Gone East

Rutan Forum Notes

Here are some notes from yesterday's Burt Rutan talk on his Spaceflight project. They are not an attempt to transcribe the talk. It's just scribblings of whatever caught my fancy.

Rutan Notes
Oshkosh Forum
Aug 2, 2003 10 am

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scaled.com

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Voyager is the only single-stage to orbit vehicle.

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(patch logo)
Scaled Flight Test
Interrogo Haud Defenso
("Question not defend")

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"We win not be regulated because it reduces safety."

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1908-1912 = Aviation Renaissance

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US Space Launch Systems
Each abandoned when more expensive one became available

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Manned Space Pgms, all countries

242 flights
111 pilots
433 total people
963 seats

Astronaut = anyone who has ridden on the shuttle

That's like calling everyone who's ever ridden in coach, on a 747, a pilot.

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What the Renaissance requires:

Entrepreneurs trying weird, risky things. Exploration and fun, NOT politics and "science"

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AvWeek article by Burt

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Tier One

Development of an affordable, suborbital space flight capability.

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SS1 tailnumber is N328KF (328 thousand feet)

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Showed nice video of WK and combined WK/SS1 flights.

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Q: How long have you worked on this?

A: I haven't worked since I left the Air Force.

Posted by jghiii at August 3, 2003 04:35 PM