later, a division of Boeing) the XB-70 had a long fuselage with a canard or horizontal stabilizer mounted just behind the crew compartment. It had a sharply swept 65.6-percent delta wing. The outer portion of the wing could be folded down in flight to provide greater lateral-directional stability. The airplane had two windshields. A moveable outer windshield was raised for high-speed flight to reduce drag and lowered for greater visibility during takeoff and landing. The forward fuselage was constructed of riveted titanium frames and skin. The remainder of the airplane was constructed almost entirely of stainless steel. The skin was a brazed stainless-steel honeycomb material. Six General Electric YJ93-3 turbojet engines, each in the 30,000-pound-thrust class, powered the XB-70. Internal geometry of the inlets was controllable to maintain the most efficient airflow to the engines.

NASA Media Usage Guidelines

Credit: NASA
Image Number: ED97-44244-3
Date: Circa 1964

Description: This photo shows XB-70A #1 taking off on a research flight, escorted by a TB-58 chase plane. The TB-58 (a prototype B-58 modified as a trainer) had a dash speed of Mach 2. This allowed it to stay close to the XB-70 as it conducted its research maneuvers. When the XB-70 was flying at or near Mach 3, the slower TB-58 could often keep up with it by flying lower and cutting inside the turns in the XB-70's flight path when these occurred. The XB-70 was the world's largest experimental aircraft. It was capable of flight at speeds of three times the speed of sound (roughly 2,000 miles per hour) at altitudes of 70,000 feet. It was used to collect in-flight information for use in the design of future supersonic aircraft, military and civilian. The major objectives of the XB-70 flight research program were to study the airplane's stability and handling characteristics, to evaluate its response to atmospheric turbulence, and to determine the aerodynamic and propulsion performance. In addition there were secondary objectives to measure the noise and friction associated with airflow over the airplane and to determine the levels and extent of the engine noise during takeoff, landing, and ground operations. The XB-70 was about 186 feet long, 33 feet high, with a wingspan of 105 feet. Originally conceived as an advanced bomber for the United States Air Force, the XB-70 was limited to production of two aircraft when it was decided to limit the aircraft's mission to flight research. The first flight of the XB-70 was made on September 21, 1964. The number two XB-70 was destroyed in a mid-air collision on June 8, 1966. Program management of the NASA-USAF research effort was assigned to NASA in March 1967. The final flight was flown on February 4, 1969. Designed by North American Aviation (later North American Rockwell and still later, a division of Boeing) the XB-70 had a long fuselage with a canard or horizontal stabilizer mounted just behind the crew compartment. It had a sharply swept 65.6-percent delta wing. The outer portion of the wing could be folded down in flight to provide greater lateral-directional stability. The airplane had two windshields. A moveable outer windshield was raised for high-speed flight to reduce drag and lowered for greater visibility during takeoff and landing. The forward fuselage was constructed of riveted titanium frames and skin. The remainder of the airplane was constructed almost entirely of stainless steel. The skin was a brazed stainless-steel honeycomb material. Six General Electric YJ93-3 turbojet engines, each in the 30,000-pound-thrust class, powered the XB-70. Internal geometry of the inlets was controllable to maintain the most efficient airflow to the engines.

NASA Media Usage Guidelines

Credit: NASA
Image Number: ED97-44244-2
Date: February 4, 1969

Two of the sexiest aircraft EVER - TOGETHER - in one fantastic shot. The unpainted?/bare metal? aft portion of the XB-70 fuselage would seem to both suggest that this is tail number 2001/Aerial Vehicle no. 1 (AV-1) and that it was early/earlier during its lifetime.

In color:

www.pinterest.com/pin/572027590146054318/
Credit: user “area51specialprojects.com”/Pinterest

North American XB-70 Valkyrie supersonic bomber on display at the National Museum of the US Air Force.
Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio
Saturday morning 28 May 2022

Although I’ve come across the image on Twitter, and Twitter only, it’s accompanied by no information of any value, other than being an XB-70.
If the photo ID can be interpreted to be from 1966, with the ramp/apron readily identifiable as that of Edwards Air Force Base (EAFB), I’m going to say that this is XB-70 (AV-1) taxiing onto the runway in preparation for departure, o/a 3 November 1966. If so, this would be the first time AV-1 would take flight following the tragic & horrific crash of XB-70 (AV-2) on 8 June 1966. Further, if the identification is correct, Col. Joe Cotton piloted it, while NASA research pilot Fitzhugh Fulton served as co-pilot. The flight reached a top speed of Mach 2.1.
Note the modified possible Blue Bird bus, brimming with what appears to be meteorological equipment, loudspeakers and who knows what else. Speaking of which, maybe it's not a Blue Bird. Whole lot of similarity here:

topclassiccarsforsale.com/ford/255608-1963-ford-short-vin...
Credit: "Classic Cars For Sale" website

Wow. Click the ‘Related Documents’ link:

www.afmc.af.mil/News/Article-Display/Article/2424882/a-lo...
Credit: Air Force Materiel Command (AFMC) website

Just for the aggravation & perpetual disappointment confirmation:

Edwards Air Force Base website, photo 'section'. Search results returned for "XB-70" keyword search:

www.edwards.af.mil/News/Photos/igsearch/XB-70/

At the "NASA Image and Video Library" website. You're killin' me smalls:

images.nasa.gov/search-results?q=XB-70&page=1&med...

At least through a circuitous path via the Armstrong Research Center's "Galleries" tab, there are these:

nasasearch.nasa.gov/search/images?affiliate=nasa&quer...

Most likely/probably...possibly?, the take-off of North American Aviation XB-70A (A/V-1) during its maiden flight from the company’s Palmdale facility to Edwards Air Force Base, 21 September 1964.

The identification is based on nearly identical lighting & shadows of similar photographs identifying it as the maiden flight. Along with the content at the following two sites:

xb70.interceptor.com/xb_photos.html

Specifically:

xb70.interceptor.com/xb2/takeoff1-1.gif
Credit: Steven Levin/North American's XB-70, "The Great White Bird" website

Although, Mr. Levin writes the following:

"AV/1 taking off from North American's Palmdale facility. I'm not sure if this was the first or fifth flight, the only times Ship One flew out of Palmdale."

And:

www.codex99.com/photography/the-xb70.html

Specifically:

www.codex99.com/photography/images/xb70/first_flight_lg.jpg
Credit: "CODEX 99" blogsite

There's of course no shortage of websites pertaining to this legendary aircraft and/or its inaugural flight. I like this one:

www.theloopnewspaper.com/story/2015/11/07/community/maide...
Credit: (A2C) Thomas J. Morris/"The Loop Newspaper" website

The North American XB-70 Valkyrie on display in the Research & Development Gallery at the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force.

North American XB-70 Valkyrie
National Museum of the US Air Force

Research and Development collection featuring the North American XB-70 Valkyrie
National Museum of the US Air Force

North American XB-70 Valkyrie
National Museum of the US Air Force

North American XB-70 Valkyrie Sign
National Museum of the US Air Force

North American XB-70 Valkyrie
National Museum of the US Air Force

McDonnell XF-85 Goblin

National Museum of the US Air Force

North American XB-70 Valkyrie
Bell XGAM-63 Rascal (left)

National Museum of the US Air Force

North American XB-70 Valkyrie

National Museum of the US Air Force