The design issue will be whether its easier to retract/remove the spike, turn the seats around, and come in nose first .. OR .. find some lightweight way to make the nozzles flush with the bottom. This 'nose first' reentry *assumes* that the removal of the spike would substantially increase the drag at hypersonic speeds.
Dan In a message dated 8/12/02 3:44:38 PM, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: << Well, coming in nose first on a VTVL is not a terribly worthwhile thing to do unless you have some other design factor that makes the greater cross range possible with a simple biconic upper body shape is a design goal. For the stereotypical VTVL form, with base-first re-entry, the aerodynamic spike on top is in the wake during re-entry. >> _______________________________________________ ERPS-list mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://lists.erps.org/mailman/listinfo/erps-list
