US loses second aircraft

**m8internet** · 12th August 2011, 06:18

Heard this news story this morning and it kind of summed up the arrogance of the Americans
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-14497641
I've not been able to establish if they ever recovered the first one
Given this is testing over the Pacific can pretty much guess which countries this will be aimed at, doesn't matter if you lose contact with it...

**TimTay** · 12th August 2011, 07:23

they can afford to make billion dollar test plane projects, but cant pay there debts? typical yanks.

**Innes** · 12th August 2011, 07:48

Pretty cool an Ircraft that can travel 20 time the speed of sound though!

**m8internet** · 12th August 2011, 07:59

Originally Posted by Innes

Pretty cool an Ircraft that can travel 20 time the speed of sound though!

Same speed as the Space Shuttle on re-entry which is what they were aiming for
The aircraft will, eventually, be capable of completing a flight to a destination half way round the earth in 1 hour
However, I suspect this would be more of a disposable unmanned aircraft and payload (er, isn't that a missile), making it the ultimate first-strike weapon

On the plus side, with development, this could be the eventual replacement for the space shuttle
The aircraft would be encased, placed on the top of a rocket and placed into low earth orbit
A crew could then be carried, either to/from the ISS, and with little or no risk of damage to the aircraft itself unlike the space shuttle which was regularly damaged during takeoff

**Penfold101** · 12th August 2011, 08:01

Research is important - if you don't do that, then nothing happens in the future, simples.

**m8internet** · 12th August 2011, 08:09

Originally Posted by Penfold101

Research is important

Agreed, but with all the technology and survelliance the US have available to them
Surely if you are testing a fast aircraft then you should have at least some rough idea what happened to it and where it is...
The US Press Release was recently updated "Somewhere in the Pacific Ocean", like doh!

**Penfold101** · 12th August 2011, 08:26

Originally Posted by m8internet

Agreed, but with all the technology and survelliance the US have available to them
Surely if you are testing a fast aircraft then you should have at least some rough idea what happened to it and where it is...
The US Press Release was recently updated "Somewhere in the Pacific Ocean", like doh!

You're taking what's in the press release as gospel mate - I suspect the Aurora was monitoring it...

**Aidi** · 12th August 2011, 08:34

Originally Posted by m8internet

you should have at least some rough idea what happened to it and where it is... !

PMSL

**Jezzy** · 12th August 2011, 14:07

The craft was travelling at Mach 20 - maybe if you reach that speed, you enter another dimension, like Buckaroo Banzai did...

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0086856/

**Jezzy** · 12th August 2011, 14:08

Originally Posted by TimTay

they can afford to make billion dollar test plane projects, but cant pay there debts? typical yanks.

I think you've misunderstood the recent news, the US didn't run out of money to service their debts, they reached a debt ceiling set by law, and the ceiling had to be raised.