SpaceDev Snags Scaled Composites' Suborbital Rocket Plane Contract

space.com ^ | 09/12/03 | Leonard David

[Phsstpok]

I haven't looked it up, but I'm almost positive Rutan was Helios' designer. I'll check it out.

actually, it was Macready. Helios is a descendent of the Gosamer Albatross and Gosamer Condor aircraft. Burt Rutan designs no less unconventional but generally more robust aircraft. Macready has always pushed ultra light to the extreme. His early work driving towards human powered flight required that. Rutan has always optimized his materials, using new, lighter, but also much stronger materials. Th name of his company, Scaled Composites, carries with it his emphasis on materials science.

Burt Rutan tends to rub a lot of old timers and tail draggers the wrong way. His aircraft designs question the conventions of aircraft design, such as symetry, in ways that they haven't been by many. Jack Northrop was another of these engineers, but he didn't have the computers or materials to make some of his dreams work as envisioned. The B2 has proven his detractors wrong. Voyager, among other craft, has proved Rutans critics wrong.

It's not arrogance if you're right and your critics are wrong.

[hopespringseternal]

All the rest (in the X prize competition) are either failures, or frauds.

That's quite a sweeping statement. Can you back it up?

[Flightdeck]

I never said I hated Rutan. Geez.

[Flightdeck]

At the end of the day, the work done at Scaled Composites has not done a great deal for aerospace technology. From the interviews I've seen, Rutan arrogantly thinks of himself as some kind of artistic visionary able to conceive and build technologies the big guys are too "dull" to hit upon. That's a joke. In the aerospace community, he's a small fry, and the results back that up. The big "boring" companies like Rockwell, Lockheed, Grumman, Boeing, etc.. have put out all the stuff you know about: U2, SR-71, F-117, B-1, B-2, Space Shuttle, and on and on. It's not just money and resources that got the stuff done, it's people with a lot more brains and know-how than Rutan. I'll take a Kelly Johnson over a Burt Rutan any day. Prediction: Scaled Composites can't handle the rocket motor in White Knight. If it succeeds, the technical work is outsourced. And if my knowledge of Rutan's isn't encyclopedic, it's because I prefer learning about technology that is truly new and innovative, instead.

[SauronOfMordor]

From the interviews I've seen, Rutan arrogantly thinks of himself as some kind of artistic visionary able to conceive and build technologies the big guys are too "dull" to hit upon.

As long as he produces occasional results (and he has) and he's operating with private money, Burt can be as arrogant as he wants to be

[Arkie2]

What do you think of the Prescott pusher? ;^)

[anymouse]

Already own 200 shares. Unfortunately I bought it shortly after it was first made available at $2/share. I've been waiting years for it just to get back to half of what I paid for it. Hopefully SpaceDev's woes are behind it.

BTW, Jim Benson, SpaceDev President and principle investor is a big time Democrat. Apparently a free market Rat, but a big eviro/anti-nuke liberal. Irony is that nuclear power may be the only way to power his asteroid mining dreams.

[anymouse]

Particular reason that you don't like Burt? Professional/personal beef?

I know Burt and his is a solid guy.

[anymouse]

I'm sure Burt stays awake at nights worried that "something about him just rubs you the wrong way." /sarcasm

Maybe you should get to know someone a bit more before you decide to hate them. Especially when you anonymously libel them on FR.

[anymouse]

It ain't bragging when you perform miriclous feats routinely like Rutan does.

[Flightdeck]

"Maybe you should get to know someone a bit more before you decide to hate them. Especially when you anonymously libel them on FR."

What are you talking about? Where did I hate the guy? And I never libeled him. Highlight the false statement I "published" damaging his reputation, per the definition of libel. So actually, you are the only one guilty of libel in this thread, by way of accusing me of a crime (libel) that I did not commit. Fortunately, I don't care one bit.