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America's Fastest Spy Plane May Be Back -- And Hypersonic (bloomberg.com)
A Lockheed Skunk Works executive implied last week at an aerospace conference that the successor to one of the fastest aircraft the world has seen, the SR-71 Blackbird, might already exist. Previously, Lockheed officials have said the successor, the SR-72, could fly by 2030. Bloomberg reports: Referring to detailed specifics of company design and manufacturing, Jack O'Banion, a Lockheed vice president, said a "digital transformation" arising from recent computing capabilities and design tools had made hypersonic development possible. Then -- assuming O'Banion chose his verb tense purposely -- came the surprise. "Without the digital transformation, the aircraft you see there could not have been made," O'Banion said, standing by an artist's rendering of the hypersonic aircraft. "In fact, five years ago, it could not have been made." Hypersonic applies to speeds above Mach 5, or five times the speed of sound. The SR-71 cruised at Mach 3.2, more than 2,000 mph, around 85,000 feet.
"We couldn't have made the engine itself -- it would have melted down into slag if we had tried to produce it five years ago," O'Banion said. "But now we can digitally print that engine with an incredibly sophisticated cooling system integral into the material of the engine itself and have that engine survive for multiple firings for routine operation." The aircraft is also agile at hypersonic speeds, with reliable engine starts, he said. A half-decade before, he added, developers "could not have even built it even if we conceived of it."
"We couldn't have made the engine itself -- it would have melted down into slag if we had tried to produce it five years ago," O'Banion said. "But now we can digitally print that engine with an incredibly sophisticated cooling system integral into the material of the engine itself and have that engine survive for multiple firings for routine operation." The aircraft is also agile at hypersonic speeds, with reliable engine starts, he said. A half-decade before, he added, developers "could not have even built it even if we conceived of it."
The programme was killed because they were a pain to maintain. Advancing needs meant that they would have on top of that had to spend money on a tech upgrade (such as adding a realtime data link). Meanwhile, there were programmes hungry for its budget, including stealth aircraft (B2) and drones (Global Hawk).
That said, in today's threat environment, I'm sure mach 5 would be appreciated ;)
Santa Ana Winds: Like the Dustbowl, but with awards shows.
You would probably need 2000 miles to turn that 180 degrees!
The SR-71 was developed (like all military programs) to serve a specific need: the Communist nations were closed off to the world and their secret police did an enthusiastic and effective job catching traitors. America was simply cut off from intelligence on the ground. Hence, the super-fast spy plane was developed, capable of violating borders guaranteed by international law, racing in to take photos, and racing back out again before the outraged victim country could defend itself. Moreover this was when the space program was in its infancy, satellite photography was unreliable and took a long time from photo to print. There's simply no need today for a spy plane like this.
The Communists never developed a similar plane because if they wanted intelligence, they just sent out a man from their embassy with a camera and a pencil. There was also no shortage of Americans who either believed in Communism or who were easily bought off. At one point, the head of the FBI's counterintelligence agency was a foreign spy.
Shutting down free speech with violence isn't fighting fascism. It IS fascism!
Stuffs that can really tough out the harsh punishment of pressure and heat are crystals and one just don't 'print' crystal. It has to 'grow'
What is the point of a fast spy plane. Spy satellites are as effective and probably cheaper to operate.
A Hubble class telescope is going to take really good photographs pointing down.
From five and a half years ago: https://www.space.com/16000-spy-satellites-space-telescopes-nasa.html
What about the TR3B, when are they going to unveil that?
... whatever happened or is happening with the Lockheedâ(TM)s nuclear fusion project?
For those of you who didnâ(TM)t hear, 3 years ago (2014) they claimed theyâ(TM)d be able to make a nuclear fusion power plant capable of fitting in a box car/shipping container IN FIVE YEARS. I presume they mean a power plant that generates substantially more amount of electricity than it requires (Iâ(TM)ve heard that you can âoeeasilyâ make nuclear fusion happen, getting more energy out than in is the trick).
https://lppfusion.com/lockheed...
Anyway whatever happened to this game changing (civilization changing?) technology? The only reason why I didnâ(TM)t dismiss it out of hand was because it was supposedly being developed by their âoeSkunk Worksâ, makers of the F-117, SR-71 amongst other things.
So where is it?
SR-71 was cool. SR -72 is a flying blob.
+1 for quick satellite deployment. Working satellite networks is what the US mil is now totally dependant on. If an other nations have a production line of ASAT the US mil is reduced to having to depend on mil skills again. Platforms will have to make up for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance.
Domestic spying is now "Benign Information Gathering"
If you take an interest in this sort of thing, there are glimpses of technologies that have been under development since the 1980s that are beyond even what is hinted at here.
For example, there is plenty of evidence and acknowledged testing to show that we have working examples of things like Pulse Wave Detonation Engines, or Pulse Detonation Engines. These leave very characteristic contrails in the sky, which look like a chain of doughnuts connected by a thin central line. We know the technology has been made to work, but there is no acknowledgement of anything in use. Designed for reliable running at speeds of up to Mach 6...
Or what about âExternal combustion chambersâ(TM)... Picture an aero foil wing shape with a series of bleed nozzles on the upper surface through which fuel is carefully sprayed... The air moving over the wing section creates a contoured shape where it separates from the wing - still in laminar flow - such that the shape of the separated, moving air forms the upper surface of a combustion chamber... Much [much] lighter and simpler than conventional engines.
Or look at the latest commercial offerings from Rolls Royce and others, in which airliner engines actually pump neat fuel through turbine blades to help cool the engine, with micro-fine holes on the blades themselves acting as injectors...
Itâ(TM)s worth bearing in mind that even the Stealth Fighter used 1960s/70s technology to fly...
I would be *amazed* if this technology hadnâ(TM)t been designed, developed and tested. Whether it has been put into widespread use is another matter, but as hostile groups [even terrorists] develop the capability to predict the orbits of LEO surveillance satellites, it suddenly makes more sense to launch a plane, in an un-predictable pattern, to surveil a target.
But, this being the US, itâ(TM)s even more likely that there answer to this sort of question would be to develop all of these technologies - and more. Why have one option in the playbook when you can afford several?
Forget spy stuff, this sounds like a SSTO in the making. Or at worst, a nice 0th stage for quick satellite deployment.
The Brits are handling that end of the research: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...
I am Slashdot. Are you Slashdot as well?
97% speed-of-light capable spacecraft.
It's funny that this kind of energy couldn't solve America's energy crisis and give you vastly superior weaponry on battlefield. So either the people in charge are scientifically ignorant, totally irrational, or outright crazy (on a supertrumpian level) to willingly cripple their own country by not using such a power source to make the US economically unbeatable.
Ezekiel 23:20
Except that SSTOs are useless, especially air-breathing ones. So, most likely not.
Ezekiel 23:20
But you already got ATK's solid boosters for that. Can't get more flight readiness than an ICBM slightly oversized for your payload.
Ezekiel 23:20
So the plane is supposed to be flying by 2030 - that's twelve years away. Yet they also say,
"We couldnâ(TM)t have made the engine itselfâ"it would have melted down into slag if we had tried to produce it five years ago,â Oâ(TM)Banion said. âoeBut now we can digitally print that engine with an incredibly sophisticated cooling system integral into the material of the engine itself and have that engine survive for multiple firings for routine operation.â The aircraft is also agile at hypersonic speeds, with reliable engine starts, he said. A half-decade before, he added, developers âoecould not have even built it even if we conceived of it.â
This makes it sound as if they have solved the hardest problem, that they couldn't have solved five years ago, yet they won't have anything flying for twelve more years? The numbers add up, with gobs of room to spare.
The living have better things to do than to continue hating the dead.
The first pilot is a young dude named Speed Racer, and he calls his dad "Pops."
The Chinese version will be available in 2032, they'll just steal the plans and paint a red star on it.
Harrison's Postulate - "For every action there is an equal and opposite criticism"
I wish the 72 was as sexy. Looks too boxy to get my juices flowing.
Consider this - the Star Wars program back in the 80's didn't exist. The idea that it might was a major factor leading to the collapse of the USSR. What you're talking about would pull the rug right out from under North Korea and Iran. Hell, it could be used to strike the Ayatollah dead with what would look to observers like an act of God. It would take at most two such strikes to put an end to Islamic radicalism. Why keep it secret?
Greed and a lust for power can't be why, the tech you describe is a direct path to both.
97% speed-of-light capable spacecraft.
It's funny that this kind of energy couldn't solve America's energy crisis and give you vastly superior weaponry on battlefield. So either the people in charge are scientifically ignorant, totally irrational, or outright crazy (on a supertrumpian level) to willingly cripple their own country by not using such a power source to make the US economically unbeatable.
Capitalism isn't a "crisis" to solve for those profiting the most from it. There's a reason oil companies hold a metric fuckton of patents for alternative fuel tech that would create competition and reduce their profits. Greed will always ensure strategic suppression is a preferred weapon.
For 20 years you have been able to buy the Revel model of the Aurora. The plans were stolen by a designers girlfriend and sold to the model maker. Aurora is the hyper-sonic replacement to the SR-71, it is launched from the back of a larger plane and typically causes double sonic booms. The DoD refuses to acknowledge the existence but it has been reported on in the past.
You fail to consider that "making America economically unbeatable" might not be in the best interests of "those in charge."
You'll need to explain why such advanced tech would be kept useless.
Why bother?? If you can't figure out for yourself why there might be advantages inherent in such a course of action (albeit simply not advantageous to you or to "the nation"), you wouldn't understand the answer.
I have a SR-73 sitting in my garage. Beat that, USA.
the preceding comment is my own and in no way reflects the opinion of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
Holy shit, that movie is 14 years old and it's still relevant to today's geopolitical scene.
Matt Damon! Matt Damon!
the preceding comment is my own and in no way reflects the opinion of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
If you have not had the absolute pleasure of hearing this story, please do take a listen.
http://www.popularmechanics.com/military/aviation/news/a27340/sr-71-speed-check/
It is five minutes and seven seconds of your life you will be happy you spent on YouTube.
Outstanding, thank you for this!
"The King of Speed lived,
The Navy had been flamed,
And a crew had been formed"
His ignorance covered the whole earth like a blanket, and there was hardly a hole in it anywhere. - Mark Twain
An unbeatable force will not have any enemies, as attacking such a force would be suicide... Without enemies, the military budget will end up being slashed.
Assuming this information is true, the reason is obvious - money.
To keep military spending up, you need a credible enemy to "defend" against, and preferably you need some wars to use up resources and require the military to buy more.
http://spamdecoy.net - free throwaway anonymous email - avoid spam!
Humor me. What advantage is there in not exploiting such an incredible advantage? And keep in mind that every day it is sat upon means competitors are one day closer to discovering (or stealing) it themselves.
Capitalism isn't a "crisis" to solve for those profiting the most from it. There's a reason oil companies hold a metric fuckton of patents for alternative fuel tech that would create competition and reduce their profits.
Suppression patents is a dangerous game to play. A patent only last 17 years - and it is public in all that time. So you can read up on existing patents, and use whats left of those 17 years to prepare products. Then you start selling the day the patent expires.
Of course, if you're in China selling to non-westerners, you don't have to wait the 17 years.
The largest oil companies in the US earn over $500 billion in annual revenue combined. If they hold patents that provided or secured just 5% of that revenue, that's over $400 billion in revenue generated from suppressing the competition.
Dangerous? No, more like highly profitable. And besides, what CEO in any industry gives a shit what happens 17 years from now? They will have jumped and pulled their golden parachute long before then.
that engine with an incredibly sophisticated cooling system integral into the material of the engine
The notion of the need for rapid cooling of the air was seen at British Aerospace thirty years ago with the HOTOL project, and what a company called Reaction Engines has been working on for most of that time.