Comments by "Stephen Villano" (@spvillano) on "Dark5"
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Amy Johnson , erm, ion pulse engines did begine to become practical back then, but the strongest ion pulse engine put out a whopping 88 newtons. You're not moving an aircraft with that thrust!
Now, pulse detonation engines also were coming out around then, R&D on the Air Force's space plane was ongoing at that time as well, with a test flight only recently completed (with an extended period in orbit). Drones were being developed as well during that time.
That all said, test pilots cooked onto seats? Not happening, they'd eject before they'd get killed by any heat, save during a crash. Ejecting engines, for safety reasons? By the time you'd realize that a high power engine was getting ready to come apart, it'd be too late to eject it, as the first hint is a RUD (rapid unscheduled disassembly).
Still, one never knows what "isn't" sitting in a hangar at Dreamland.
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