Contract for Kistler!!

There's some new? news about a contract for Kistler. Several sites are
implying this could be a jump start for the almost bankrupt company.
I've first read about the 'Kistler concept' several years ago and I'm
still quite impressed with it. Now I would like to know if time caught
up with it....is it technically outdated after all these years or is
it still one of the most promosing concepts for an affordable RLV
around?

(Raoul) wrote in news:42c2f4df.0402040824.68686944
@posting.google.com:

There's some new? news about a contract for Kistler. Several sites are
implying this could be a jump start for the almost bankrupt company.
I've first read about the 'Kistler concept' several years ago and I'm
still quite impressed with it. Now I would like to know if time caught
up with it....is it technically outdated after all these years or is
it still one of the most promosing concepts for an affordable RLV
around?


It's probably the only fully RLV concept that has reached (nearly)
working hardware. Not viewgraphs, not simulator or subscale prototype,
but a real launch vehicle capable of orbiting a real payload.

I want to see it fly just to see those old ex-Soviet engines finally
get to do what they were designed to do.

--Damon

(Raoul) wrote in message . com...
There's some new? news about a contract for Kistler. Several sites are
implying this could be a jump start for the almost bankrupt company.

First of all, they're not "almost bankrupt" - they're in chapter 11
with debts three time greater than this contract. Mostly to Aerojet
who supplied their engines. Their only chance for long term survival
is to find an investor willing to take the bet that after this
demonstration contract they will be able to win the bid for
operational supply flights to the ISS.

The contract is for demonstration flights and flight data on several
technologies including reusable launch vehicles and automated docking.
It was awarded without a bid because supposedly no other company is in
a position to supply this data within a reasonable timeframe. All
rights to the results are transferred to NASA and will be available to
Kistler's competitors (i.e. the Usual Suspects) for the bid on
operational flights.

I've first read about the 'Kistler concept' several years ago and I'm
still quite impressed with it. Now I would like to know if time caught
up with it....is it technically outdated after all these years or is
it still one of the most promosing concepts for an affordable RLV
around?

By "hi tech" industry standards a few years makes something outdated.
In the rocket industry there's a lot of hardware that is practically
50s vintage so it's probably more up to date than most.

On Wed, 4 Feb 2004, Raoul wrote:

Date: 4 Feb 2004 08:24:38 -0800
From: Raoul
Newsgroups: sci.space.tech
Subject: Contract for Kistler!!

There's some new? news about a contract for Kistler. Several sites are
implying this could be a jump start for the almost bankrupt company.
I've first read about the 'Kistler concept' several years ago and I'm
still quite impressed with it. Now I would like to know if time caught
up with it....is it technically outdated after all these years or is
it still one of the most promosing concepts for an affordable RLV
around?

==============================
Can you show us those sites? I looked at Kistler's page but did not see
anything about it. While I don't think that the Kistler design is nearly
as good as some other designs, it is vastly superior to anything flying
now.
It could be available in less than two years for less than the cost of a
single shuttle flight. It is a huge rebuke of NASA who can not achieve
anything comparable for 20 times the cost.

-- Larry

"Lawrence Gales" wrote in message

It could be available in less than two years for less than the cost of a
single shuttle flight. It is a huge rebuke of NASA who can not achieve
anything comparable for 20 times the cost.

-- Larry

Last time I checked the Kistler vehicle could not carry people. Last time I
checked, Kistler had not "accomplished" a flight -- *any* flight. Last time
I checked, NASA had not ever built their own launch vehicle.

It is not a NASA goal to themselves build a vehicle such as Kistler has been
attempting to build, but if Kistler succeeds (and I hope they do) it could
benefit NASA.

Jon