No mercy on the dial-up folks...
Posted on 12/16/2010 8:52:50 PM PST by ErnstStavroBlofeld
The Boeing Phantom Ray unmanned airborne system sits atop a NASA Shuttle Carrier Aircraft (SCA), a modified Boeing 747, as it takes off at 1:40 p.m. Central time for today's test flight at Lambert International Airport. The 50-minute flight was conducted in preparation for Phantom Ray's upcoming transport on the SCA to the Dryden Flight Research Center at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif.
"This is exciting not just because it's the first time that an aircraft other than the space shuttle has flown on the SCA, but also because it puts Phantom Ray that much closer to making its first flight," said Craig Brown, Phantom Ray program manager for Boeing.
The SCA flights with Phantom Ray are being conducted under a Boeing-funded, commercial Space Act Agreement with NASA. Once Phantom Ray arrives at Dryden, it will undergo ground and high-speed taxi tests to prepare for its first flight in early 2011.
Phantom Ray is one of several programs in Boeing's Phantom Works division that are part of the company's rapid prototyping initiative to design, develop and build advanced aircraft and then demonstrate their capabilities.
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(Excerpt) Read more at boeing.mediaroom.com ...
interesting
ping
No mercy on the dial-up folks...
Jeez. I hope that 747 had enough power to get off the ground.
what is the service ceiling while carrying the space shuttle?? does anyone know??
I guess the Piggy-Back Piper Cub was busy that day...
Looks like it’s meant to kill Fidel Jihadis. Good...
Flying with the additional drag and weight of the Orbiter imposes significant fuel and altitude penalties. The range is reduced to 1,000 nautical miles (1,850 km), compared to an unladen range of 5500 nautical miles (10,100 km),[3] requiring an SCA to stop several times to refuel on a transcontinental flight. The SCA has an altitude ceiling of 15,000 feet and a maximum cruise speed of Mach 0.6 with the orbiter attached.[3] A crew of 170 takes a week to prepare the shuttle and SCA for flight
Thank you wiki...
It has to be good for something I guess.!!!
so cruel..... (I get probably 16 mbps when its working right :p)
Service ceiling is 15,000 ft with shuttle
Looks like an angry mosquito.
I could have shrunk it but then the Phantom Ray would be too small to discern any meaningful details.
I was wondering. Kind of sad they are going to be retired without a good replacement.
If only this 747 could be used to put large “SpaceShip Three”-type thing into orbit. Launch off its back or something, lol.
thats true
I’m amazed that the Phantom Ray has enough power to lift that 747 into the air like that.
That's because they cranked the Yoyodyne oscillation overthruster to "11".
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