BS: Thunderbirds Are Go!

Subject: BS: Thunderbirds Are Go!
From: The Fooles Troupe
Date: 19 Oct 08 - 11:39 PM

Thunderbirds-style military planes are go

By John Harlow

October 20, 2008 07:11am
Article from: The Australian

    * US military to develop Thunderbirds-style plan
    * Could fly marines anywhere in two hours
    * May be like Richard Branson's tourist spaceship

THE US military is planning a Thunderbirds-style space-plane designed to fly a crack squad of heavily armed marines to trouble spots anywhere in the world within two hours.

At a recent secret meeting at the Pentagon, engineers working on the craft, codenamed Hot Eagle, were told to draw up blueprints for a prototype, which the generals want to have in the air within 11 years.

Pentagon planners have been encouraged by technical breakthroughs from Burt Rutan, chief designer on Richard Branson's White Knight spaceship, which is due to begin test flights next year and to carry tourists on sub-orbital journeys from 2010.

Mr Rutan, 65, who built the first privately funded craft to reach space in 2004, last week gave his blessing to Hot Eagle, which could be based on White Knight's technology. Mr Rutan said it would be an expensive way to transport troops "but it could be done. It is feasible".

Will Whitehorn, president of Virgin Galactic, which is funding White Knight, recently predicted the craft it could be used to airlift emergency supplies into disaster zones.

"It could be like Thunderbirds, like International Rescue," he said. A passenger version would be capable of flying from London to Sydney in four hours. The two-stage Hot Eagle would be launched from an aircraft carrier.

A large booster rocket would carry a smaller spacecraft containing 13 "space troopers" 80km into space, far above hostile radar, before landing in enemy territory.

The marines first called for a space-plane in 2002 after the US military failed to capture Osama bin Laden in the mountains of Afghanistan.

The project was known as the Small Unit Space Transport and Insertion program (Sustain). Its advocates said it took too long on foot to reach the caves where bin Laden was said to be hiding, and helicopters were too visible.

General James Mattis, leading the marines' central command at the time, said he wanted the space-plane in the air by 2019.

He was recently promoted to be one of the most senior officers in the US military establishment, and Sustain has since become a top priority.

A US Air Force spokesman, Lieutenant Colonel Mark Brown, confirmed last week that NASA and Pentagon officers had met for two days of talks to draw up plans for Hot Eagle.

Invitations to the meeting said participants would be discussing a "potential revolutionary step in getting combat power to any point in the world in a timeframe unbelievable today".

-The Sunday Times

Subject: RE: BS: Thunderbirds Are Go!
From: Peace
Date: 19 Oct 08 - 11:52 PM

Thought they might apply that to doctors and people involved in disease control, speakibng of which, whatever happened to Ebola?

Subject: RE: BS: Thunderbirds Are Go!
From: Liz the Squeak
Date: 20 Oct 08 - 03:41 AM

"The project was known as the Small Unit Space Transport and Insertion program (Sustain). Its advocates said it took too long on foot to reach the caves where bin Laden was said to be hiding, and helicopters were too visible.

General James Mattis, leading the marines' central command at the time, said he wanted the space-plane in the air by 2019."

Well I guess that puts paid to any idea of the US leaving Afghanistan any time this decade.

LTS

Subject: RE: BS: Thunderbirds Are Go!
From: Peace
Date: 20 Oct 08 - 03:48 AM

"space-plane"

It's gonna be a cast-iron SOB to serve drinks on that flight!

Subject: RE: BS: Thunderbirds Are Go!
From: Peace
Date: 20 Oct 08 - 03:50 AM

Is everyone sure this isn't some CIA hydroponics operation? Fund raiser sort of thing, ya know?

Subject: RE: BS: Thunderbirds Are Go!
From: The Fooles Troupe
Date: 20 Oct 08 - 03:52 AM

I've heard mutters about this for a while.

Subject: RE: BS: Thunderbirds Are Go!
From: GUEST,Geoff the Duck
Date: 20 Oct 08 - 10:29 AM

Actually, I was more impressed about 15 years back when they started flood prevention work in my home town of Bradford (Yorkshire, England). The city centre is built over a stream, Bradford Beck, which in very occasional exceptional rains would come up above ground level.
The remedy was to dig a tunnel diverting the stream around the city centre, which is at the bottom of a circle of hills.
The machine they used was almost identical to the "mole" from Thunderbirds, with a spiral screw in front of a cylindrical body, which followed the cutting edge into the tunnel it made.
At the time, I wondered if Gerry Anderson got any royalties for the design.
Quack!
GtD.

Subject: RE: BS: Thunderbirds Are Go!
From: Amos
Date: 20 Oct 08 - 10:53 AM

Hmmm--clearly, those in charge are [planning to have wars on their hands for the foreseeable future, very expensive ones.

It's conceivable that by fielding precisely calculated small operations such as those to be carried by this rapid insertion space-plane, a wise Executive could prevent large-scale wars, but it is improbable based on history.


A.

Subject: RE: BS: Thunderbirds Are Go!
From: artbrooks
Date: 20 Oct 08 - 11:59 AM

"...designed to fly a crack squad of heavily armed marines..." - and that would be ten troops, far from backup, supply and ammunition resupply, and so forth. Uh huh, sure...

Subject: RE: BS: Thunderbirds Are Go!
From: Arnie
Date: 20 Oct 08 - 12:05 PM

Hmm, apparently this Hot Eagle will only be capable of carrying 13 troops - what on earth are they supposed to do when landing in some faraway hotspot to face a few hundred Taliban or whatever? That's assuming this spacecraft actually makes a safe landing on some foreign hillside!

Subject: RE: BS: Thunderbirds Are Go!
From: Arnie
Date: 20 Oct 08 - 12:08 PM

Yeah, ignore my above posting - for some reason none of the other postings appeared on my screen until I'd posted, and I now see that my point has already been covered!!

Subject: RE: BS: Thunderbirds Are Go!
From: The Fooles Troupe
Date: 20 Oct 08 - 12:29 PM

QUOTE
"...designed to fly a crack squad of heavily armed marines..." - and that would be ten troops, far from backup, supply and ammunition resupply, and so forth
UNQUOTE

Hmmm, sounds like The Australian SAS - who were strongly desired, even begged by George from Little Fascist Johnny to go where angels fear to tread into Iraq...

I'm not making this up, you know...

:-)

Subject: RE: BS: Thunderbirds Are Go!
From: The Fooles Troupe
Date: 20 Oct 08 - 12:36 PM

"makes a safe landing on some foreign hillside!"

I'd guess at maybe a HALO insertion... woudl need a back door like a Nomad or Herc...