Bloodhound SSC, the long-running British project to break the land speed record, achieved an impressive milestone a few days ago; taking its main jet engine to max reheat with the car firmly anchored to a formerly quiet corner of Cornwall Airport Newquay.
Almost as impressive as the spectacle of the grounded EJ200 firing up is the fact that Andy Green was aboard, and throttling the jet with his right foot. Even allowing for the ice circling the Wing Commander's veins, that must've been quite a moment.
"What a fantastic ending to the end of our first week of testing," said Stuart Edmondson, Head of Engineering Operations. "Integrating a Eurofighter Typhoon jet engine into the car is a huge challenge; however, we have succeeded!
"Witnessing the EJ200 jet engine at maximum reheat is a fantastic experience. Not only can you see the shock diamonds and hear the deafening noise, you can physically feel the power of the engine as your body shakes."
The test - recorded on video for your tea-drinking pleasure - is the prelude initial speed tests beginning on the airport's runway later this month. This will include the car running up to 200mph to evaluate its running gear and the efficiency of the air intake which feeds the jet engine.
Bravo team, now the hard work begins!
The speed of the run in Cornwall will ultimately be decided by Bloodhound's capacity to stop: the car featuring carbon disc brakes and the Dunlop rubber from an English Electric Lightning fighter for the early test.
Should they prove successful, the project will relocate to South Africa, replace the tyres with solid aluminium wheels, and begin its first high-speed campaign on an 11-mile track at Hakskeen Pan with the initial target being the 763.065mph record achieved by Andy Green and Thrust SSC in 1997.
If all goes well, the car's extra rocket motors will be added next year, providing the car with sufficient power for a shot at the 1000mph land speed record - the proclaimed target when the project was announced in 2008.
Anyone keen to see the British leg of the test phase can apply for tickets here.
here
[Images: Stefan Marjoram, via Twitter]
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