Concorde is Back!

[Shredhead]

I was supposed to fly on the last Concord flight, out of OshKosh.

Then Paris happened.

They switched us to one of the last commercial flights out of JFK and we returned in first class Virgin 747.

The Concord was cool, but loud and cramped. The Virgin flight was longer, but way nicer.

[subtle plague]

It’ll be fueled by Bitcoin

Heh.

[Timberridge]

https://twitter.com/BoeingDefense/st...76758681591813

[Ted Striker]

The Concord was cool, but loud and cramped. The Virgin flight was longer, but way nicer.

Did you actually ride on it?

[BmillsSkier]

https://twitter.com/BoeingDefense/st...76758681591813

I feel like at this point it's eventually going to move towards a battery powered fuel drone with a very long extension cord ahead of the SST in order to save on weight at takeoff.

[Shredhead]

Did you actually ride on it?

Yes.

[summit]

I feel like at this point it's eventually going to move towards a battery powered fuel drone with a very long extension cord ahead of the SST in order to save on weight at takeoff.

You can tank a jet from a prop, but it ain't going to be battery powered. Note the nose up attitude on the F-4 as it tries to fly slow enough to maintain and hit the KC-97's boom (which is a modified B-29 design) which is actually in a slight dive to keep the airspeed up.



If you are building an SST because you feel the speed is marketable, the last thing you want to do is have it stay sub sonic to hit a tanker after takeoff, much less a slow one. You also have added the cost+logistics of a second aircraft to maintain plus the cost/weight/complexity of the refueling system on your SST. Aerial refueling is also a skill that pilots must train for and it is not always easy or low stress.

Military aircraft don't do aerial refueling for economy. They do it so they can strike a farther target, stay on station longer, or use their max takeoff weight for ordnance instead of extra fuel.

[Ted Striker]

Yes.

Cool. Thats a pretty small club.

I've been inside two of them, but only on the ground. A friend and I got to spend an hour alone with G-BOAG after it was retired, but before it was put on display, and I was invited onboard G-BOAE not long before the grounding of the fleet. Had the distinct pleasure of meeting Barbara Harmer that day as well.

[Shredhead]

Yeah, it was 2000 and was supposed to be the planes last flight, out of Oshkosh, before they put it on display.

It was supposed to take off the last day of EAA and go supersonic over Lake Michigan, then thru Canadian airspace.

But Air France crashed 7/25/00 and everything changed.
It was still a great trip, private tour of the Imperial War Museum, but not the same hoopla flying out of JFK.

[dunfree]

One company that tried that was Spice Jet with their 737 fleet (I only know this because a friend worked there) but I don't know which airport(s).

IMO the main reason it isn't done is that it creates the problem it's trying to solve. During a low traffic period, it's a lot faster to just taxi out. A tow would slow you down significantly. If you only did it when the departures were lined up, what do you do with the tugs and drivers when they aren't needed? Pay them to sit around? I can't see airline management going for that.

The second thing is who's responsible? You've got a multi-million dollar airplane filled with hundreds of passengers being towed by a guy with a weekend's worth of training.

The Indian airports spicejet mostly operated out of also had far fewer plane movements than a us airport

[east or bust]

A fully-loaded F-18 weighs 37,000 lbs. Max takeoff weight for a 737 Max 8 (just for example) is 181,000 lbs. That would have to be a monstrous catapult system.

If you catapult a supersonic jet onto a treadmill, will it take off?

The answer is obviously magnets

[ötzi]

What they need is a giant conveyor belt the tug trucks could pull the planes out onto. A giant airplane treadmill.

[dannynoonan]

What they need is a giant conveyor belt the tug trucks could pull the planes out onto. A giant airplane treadmill.

Well, obviously that wouldn't fucking work.

[MTT]

I glanced though this. There is a new supersonic passenger aircraft but it's quiet? So it can take off and land at most international airports?. Buy stock.
Lots of people willing to pay the price for speed

[The AD]

I glanced though this. There is a new supersonic passenger aircraft but it's quiet? So it can take off and land at most international airports?. Buy stock.
Lots of people willing to pay the price for speed

No, there's a rendering of one and some marketing mumbo jumbo. That's about it right now,

[MontuckyFried]

No, there's a rendering of one and some marketing mumbo jumbo. That's about it right now,

And a bad rendering at that. I guess a cheezy rendering and the right marketing lingo is all it takes to get a bunch of suckers to invest these days, though. "SUSTAINABLE!" "BLOCKCHAIN!" "DOUCHY!"

[Flounder]

No, there's a rendering of one and some marketing mumbo jumbo. That's about it right now,

They interviewed the head of Boom on NPR yesterday. Just a verbal spew of every buzzword but no real information. All I could think of was Theranos, something too good to be true and a total scam. The rebuttal guest did a good job of pointing out how unrealistic the stated goals were.

Probably the most money Boom will ever make is from their web store, $100 LEGO kits are available. Maybe I’ll get some swag to go with my Enron collection.

[glademaster]

MTT should definitely send those folks all his money, though.

The BBC more or less crucified some buzzword spewing douche who was talking about providing sustainably sourced, "green" jet fuel to power these Boom jets yesterday as well. The highlight was definitely him describing all of the obscenely energy-intensive methods they can use to create "green" jet fuel.

Apparently the guy has never heard the phrase, "there's no such thing as a free lunch."

[MontuckyFried]

They interviewed the head of Boom on NPR yesterday. Just a verbal spew of every buzzword but no real information.

Exactly. I don't know about you, but I am starting to get seriously annoyed with every startup out there using the same exact tactics. I guess it MUST work because they keep scoring dat sweet invester cash.

For some reason, I can picture Boom's first VC pitch going something about like this:

[bennymac]

“Investors? Possibly you!” is something that is said amongst my friends regularly- usually in response to a bad idea.

[Ted Striker]

...some buzzword spewing douche who was talking about providing sustainably sourced, "green" jet fuel

Dude's been smoking too much Jet A

[BmillsSkier]

They interviewed the head of Boom on NPR yesterday. Just a verbal spew of every buzzword but no real information. All I could think of was Theranos, something too good to be true and a total scam. The rebuttal guest did a good job of pointing out how unrealistic the stated goals were.

Probably the most money Boom will ever make is from their web store, $100 LEGO kits are available. Maybe I’ll get some swag to go with my Enron collection.

Can I interest you in some Bear Stearns fleeces and branded Patagucci puffers?

[ötzi]

Kinda tempted by the tees, actually. It'd be nice and ironic in a few years if anybody knows what it is, but they probably wouldn't. https://store.boomsupersonic.com/products/boom-t-shirt

[BmillsSkier]

Kinda tempted by the tees, actually. It'd be nice and ironic in a few years if anybody knows what it is, but they probably wouldn't. https://store.boomsupersonic.com/products/boom-t-shirt

I'm holding out for the Grateful Dead collaboration merch.

[MakersTeleMark]

If they had Boomer T's, they probably would sell more.