From: skunk-works-digest-owner@mail.orst.edu To: skunk-works-digest@mail.orst.edu Subject: Skunk Works Digest V5 #142 Reply-To: skunk-works-digest@mail.orst.edu Errors-To: skunk-works-digest-owner@mail.orst.edu Precedence: bulk Skunk Works Digest Friday, 22 July 1994 Volume 05 : Number 142 In this issue: Skunks RE: Skunk Works Digest V5 #139 SR-71 STATSw Re: Two new recon. vehicles announced in Newsweek Re: Does anybody know... JP-8 See the end of the digest for information on subscribing to the skunk-works or skunk-works-digest mailing lists and on how to retrieve back issues. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: mangan@Kodak.COM (Paul Mangan) Date: Thu, 21 Jul 94 08:04:41 EDT Subject: Skunks This weekend we are having a garage sale and my mother asked to have some things sold there. So whats so Skunky about that. As I was going through the various boxes and packages I ran across a carefully wrapped package. When I opened it there were about a dozen various size skunks. When I asked my mom what the meaning was, she couldn't answer except to say that they belonged to my father and he collected them each time he went to California on Secret business for Bell Aircraft..................... :) Paul Mangan ------------------------------ From: SMPOD@MARS.LERC.NASA.GOV Date: Thu, 21 Jul 1994 11:55:37 -0400 (EDT) Subject: RE: Skunk Works Digest V5 #139 >It was us. I don't know why it sounded so loud, though. We had a flyover >at the end of the flight--about 200 ft AGL right over the building. I saw the overflight with the F18 chase plane.....beautiful sight (I wish that I had may camera). Working on the High Alpha program and having an interest in the SR-71, this would have been a great poster for my office (eventhough the F-18 wasn't the HARV). ------------------------------ From: "Edward G. Hopper" Date: Thu, 21 Jul 1994 12:52:56 -0500 (CDT) Subject: SR-71 STATSw the first one flew , please confirm stats on other two aircraft and projected window for flight. Edward Jetstars live f window for takeoff. Edward Jetstars live ------------------------------ From: John Regus Date: Thu, 21 Jul 1994 13:01:06 -0500 (CST) Subject: Re: Two new recon. vehicles announced in Newsweek I think this is an important item for group discussion... My problem, after having read larry@chips quotes from AW&ST, is trying to identify a mission for these vehicles that cannot be done by something currently in our inventory of high performance aircraft, and/or OTO launch vehicles. When I see that McDonnell-Douglas only received $1M to keep the DC-X program alive and these programs are getting the kind of money that is reported herein,.... John F. Regus | (713) 960-0045 | SYS/370/390 SYSTEM SOFTWARE ENGINEERING WUI:REGUSHOU | On Fri, 15 Jul 1994 larry@ichips.intel.com wrote: > > > Jeff Flamm wrote: > > >... The July 4th issue of Newsweek (page 6) had a > >short article about the Pentagon procuring two new unmanned recon aircraft. > >It is a 1 billion dollar program. The first aircraft will be an unmanned > >stealth vehicle designated Tier three-minus. It is to be operational in 18 > >months. The second aircraft will be an unmanned U2 designated Tier two-plus > >and is to be operational shortly after the stealth vehicle. The U2 is to > >have a 7000 mile range, fly at 65k feet, at 400 mph, and have a loiter time > >of 24h. No performance criteria were given for the stealth vehicle. Both > >vehicles will provide real-time photos via satellite. The vehicles will be > >able to fly via a preprogrammed mission plan or using a ground based > >controller. The Pentagon said it will waive all procurement regulations to > >speed development and reduce cost. > > Since this is fairly important, and since additional information on this was in > this week's AW&ST, I though I would summarize the new information, from > the 7/11/94 AW&ST, pgs 20-22, since nobody else has. And refs. in the AURORA > bib. have indicated for years that there was something like this out there. > > The big announcement of course was about the stealthy UAVs. There were two. > > One was announced as cancelled and the other is currently a paper study with > some technology handed down from the larger cancelled project. > > The cancelled project was known as Tier 3. The vehicle was a very large, > expensive and stealthy Lockheed UAV design. It has been described as > resembling the B-2 bomber in size, radar low observability and expense. > Cost estimates per UAV, reported by those familiar with the project, > were around $400 million. The project was abandoned as being too expensive > and time consuming. > > The newer stealthy UAV proposal, as Jeff Flamm indicated, is known as > Tier 3-minus. It is a Boeing, Lockheed, and DARO (Defense Airborne > Reconnaissance Office) project. A Boeing/Lockheed team was awarded a $100 million > sole-source contract to begin the project. The design exists currently only as > Lockheed drawings. > > It has been described by officials 3 ways: as a "Frisbee with wings," a > "semi-boomerang," and a "modified flying wing." > > AW&ST described it as follows: > "The design consists of a circular center section with a pointed nose. The > straight lines of the nose extend backwards into widely seperated wings to > produce an overall flattened chevron shape when viewed from above. The > circular main body contains the sensor and communications equipment". > > "The wings which make up about 80% of the aircraft's tip-to-tip width, provide > the lift needed for economical, long endurance flight at altitudes over 50,000 ft, > with a payload of 800 lbs., officials said. The basic shape has several > variations - including both pointed and rounded wingtips - and has undergone > redesign as the size, scope and funding of the project have constricted, > they said. The air intakes are located on the bottom of the UAV, and the > current engine candidate is a single Williams FJ44". > > DARO chief Maj. General Kenneth Israel indicated the flyaway cost of the > Tier 3-minus UAV would be limited to $10 million per UAV. Skeptics within > and outside the UAV community indicate the task is probably impossible for less > than $20 million per UAV. > ------------------------------ From: larry@ichips.intel.com Date: Thu, 21 Jul 1994 11:47:12 -0700 Subject: Re: Does anybody know... JP-8 >What JP-8 is? Also... what aircraft use it? In quantities of approximately >30,000 lbs? JP-8 is a new USAF standard jet fuel, I think. I recall reading something about it recently. I think I recently overheard someone ask a USAF pilot about it even and the USAF pilot confirmed it's a new jet fuel standard their using and that it would become more prevalent. All DOD aircraft will eventually use this fuel. From what I hear, the reason DOD is going to it is that it's safer. I don't have the specs however. >In fact, I'd really be interested if someone can pull a manual off a shelf >and list all the JP's... and their characteristics. That would be nice. Of course H2 is not exactly what one would call a JP :) !! Larry ------------------------------ End of Skunk Works Digest V5 #142 ********************************* To subscribe to skunk-works-digest, send the command: subscribe skunk-works-digest in the body of a message to "majordomo@mail.orst.edu". 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