From owner-skunk-works-digest@netwrx1.com Tue Jun 19 02:26:43 2007 Date: Tue, 19 Jun 2007 01:25:51 -0500 From: skunk-works-digest Reply-To: skunk-works@netwrx1.com To: skunk-works-digest@netwrx1.com Subject: skunk-works-digest V15 #15 skunk-works-digest Tuesday, June 19 2007 Volume 15 : Number 015 Index of this digest by subject: *************************************************** Re: skunk-works-digest V15 #14 Re: skunk-works-digest V15 #14 skunk-works Skunk Works projects Re: skunk-works Skunk Works projects RE: skunk-works Skunk Works projects Re: skunk-works Skunk Works projects Re: skunk-works Skunk Works projects skunk-works seniorcrown.com skunk-works FWD [forteana] Ghost imaging radar skunk-works Web: Lockheed Martin to test engine design for Falcon hypersonic attacker skunk-works FWD [tlc-brotherhood] The Strange Impact of Predator Losses or how goes the fight for the UAVs skunk-works FWD [U-Tapao] Response To Predator Post From Terry Colvin RE: skunk-works Web: Lockheed Martin to test engine design for Falcon hypersonic attacker skunk-works Robert Riedenauer obit skunk-works SR-72? skunk-works FWD (PvT) SR-72 ? *************************************************** ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sat, 27 Jan 2007 15:27:22 -0600 From: crash Subject: Re: skunk-works-digest V15 #14 Re: Jim Goodall/A-12 in Minnesota: That article hit the front page of the Star Tribune here in Minneapolis including a picture of the aircraft. It's too bad that it appears it is going to be yanked to be a "polecat". - -T ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 27 Jan 2007 17:29:28 -0600 From: crash Subject: Re: skunk-works-digest V15 #14 Wow, anyone notice that Youtube is starting to become the place to see black aircraft in action? Check this MD-21/SR-71 separation collission video at M3. Amazing - that was the one where the RSO (Torick?) drowned after prematurely opening his suit faceplate. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FYsMli570K8 - --T ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 13 Feb 2007 05:13:02 -0800 (PST) From: Allen Thomson Subject: skunk-works Skunk Works projects http://www.janes.com/defence/air_forces/news/jdw/jdw070212_2_n.shtml Skunk Works shakes up major projects By Nick Cook Jane's Aerospace Consultant Palmdale, California As a result of a continuing shake-up of US government-funded research and development (R&D) programmes, the Lockheed Martin Skunk Works has had to suspend development of its submarine-launched and recovered Multi-Purpose Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (MPUAV), but is forging ahead with five major unclassified R&D initiatives, details of which have been provided to Jane's. The five major projects that are set to continue to attract R&D sums at the Skunk Works' facility in Palmdale, California, are: a ship-launched UAV, the VTOL Advanced Reconnaissance Insertion Organic Unmanned Systems (VARIOUS); an airship adapted for near-space surveillance operations called Integrated Sensor Is Structure (ISIS); a Mach 10-capable stratospheric strike/reconnaissance aircraft known as FALCON - - for Force Application and Launch from Continental US; the Hybrid Aircraft, part lifting body, part airship; and the Revolutionary Approach To Time-critical Long Range Strike (RATTLRS), a quasi-hypersonic missile. 139 of 802 words ) 2007 Jane's Information Group [End of non-subscriber extract] ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 13 Feb 2007 08:52:37 -0500 From: Frank Markus Subject: Re: skunk-works Skunk Works projects Do you or anyone know what is meant by "organic" in the VARIOUS system? > From: Allen Thomson > Reply-To: > Date: Tue, 13 Feb 2007 05:13:02 -0800 (PST) > To: Skunk Works > Subject: skunk-works Skunk Works projects > > http://www.janes.com/defence/air_forces/news/jdw/jdw070212_2_n.shtml > > Skunk Works shakes up major projects > By Nick Cook Jane's Aerospace Consultant > Palmdale, California > > As a result of a continuing shake-up of US government-funded research > and development (R&D) programmes, the Lockheed Martin Skunk Works has > had to suspend development of its submarine-launched and recovered > Multi-Purpose Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (MPUAV), but is forging ahead > with five major unclassified R&D initiatives, details of which have > been provided to Jane's. > > The five major projects that are set to continue to attract R&D sums at > the Skunk Works' facility in Palmdale, California, are: a ship-launched > UAV, the VTOL Advanced Reconnaissance Insertion Organic Unmanned > Systems (VARIOUS); an airship adapted for near-space surveillance > operations called Integrated Sensor Is Structure (ISIS); a Mach > 10-capable stratospheric strike/reconnaissance aircraft known as FALCON > - for Force Application and Launch from Continental US; the Hybrid > Aircraft, part lifting body, part airship; and the Revolutionary > Approach To Time-critical Long Range Strike (RATTLRS), a > quasi-hypersonic missile. > > 139 of 802 words > ) 2007 Jane's Information Group > [End of non-subscriber extract] ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 13 Feb 2007 14:17:16 -0000 From: "Hill, Robin \(UK\)" Subject: RE: skunk-works Skunk Works projects Probably means capable of being developed in a wide variety of directions - "organic" development in response to changing requirements, rather than "structured" to a pre-planned schedule. Grows like a tree rather than builds like an office block. Or it could always mean that there are little tanks of synthetic neurones, possibly of alien/human hybrid, being grown in the dim, dark, recesses of an Area 52 (so secret we had to invent Area 51 to hide it) laboratory deep in the Nevada wastes. Just keep an eye open for manta-ray shaped aircraft with little red lights on the front scanning backwards and forwards. Robin Hill, STEAMY BESS, Brough, East Yorkshire. - -----Original Message----- From: owner-skunk-works@netwrx1.com [mailto:owner-skunk-works@netwrx1.com] On Behalf Of Frank Markus Sent: 13 February 2007 13:53 To: List Skunk Works Subject: Re: skunk-works Skunk Works projects *** WARNING *** This mail has originated outside your organization, either from an external partner or the Global Internet. Keep this in mind if you answer this message. Do you or anyone know what is meant by "organic" in the VARIOUS system? ******************************************************************** This email and any attachments are confidential to the intended recipient and may also be privileged. If you are not the intended recipient please delete it from your system and notify the sender. You should not copy it or use it for any purpose nor disclose or distribute its contents to any other person. ******************************************************************** ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 13 Feb 2007 07:05:58 -0800 (PST) From: Allen Thomson Subject: Re: skunk-works Skunk Works projects Frank Markus wrote: " Do you or anyone know what is meant by "organic" in the VARIOUS system? I suspect, but could be completely wrong, that "organic" is meant in the military organizational sense: belonging to and controlled by the end user rather than by another organization that operates the system and provides the output to the end user. Either that or they're using Vorlon technology... ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 13 Feb 2007 14:59:35 -0800 From: Joy Cohn Subject: Re: skunk-works Skunk Works projects Or they had to buy a vowel... From: Allen Thomson Reply-To: Date: Tue, 13 Feb 2007 07:05:58 -0800 (PST) To: Subject: Re: skunk-works Skunk Works projects Frank Markus wrote: " Do you or anyone know what is meant by "organic" in the VARIOUS system? I suspect, but could be completely wrong, that "organic" is meant in the military organizational sense: belonging to and controlled by the end user rather than by another organization that operates the system and provides the output to the end user. Either that or they're using Vorlon technology... ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 07 Mar 2007 12:59:13 -0600 From: gregd@habu2.net Subject: skunk-works seniorcrown.com Several years ago a friend and I started a small business together. Together we 'owned' the domain name seniorcrown.com (my idea). The business no longer exists, and the domain name registration expires in a few days. I thought I would announce its availability to this list as someone here might have an interest in it. This isn't a sales pitch, I am not selling the domain name, just a notification of an oppportunity should someone be interested. Greg ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 8 Mar 2007 22:47:48 -0700 (GMT-07:00) From: Terry Colvin Subject: skunk-works FWD [forteana] Ghost imaging radar - -----Forwarded Message----- > >http://www.guardian.co.uk/international/story/0,,2027227,00.html > >US defence contractor looks for quantum leap in radar research > >David Adam >Tuesday March 6, 2007 >The Guardian > >They designed an exploding cigar to kill Fidel Castro and hired >fortune-tellers to fight the cold war. Now the US military is taking >its war on terror where even Albert Einstein feared to tread - into >the baffling world of quantum mechanics. Lockheed Martin, a main US >defence contractor, thinks it can exploit research on the fringes of >theoretical physics to build the ultimate radar, which could see >through anything, from buildings to solid earth. > >The company has designed and patented a scanner based on the >principle of quantum entanglement - a far out concept, even by the >weird standards of the quantum world. It says the device could >penetrate any type of defence, to identify hidden weapons and >roadside bombs from hundreds of miles away. > >Quantum entanglement says that two particles can be joined so that >whatever happens to one must also happen to its partner, however far >apart they are. > >Einstein called it "spooky action at a distance". Lockheed Martin >prefers: "Quantum radar is capable of providing information about >targets that cannot be provided using classical radar systems." > >European patent number EP1750145 describes "radar systems and methods >using entangled quantum particles". It says such a device could >"visualise useful target details through background and/or >camouflaging clutter, through plasma shrouds around hypersonic air >vehicles, through the layers of concealment hiding underground >facilities, [and find] IEDs [improvised explosive devices], mines and >other threats - all while operating from an airborne platform". It >could also be mounted on a satellite. > >Filing a patent does not mean that the company has the know how to >build such a system - British Rail famously patented a nuclear fusion- >powered flying saucer in the 1970s - but Lockheed Martin is known to >be experimenting with sensors based on quantum entanglement, also >known as ghost imaging. One leading expert in the field told the >Guardian he had been approached by the company to work on a ghost >imaging project for the US defence department. "This is for real," >the scientist said. > >In theory entangled particles could be used to reveal details of >objects they have never interacted with. If one particle bumped into >an aircraft its twin would react in the same way, even if it never >left the laboratory. Work out a way to read that behaviour, and an >image could be built up, even with no information being directly >transmitted from the target. > >The Lockheed Martin patent envisages a different use for >entanglement. Current radar systems become less useful as range >increases, because the frequencies needed to transmit over long >distances are less sensitive. According to the patent this problem >can be removed by entangling light at different frequencies and then >sending them out together as a bundle. > >It says: "Entangled radar waves can combine one or more particles >with a relatively high frequency for resolution, with one or more >particles at a lower frequency for more effective propagation." The >radar beam could then "propagate through different types of mediums >and resolve different types of target". > >Analysing the return signal would reveal the "location, speed, >direction of travel, distance to target, target image, target size, >target area, target volume, target dimensions, target cross-section, >target surface roughness and target material composition", the patent >claims. > >However, others are sceptical. Brian Cox, a physicist at Manchester >University, has discussed the patent with colleagues. "The consensus >at Manchester is that this is just not right," he said. "The quantum >mechanics is wrong, I don't know what that says about US defence >contractors." > >Lockheed Martin declined to comment. Terry W. Colvin Sierra Vista, Arizona ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 14 Apr 2007 09:32:23 EDT From: SecretJet@aol.com Subject: skunk-works Web: Lockheed Martin to test engine design for Falcon hypersonic attacker http://www.flightglobal.com/articles/2007/04/13/213242/lockheed-martin-to-tes t - -engine-design-for-falcon-hypersonic.html DATE: 13/04/07 SOURCE:Flightglobal.com Lockheed Martin to test engine design for Falcon hypersonic attacker By Graham Warwick Lockheed Martin is to ground-test key elements of a combined turbine-scramjet powerplant that could power an unmanned aircraft from a runway take-off to a hypersonic cruise to strike anywhere in the world from the USA within 2h. The $10.2 million contract is for the Falcon Combined-Cycle Engine Technology (FaCET) portion of the US Defense Research Projects Agencyb^Ys (DARPA) Falcon programme to demonstrate technology for a reusable hypersonic cruise vehicle. Under Falcon, Lockheedb^Ys Skunk Works is already developing a series of unpowered hypersonic test vehicles that will be rocket-launched to demonstrate airframe aerodynamic and structural technologies for sustained Mach 10 cruise flight. But the ultimate goal is to build a powered, reusable demonstrator that can take off from a runway on turbojet engines, transition to scramjets, cruise hypersonically for an extended period, then return to a runway landing. Under the FaCET effort, Lockheed will ground-test elements of the inlet and scramjet flowpath envisaged for the Falcon hypersonic cruise vehicle, demonstrating performance and operability during mode transition from turbojet through dual-mode to scramjet power. The inlet design is based on the b^\inward-turningb^] geometry to be flight tested for the first time later this year under the US/Australian HyCAUSE programme. This axisymmetric flowpath promises to be more efficient than the two-dimensional scramjets flown previously. In Lockheedb^Ys design, the inward-turning inlet provides air to a Rolls-Royce Liberty Works turbojet that will accelerate the vehicle to beyond Mach 4, then to a Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne dual-mode ramjet/scramjet that will take over to power the vehicle to its Mach 10 cruise. DARPA says FaCET ground tests will also demonstrate scramjet combustion performance, the common nozzle used by both the turbojet and the scramjet flowpaths, and jet effects on the aerodynamics of the waverider vehicle. - ------------------ Cheers, Bill T. Black-Triangle Admin. UK. =================== Trust No-One! =================== http://www.black-triangle.co.uk http://groups.yahoo.com/group/black-triangle http://groups.yahoo.com/group/black-triangle/files/ http://groups.yahoo.com/group/black-triangle/links http://photos.groups.yahoo.com/group/black-triangle/lst ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 18 Apr 2007 04:34:32 -0400 (EDT) From: Terry Colvin Subject: skunk-works FWD [tlc-brotherhood] The Strange Impact of Predator Losses or how goes the fight for the UAVs - -----Forwarded Message----- > >Just got this and have been hearing about this both in Aviation leak >and pilots who do not want to be UAV pilots. > >Gene Rossel > > >www.strategypage.com/htmw/htatrit/articles/20070403.aspx > >The Strange Impact of Predator Losses > >April 3, 2007: The U.S. Air Force has, so far, lost 53 of the 139 Predator >UAVs it has received. Another 110 Predators are on order, but the >manufacturer is turning them out as fast as they can. Most of the losses are >not combat related. Component failure, or operator error are the most >common cause. Not being on board, the operators have a hard time quickly >determining what might be wrong. That delay often results in a lost >UAV. The same is true for landings, which have a higher error rate than manned >aircraft. Nearly all the lost Predators are the "A" model (the MQ-1). > >Some of the losses have been the result of collisions with smaller Army >UAVs. The Air Force is using that as a reason to give the Air Force control >over all UAVs that operate at over 3,500 feet. This has caused some pretty >testy exchanges between the Air Force and the other services. The Army >usually has many more (over 50 times more) UAVs in the air than the Air >Force, although most of these are low altitude micro-UAVs used by infantry >and Special Forces units. The Army does not want to let the Air Force have >control of its UAVs, because these aircraft provide essential air >reconnaissance that the Air Force is unable to provide. The Predators, in >particular, are in great demand, because they can stay in the air much >longer than Army UAVs (which can, at most, stay up for about five hours per >sortie). Predators each average about 110 hours in the air per month. Each >aircraft flies 6-7 sorties a month, each one lasting 17-18 hours on average. > >Currently, the Army only gets about a third of its requests for Predator >missions filled. That's because the Air Force has not got enough Predators. >There is also a shortage of Predator operators. A typical Predator crew >consists of an pilot and a sensor operator. Because the Predator stays in >the air for so long, more than one crew is needed for each sortie. Crew >shortages sometimes result in Predators coming down before their fuel is >used up. The Air Force insists that existing pilots (of manned aircraft) be >trained as Predator operators. The Army uses NCOs trained specifically for >UAV operation. The smallest (and most widely used) Army UAVs are the >under-ten pound micro-UAVs, which can be operated, after a few hours of >training, by any soldier with some experience using video games. The Army >has no operator shortage. > >The Army is developing a new UAV, the Warrior, which is sort of "Predator >Lite." This aircraft will look like Predator (both are made by the same >company) and have an endurance of up to 30 hours. The Army is buying at >least 128 Warriors and expects to start receiving them in two years. Given >the shortage of Predators, the Army may buy more Warriors, and fight >particularly hard at continued Air Force attempts to get control over Army >UAV development. Terry W. Colvin Sierra Vista, Arizona ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 20 Apr 2007 01:39:03 -0400 (EDT) From: Terry Colvin Subject: skunk-works FWD [U-Tapao] Response To Predator Post From Terry Colvin - -----Forwarded Message----- > >A few days ago Terry posted an e-mail concerning Predators and the in- >fighting between the Army and Air Force over air space and a few >other issues. My Son is an intel troop stationed at Nellis in the >17th Recon Squadron and has real time experience with the Predators. >He won't/can't tell me much but here is his response to the >aforementioned e-mail from Terry: > >well, here are the answers. > >yes, a lot of preds have been lost. loss by air force pilots are >minimal and not really a good arguing point. the pilots that did >crash their aircraft arguably should've already been out of the air >force before coming to predator but were put in predator for a >second chance at a career. thankfully, they go to the 15 RS and not >the 17th. the last crash at Creech was by a general atomics pilot, >btw. > > lots of losses are from collisions because (expletive deleted) army >doesn't want to follow the CFACC air tasking order and fly their >uav's when/wherever they want. problem is predators cost a ton of >money, and a lot of money is being lost in these collisions because >of inter-service fighting over who controls airspace. the AIR FORCE >controls airspace but the army doesn't want to fully let that happen >because they feel their uav's are strictly tactical and only operate >at limited altitudes etc. valid arguement, but something's gotta >give. component failure (specifically, in flight cracked engine >blocks and vpp servo failures) which cause pretty much immediate loss >of control of the airplane are also causes for lost aircraft. that's >a problem with a supplier to general atomics and i think they're >trying to fix those problems. > >of course most losses are MQ-1's. the first "official" MQ-9 was just >delivered to creech this month. > >sortie statistics are somewhat close but not quite, 6-7 sorties, 17- >18 hours... > >untrue about aircraft coming back before fuel is used up. the only >limfac on sortie duration can be weather. any aircraft has a >limitation due to weather, including the pred. but, mission >absolutely first, and we stay on target max time first and foremost. >why do you think the work schedule at the 15th "sucks"? ours happens >to be fairly good and definitely reasonable. the bottomline is, we >schedule around the mission, not work the mission around the >schedule. silly. > >true, no one wants to be a predator pilot. it's a intelligence >collector's dream come true, but it's not a flier's airplane. the >air force must use commissioned officer pilots. reason: note a big >difference between army uav's and the predator, including the new >army Warrior. we carry ordnance and kill a good number of people >with steel leaving our rails. the army does nothing of the sort. >they're simply surveillance platforms. additionally, our birds carry >multi multi million dollars worth of sensitive intelligence >technology. i wouldn't feel comfortable about letting a newly >promoted SSgt fly what we fly because he/she has some video game >experience. again, the army stuff is simple imagery tactical uav's. >let a SF Sgt fly it. not an armed aircraft though. i'm highly >confidence in enlisted abilities, but there is a so super high degree >of accountability, i've come to learn when shooting stuff from the >sky. the pilot's went through their rigors to take on that >accountability and responsibility, so that's what they can enjoy. > >don't want to completely rag the article because there's some decent >information to raise some eyebrows, but don't try to aggrandize the >situation without putting out all the facts. > >there's a good article i'll send you where an army one or two star >slammed gen. moseley hard over the uav issue, and there's a response >from an air force general more educated and articulate on aerospace >doctrine. but, what would the air force know about airpower... > > >Dan Terry W. Colvin Sierra Vista, Arizona ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 20 Apr 2007 12:17:37 -0700 From: "Smith, Larry O" Subject: RE: skunk-works Web: Lockheed Martin to test engine design for Falcon hypersonic attacker ... >The inlet design is based on the inward-turning^] geometry to be >flight tested for the first time later this year under the US/Australian >HyCAUSE programme. ... One of the interesting things about all this is one of the first airframe integrated scramjet designs that was every publically disclosed from an actual airframe company (if not the first), namely Republics 1959 proposal for an airframe integrated scramjet, also had inward turning geometry. It also was to use J58's for "flow inducers". Larry ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 2 May 2007 07:17:06 -0700 (PDT) From: Allen Thomson Subject: skunk-works Robert Riedenauer obit http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/california/la-me-passings27.2apr27,1,3424273.story?coll=la-headlines-pe-california Robert Riedenauer, 70; military pilot who flew top-secret military aircraft >From Times Staff and Wire Reports April 27, 2007 Robert L. Riedenauer, 70, a test pilot who flew top-secret aircraft that were later used in military missions, died Monday at his Palmdale home after a long battle with cancer, his wife, Sharon, told the Associated Press. A retired Air Force lieutenant colonel, Riedenauer spent his lengthy military career flying aircraft that were under development, including the high-flying U-2 and SR-71 Blackbird spy planes. After leaving the Air Force, he worked for Lockheed Martin's renowned "Skunk Works" design unit. Riedenauer was one of Lockheed's principal test pilots during the initial flight tests of the F-117 stealth fighter. In 1982, he crashed during the first flight of the first production F-117. The injuries he suffered in the crash ended his flying career. The plane's remains are displayed at Lockheed Martin's Palmdale facility. Born in Fresno on Aug. 2, 1936, Riedenauer earned a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering from Arizona State University in 1967, then joined the Air Force. He flew 120 combat missions over Southeast Asia during the Vietnam War. He graduated from the U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School at Edwards Air Force Base in 1969. ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 18 Jun 2007 05:32:58 -0700 (PDT) From: Allen Thomson Subject: skunk-works SR-72? http://www.airforcetimes.com/news/2007/06/airforce_sr72_070617/ An SR-72 in the works? By Vago Muradian - Staff writer Posted : Monday Jun 18, 2007 5:58:15 EDT Ten years after the Air Force retired the SR-71 spy plane, Lockheed Martin^Rs legendary Skunk Works appears to be back at work developing a new Mach-6 reconnaissance plane, sources said. The Air Force has awarded Lockheed^Rs Advanced Development Projects arm a top-secret contract to develop a stealthy 4,000-mph plane capable of flying to altitudes of about 100,000 feet, with transcontinental range. The plan is to debut the craft around 2020. The new jet ^W being referred to by some as the SR-72 ^W is likely to be unmanned and, while intended for reconnaissance, could eventually trade its sensors for weapons. The new aircraft would offer a combination of speed, altitude and stealth that could make it virtually impervious to ground-based missiles, sources said. Even the SR-71 is said to have evaded hundreds of missiles fired at it during its long career, although some aircraft sustained minor damage. But experts say enormous challenges remain. First, the SR-71^Rs top speed was about 2,200 mph. Pushing a plane at twice the speed in the thin air of the upper stratosphere would require exceptionally powerful engines. Second, friction at high speeds could reduce stealth. ^SAn aircraft with these characteristics could prove a potent response to anti-satellite weapons,^T said Loren Thompson of the Lexington Institute. ^SIf U.S. reconnaissance satellites were lost, an SR-72 could get to areas of interest quickly and provide persistent surveillance in place of the satellite.^T And don^Rt bother asking the Air Force or Skunk Works executives about their work. None is commenting. ^SAs a matter of policy, we don^Rt talk about classified programs ^W whether or not they exist,^T Lockheed^Rs Tom Jurkowsky said. ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 19 Jun 2007 02:24:42 -0400 (EDT) From: Terry Colvin Subject: skunk-works FWD (PvT) SR-72 ? - -----Forwarded Message----- > >Defense News >June 11, 2007 >Pg. 3 >An SR-72? >Lockheed Martin's New Mach-6 Spy Plane >By Vago Muradian >Ten years after the U.S. Air Force retired the SR-71 spy plane, Lockheed Martin's legendary Skunk Works appears back at work developing a new Mach-6 reconnaissance plane, sources said. >The Air Force has awarded Lockheed's Advanced Development Projects arm a top-secret contract to develop a stealthy 4,000-mph plane capable of flying to altitudes of about 100,000 feet, with transcontinental range. The plan is to debut the craft around 2020. > >The new jet--being referred to by some as the SR-72--is likely to be unmanned and, while intended for reconnaissance, it could eventually trade its sensors for weapons. > >The Air Force is working on several programs to improve its global intelligence-gathering. Satellites offer global coverage, but the ones with the highest resolution operate on largely predictable orbits, and many countries have mastered the art of hiding from them. Moreover, China's successful anti-satellite missile test in January hinted that U.S. satellites might become vulnerable. > >The new aircraft would offer a combination of speed, altitude and stealth that could make it virtually impervious to ground-based missiles, sources said. Even the SR-71 is said to have evaded hundreds of missiles fired at it during its long career, although some aircraft sustained minor damage. > >But experts say enormous challenges remain. First, the SR-71's top speed was about 2,200 mph. Pushing a plane at twice the speed in the thin air of the upper stratosphere would require exceptionally powerful engines. Second, friction at high speeds could reduce stealth. > >"An aircraft with these characteristics could prove a potent response to anti-satellite weapons," said Loren Thompson of the Lexington Institute. "If U.S. reconnaissance satellites were lost, an SR-72 could get to areas of interest quickly and provide persistent surveillance in place of the satellite." > >And don't bother asking the Air Force or Skunk Works execs about their work. Neither is commenting and Skunk Works is skipping next week's Paris Air Show. > >"As a matter of policy, we don't talk about classified programs--whether or not they exist," said Lockheed's Tom Jurkowsky. Terry W. Colvin Sierra Vista, Arizona ------------------------------ End of skunk-works-digest V15 #15 ********************************* To subscribe to skunk-works-digest, send the command: subscribe skunk-works-digest in the body of a message to "majordomo@netwrx1.com". If you want to subscribe something other than the account the mail is coming from, such as a local redistribution list, then append that address to the "subscribe" command; for example, to subscribe "local-skunk-works": subscribe skunk-works-digest local-skunk-works@your.domain.net To unsubscribe, send mail to the same address, with the command: unsubscribe skunk-works-digest in the body. Administrative requests, problems, and other non-list mail can be sent to georgek@netwrx1.com. A non-digest (direct mail) version of this list is also available; to subscribe to that instead, replace all instances of "skunk-works-digest" in the commands above with "skunk-works". 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