Virgin Galactic spacecraft has first captive flight

[RDMcG]

http://jalopnik.com/5499398/virgin-galactics-space...

I wonder what economy class will cost?

[Simpo Two]

Wouldn't it have been simpler to use a spare airliner as a launch vehicle?

[Eric Mc]

Simpo Two said:

Wouldn't it have been simpler to use a spare airliner as a launch vehicle?

I don't think that would be Burt Rutan's style.

I bet he built his mothercraft for a cheaper sum than a second hand Tristar or DC10 would cost.

[speedtwelve]

Eric Mc said:

Simpo Two said:

Wouldn't it have been simpler to use a spare airliner as a launch vehicle?

I don't think that would be Burt Rutan's style.

I bet he built his mothercraft for a cheaper sum than a second hand Tristar or DC10 would cost.

I'll bet he didn't, Eric. Even though it was done 'in-house', development, build and testing of White Knight II will have cost a shedload more than the few million dollars a 30-40 year-old airliner is worth, I'd reckon.

[croyde]

Blimey! doesn't look much. Like a bunch of Cessnas wired together.

[eccles]

Well there's a Tristar already converted to drop external spacecraft, that might be modded up to take the virgin galactic craft.

[Eric Mc]

speedtwelve said:

Eric Mc said:

Simpo Two said:

Wouldn't it have been simpler to use a spare airliner as a launch vehicle?

I don't think that would be Burt Rutan's style.

I bet he built his mothercraft for a cheaper sum than a second hand Tristar or DC10 would cost.

I'll bet he didn't, Eric. Even though it was done 'in-house', development, build and testing of White Knight II will have cost a shedload more than the few million dollars a 30-40 year-old airliner is worth, I'd reckon.

He'd never stoop so low as to use an old clunker (there's usually 30 or 40 of the things parked a few hundred yards from his factory at Mojave).

[Eric Mc]

croyde said:

Blimey! doesn't look much. Like a bunch of Cessnas wired together.

I think you will find it is a rather advanced craft and not just a bunch of Cessnas wired together.

[croyde]

I'm sure it is but having been brought up on Sci-Fi for past 40 odd years I was hoping something more like these:

[Mark_S_24]

The problem with getting a 2nd hand Airliner, I would think, is having to winch the bloody thing ontop of the Airliner, wheras I'm sure they will have a mini winch on the underside of the launch ship.

Mark

[dr_gn]

Mark_S_24 said:

I'm sure they will have a mini winch on the underside of the launch ship.

Mark

It's actually called an "intergalactic hoisting apparatus". Calling it a "mini winch" wouldn't fit in with the lifestyle aspirational celebrity nomenclature necessary for seperating huge amounts of money from potential passen...sorry, astronauts.

[Eric Mc]

dr_gn said:

Mark_S_24 said:

I'm sure they will have a mini winch on the underside of the launch ship.

Mark

It's actually called an "intergalactic hoisting apparatus". Calling it a "mini winch" wouldn't fit in with the lifestyle aspirational celebrity nomenclature necessary for seperating huge amounts of money from potential passen...sorry, astronauts.

Hee Hee.

I wonder which galaxy they plan to vist first?

[dr_gn]

Eric Mc said:

dr_gn said:

Mark_S_24 said:

I'm sure they will have a mini winch on the underside of the launch ship.

Mark

It's actually called an "intergalactic hoisting apparatus". Calling it a "mini winch" wouldn't fit in with the lifestyle aspirational celebrity nomenclature necessary for seperating huge amounts of money from potential passen...sorry, astronauts.

Hee Hee.

I wonder which galaxy they plan to vist first?

I dunno Eric, but if I had the money I'd have a go! Having said that I think it would be a difficult choice between the Mig 25 ride or the Vigin Galactic one. I think the Mig 25 might win in the end.

[Streetrod]

Can I ask ask a silly question here. The mother ship, on what side does the pilot and co pilot sit and who will be sitting in the other opposite cockpit and why?

[Eric Mc]

Without knowing exactly the situation, most twin seat aircraft with side by side seating have the captain in teh left hand seat and the co-pilot in the right (helicopters are the opposite).

They each have separate duties allocated to each other - although those duties can be varied depending on what each pilot wants to do on any particular flight.

Edited by Eric Mc on Wednesday 24th March 11:41

[Streetrod]

Eric Mc said:

Without knowing exactly the situation, most twin seat aircraft with side by side seating have the captain in teh left hand seat and the co-pilot in the right (helicopters are the opposite).

They each have separate duties allocated to each other - although those duties can be varied depending on what each pilot wants to do on any particular flight.

Edited by Eric Mc on Wednesday 24th March 11:41

Sorry Eric, maybe I was not clear. The Galactic mother ship has a cockpit on the end of each boom. I wanted to know in which boom would the pilot and co pilot sit and who would be in the other boom and what would they be doing?

[Eric Mc]

More fare paying passengers?

[Simpo Two]

Eric Mc said:

Simpo Two said:

Wouldn't it have been simpler to use a spare airliner as a launch vehicle?

I don't think that would be Burt Rutan's style.

True, but the 'Virgin' logo made me think that Sir Richard could have lobbed one his way by way of a contribution.

[Eric Mc]

Rutan wouldn't want it.

He does things his way.

He is an aviation evangelist for his method of designing and constructing aircraft (and now spaceplanes). He would never countenance using some piece of second hand kit designed by the aviation "establishment".

[Simpo Two]

Laudable, if not always the best solution!