[ExI] darpa's notion of using a retrofitted fighter jet to launch payloads

[spike]

This story claims they can get 100 pound payloads to LEO for a million bucks
everything included.  If so, that would put these payloads in the range of
universities, smaller companies, well-funded amateur groups, solar power
experiments and so forth:

 

http://video.foxnews.com/v/4036325757001/watch-how-darpa-plans-to-launch-sat
ellites-into-space/?#sp=show-clips

 

That plane they show as an artist concept is neither F-4, F-14 or FA-18, but
has elements of all three.  It would be interesting to look at taking an
F-4, which can be had for practically free, retrofitting it with lighter
wings and landing gear, get rid of all the war junk, the tailhook and all
that heavy stuff, look at a rail launch system so that the new landing gear
need not support the weight and physical envelope of the payload, see what
takes shape.

 

Perhaps we could do a rail-takeoff, air-breathing climb-out to about 40k-ft
and 500-ish knots (subsonic) at 45 degrees to horizon, drop the payload,
runway landing, fuel-up and turn around in a couple hours.  That would be a
fun optimization problem.

 

spike

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