Pat Flannery wrote in
:

Jorge R. Frank wrote:

s well.

I'm not talking a "what-if" scenario Jorge. I'm seriously proposing
that, historically speaking, we messed up our space policy big time
somewhere around 1958.

I don't see the two as being mutually exclusive, Derek. We can both
agree that space policy was messed up and "what-if" about the possible
outcome if the mistakes had not been made. I think you're being
unnecessarily argumentative here.

Lockheed "Star Clipper".
That's the ticket, laddie!

Well, one possible ticket, anyway. We know the flaws of the space shuttle
quite well. We don't know the flaws of the Star Clipper because we never
built one. But rest assured, it *would* have been flawed, especially if it
were designed as an "operational" vehicle from the get-go. That grass over
there only *looks* greener.

Smaller payload, smaller cargo bay, no SRBs.

Eliminate the cargo bay altogether, shrink the overall vehicle
appropriately, give it an X-plane number and a set of flight test
objectives, and I'm sold.


--
JRF

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