Blackswift hyperplane hits trouble in Washington
"Blackswift is fairly plainly intended as a successor to the famous, beautiful SR-71 Blackbird spy plane. The Blackbird used monster afterburning turbojets mounted in cunning retractor-spike nacelles, effectively transforming itself from a normal jet to a ramjet as it accelerated to a blistering Mach 3+. It finally retired in the 1990s.
Sexy as the Blackbird was, however, it had its critics. In order to fit together tightly under the intense heating and expansion produced at operating speed, the superplane was made to be distinctly loose and rattly at normal temperatures. This meant that it would leak jet fuel copiously as it taxied out to take off, and it needed air-to-air refuelling as soon as it got airborne. Then, due to its enormous fuel consumption, it normally needed some more mid-air rendezvouses with tanker planes during its mission - perhaps topping up both before and after a Mach 3 dash along Vietnam's demilitarised zone or wherever."
"Blackswift is fairly plainly intended as a successor to the famous, beautiful SR-71 Blackbird spy plane. The Blackbird used monster afterburning turbojets mounted in cunning retractor-spike nacelles, effectively transforming itself from a normal jet to a ramjet as it accelerated to a blistering Mach 3+. It finally retired in the 1990s.
Sexy as the Blackbird was, however, it had its critics. In order to fit together tightly under the intense heating and expansion produced at operating speed, the superplane was made to be distinctly loose and rattly at normal temperatures. This meant that it would leak jet fuel copiously as it taxied out to take off, and it needed air-to-air refuelling as soon as it got airborne. Then, due to its enormous fuel consumption, it normally needed some more mid-air rendezvouses with tanker planes during its mission - perhaps topping up both before and after a Mach 3 dash along Vietnam's demilitarised zone or wherever."
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