Quote:
Originally Posted by davester65
The only thing from what I've read about this that I don't get is why they can't seem to get enough funding, also why on earth is NASA still working on a new spacecraft while this is on the horizon? BTW if my numbers are off I'd be happy to be corrected.
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That article is, um, wildly optimistic. There's no question that a dual-mode airbreathing/rocket engine would be useful for launch purposes if it can be made to work, but we're not even close to making it work. Even ignoring dual-mode, achieving the targeted atmospheric performance (Mach 5.4 on jets) is improbable by 2019.