US Bomber Projects #02 Available

 bomber, launch vehicles, nukes, rockets, spacecraft, spaceplane, stealth  No Responses »
Jul 202013
 

Issue number 2 of US Bomber Projects is now available (for background, see HERE). This issue includes:

  • Rockwell D 645-1: LH2:: A variant of the low-cost missile carrier using liquid hydrogen for fuel
  • NAA High Performance Penetrator: a 1963 design for a supersonic bomber, led in part to the B-1
  • Boeing Model 701-273-1: Second in a series on the evolution of the XB-59
  • Lockheed GL-232: A subsonic nuclear powered bomber
  • Boeing Space Sortie: A small unmanned spaceplane
  • Martin Model 223-2: Second in the series on the development of the XB-48 – a wartime turbojet powered medium bomber
  • Boeing Model 461: Second in the series on the development of the B-52… an early postwar turboprop heavy bomber
  • Northrop Low Altitude Penetrator: A competing idea for what became the B-2

USBP#02 can be downloaded as a PDF file for only $4:

——–

———

usbp02ad

 Posted by at 7:30 pm

US Bomber Projects #01 Available

 bomber, nukes, stealth  1 Response »
Jul 202013
 

Issue number 1 of US Bomber Projects is now available (for background, see HERE). This issue includes:

  • Rockwell D 645-1: a 1979 low-cost subsonic missile carrier
  • NAA 1495-25 PAMSS: an early ’60’s concept for rebuilding an XB-70 into a prototype for an all-new bomber
  • Boeing Model 701-273-0: First in a series on the evolution of the XB-59 supersonic bomber
  • Convair B-58-C-1: a two-engined tactical bomber
  • Lockheed CL-2102-2: A stealthy flying wing
  • Lockheed Model 195-A-13: An early nuclear powered bomber
  • Martin Model 223-1: First in a series on the evolution of the XB-48… a wartime turboprop medium bomber
  • Boeing Model 444 A: First in a series on the development of the B-52… a late war turboprop heavy bomber

USBP#01 can be downloaded as a PDF file for only $4:
——–

———
usbp01ad

 Posted by at 7:30 pm

Bell Saturn-carrying hovercraft

 launch vehicles, rockets, ships, spacecraft, transports  No Responses »
Jul 172013
 

Back in 2007 I visited the Bell Aircraft Museum in Niagara Falls, NY and got a chance to poke through their archives. Sadly, my scanner chose that day to not work, so all imagery I got came via photography with an indifferent camera. While it was more or less ok, it was not such a good system for capturing good images of glossies.

One such glossy was a 1960’s Bell concept for a hovercraft designed to transport Saturn V stages, presumably from the Michaud facility near New Orleans to Cape Canaveral.

 Posted by at 8:00 pm

Colossal Guppy

 launch vehicles, rockets, spacecraft, transports  1 Response »
Jul 162013
 

Back when transportation of Saturn V stages was an issue, a number of vehicles were put forward. One of them was a highly modified B-52 concept from Aero Spacelines, the company that gave the world the Mini Guppy, the Pregnant Guppy and the Super Guppy. Here, a B-52 would be chopped to bits, with an entirely new fuselage built with the B-52 cockpit and tail units tacked on, with the B-52 wings added to a new wing center section, with two additional B-52 engine pods. Needless to say, this was not built. Dates from mid 1967.

colossal guppy

Av wee nov 14 66 super guppy

 Posted by at 12:27 am

Grumman Space Shuttle Launch Pad

 launch vehicles, rockets, space shuttle, spacecraft, spaceplane  No Responses »
Jul 132013
 

Grummans concept for the mobile launch pad for their version of the Space Shuttle. It’s generally similar to the pad as actually built, but with some differences. The Shuttle is offset on the pad, rather than centrally located in order to provide room on the mobile pad for the tower, which for some reason was on the mobile pad rather than fixed in place.

grumman shuttle Image10

 

shuttle pad

 Posted by at 12:40 pm
 Older Entries  Newer Entries