Mon, Dec 19, 2005
If Only They Had The Rubles To Build It...
Scientists at the
Moscow Institute have designed an aircraft capable of carrying
passengers from Moscow to Paris in 20 minutes, and all the way to
New York in less than an hour... if only they had the money to
build it.
According to Pravda, researchers have built and testing what
they call a working 1/25 scale model of the aircraft -- called an
"aerospaceplane by the facility's director -- but are seeking
funding to build a full-size prototype.
The aircraft (which, judging by the graphic at the right, looks
something like a Concorde mated to a flying saucer) would feature
dual rear-mounted hypersonic engines powered by hydrogen and oxygen
-- making the vehicle environmentally friendly, Pravda points out.
The plane could reach speeds in excess of 30,000 kph, or Mach
25.
"It will use a usual runway for taking off and landing, like a
usual airplane," said the unnamed Moscow Institute director. "But
it will fly like a manned spacecraft when in midair."
Such capabilities would allow the 246 ft. aerospaceplane to
carry anywhere from 10 to 45 tons of payload, with both
passenger-carrying and cargo roles envisioned by the Institute. The
aircraft would reach altitudes as high as 124 miles above the
earth.
Pravda adds the cost of such cargo flights would be
significantly lower than what NASA charges for space shuttle
missions -- a matter of a few hundred dollars for one kilo,
according to the Institute, instead of $20,000. That is, if the
Institute is able to gather enough money to build the
prototype.
"The building of two active spaces plane will require
from six to eight billion rubles," said the Institute
director. "It will take us from five to eight years to
build them provided that the financing starts in the nearest
future."
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