Hypersonic research has been almost as productive as commercial wind power. Almost.
What a plane!!
I thought they retied the blackbird because they didn’t need it any longer.
What with drones and sattelites, why invest in something this expensive?
It’s not my field of expertise; but thought this already existed?
https://www.google.com/#q=project+aurora
The SR-71 was decades ahead of its time.
I was stationed at Mountain Home AFB in 1967 and one of those SR71 landed. It was pretty cool and never seen one before.The pilot did a real fast fly over at about 50ft and went straight up!!! WOW!!!
If I remember right I know the SR-71 had to fly around 80,000 or so, any higher and it would of been lost in space and unable to fly from lack of oxygen, and if it flew any lower the atmosphere would of tore it apart, it was a pretty narrow attitude they had to fly it at when reaching their top speed what ever that was.
Why is it that a British newspaper is one of the few places a guy can hear REAL news about America? (That’s a rhetorical question— I think I already know the answer.)
No point to such an aircraft. Satellites and drones have it covered. More likely they are diverting attention from something else. Hopefully they are developing spacecraft, but they’re going to need a lot more speed for that.
No pix no plane
From ye olde Bussman-Biplane (Super/Hyper-sonic) designs?
Three things stand out here.
1. First test flight in 2018. Five more years? This is the same type of promise we’ve seen since the late 1980s. The SSTO aircraft was promised a number of times. It’s inception was predicted to take five years, and be operational a considerable time after that. This model fits precisely in that prediction’s footsteps.
2. This is not planned to be a manned aircraft. Great, the promise of flying into near-space, and men won’t be on board. Yawn.
3. This will not be built. The U. S. is in danger of losing it’s role as the world leader of advanced aircraft.