I would have perhaps gone with the Horizontal Stab between the 2 tails OV-10 style. I would hate to think what would happen if 1 elevator went full up an the other stayed neutral or went down in flight.
You'd better call Burt, and tell him the boys missed something. But Seriously, you could offset the opposite elevators with the ailerons and induce a torsion into the center wing. The fuselages would go out of parallel and the thing would keep flying, albeit with more induced drag.
Burt retired. Air-launch only provides about 1700 fps delta V out of the ~30,000 fps required to get to LEO east, but does provide some other advantages. You can fly it to more southerly locations for insertion into lower inclination orbits that are also better for reaching GEO. You can also fly it off the coasts where there are not as many launch azimuth restrictions as there are at VAFB or CCAFS. The high altitude for launch also means you can put a larger area ratio nozzle on the first rocket stage for better performance. The Shuttle's SSMEs were compromised by having to work from sea level to vacuum. Plus you can do secret launches when desirable. Safety considerations are lessened too, since any failure falls in the ocean.
Scott- Did not realize that. Just knew he retired from Scaled about the time N-G bought them. Have received briefings on Stratolaunch, but that did not include the chain of command, just the technical details.
Those are the real reasons. Still, there aren't even 100 satellite launches a year worldwide, and Virgin Orbit will be competing with Stratolaunch. Is this a viable project? I guess it would be nice to be a billionaire and not really worry if it turned out not to be.
So this has already been done (also with an air-launched Pegasus)...this just a matter of who can do it bigger.
I think there may be traction in the launch platform industry especially if they develop their own rocket... "In May, Stratolaunch Systems revealed the largest aircraft in the world by wingspan, 385 feet from tip to tip. The gargantuan twin-fuselage, six-engine aircraft built by Scaled Composites is designed to carry rockets up into the atmosphere and drop them so the rockets can launch payloads to space using less fuel. Ground and engine testing is currently underway, and the six Pratt & Whitney turbofan engines were all fired up for the first time in September. The company hopes to conduct the first launch test from Stratolaunch in 2019, but exactly what type of rocket the megaplane will carry is still unclear. Currently, Stratolaunch plans to use Orbital ATK Pegasus XL rockets for the first launch tests, with the aircraft carrying as many as three at a time. The Pegasus XL is an old and expensive launch vehicle, however. First launched in 1996, the rocket has only flown five times in the last 10 years. Hints are starting to trickle in that Stratolaunch may be considering building its own rocket to launch from the carrier aircraft. As reported by Jeff Foust from Space News, Stratolaunch has entered into an agreement with NASA's John C. Stennis Space Center in Mississippi "for the purpose of providing reimbursable testing and related support services to Stratolaunch to support propulsion, vehicle, and ground support system development and testing activities." The agreement was posted to NASA's website in accordance with regulations in the NASA authorization act requiring the space agency to disclose such agreements. An annex to the agreement further states that the purpose "is for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) John C. Stennis Space Center (SSC) and onsite contractors to support the Partner's [Stratolaunch's] testing of its propulsion system test article element 1 at the E1 facility." The E1 Test Stand at Stennis is designed to test rocket engines and rocket engine components, such as liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen turbopumps, according to a NASA slideshow on Stennis Space Center. "I can confirm we’re working at Stennis Space Center on a project that is still in an early stage," Stratolaunch spokesperson Steve Lombardi told Popular Mechanics in an email."As we’ve said in the past, we’re exploring a number of launch system possibilities to provide reliable access to space." The agreement with NASA follows moves by Stratolaunch Systems to hire experts in rocket propulsion technology. The company hired Jeff Thornburg as vice president of propulsion in June. Thornburg previously worked at SpaceX as senior director of propulsion engineering, where he "served as the lead engineer and manager of methane engine systems including the Raptor engine development program." Stratolaunch also has two current job openings for the role of propulsion lead engineer. We don't know for sure what Stratolaunch will be testing at NASA Stennis, but clues abound that it could be a new rocket engine. It certainly would make sense for Stratolaunch to develop an in-house rocket to drop from its megaplane. We just can't wait to see that colossal bird take to the skies for the first time.
