is this brilliant Buzzards scale test craft??

img465.imageshack.us...


Ok im going to beg here!

I see that here there are loads of very knowledgable people here on ATS, so I hope some body can help me!


Just what in giddy aunts name is this plane?? I remember reading ages ago about a mother ship craft with big huge wing tips..... and i come across this web page - now heres the really strange thing. Its a page from a man who worked in area 51 on the sr-71 / f-117 / U-2 projects. And he had loads of images. I clicked on a link for an F-117 and got this !! I kid you not, the next time i tried to grab a copy it went 404 on me!!!

Please if any one knows what the hell this thing is, please let me know!!!

[edit on 20/7/06 by GSA]

the picture is photoshopped mate, were the other pictures in the collection of equal size and quality?

Alot of the images were fantastic....let me get the whole link again for you.

BRB.

www.area51specialprojects.com...

Its slated to be a f-117 shot but we get a secret air craft??? AWESOME!!!

have a look - every piccie is genuine as far as I can tell with this little beauty slipped in amongst them!

Your going to have to see the image shack because that mans site is now down!!! file forbidden!! ROFL

[edit on 20/7/06 by GSA]

[edit on 20/7/06 by GSA]

Where did you get the pic from? that would help a lot...

Doesn't allow entrance??

www.area51specialprojects.com...

Got another website man?

[edit on 20-7-2006 by Allred5923]

covertly named url then eh!

I believe that photo isn't of a real craft, i seem to remember seeing that image before

www.area51specialprojects.com...

here is the link but it cannot be accessed from ATS for some reason. Open a new browser window and copy and paste. then have a look around the rest of the site. Its actually blooming cool!

I love this piccie!!!

img465.imageshack.us...

IT'S NOT A PHOTOSHOP, it's real and it's very cool. Here's a closer pic of what you are looking at: web.media.mit.edu... a Rutan LongEZ homebuild fitted with an experimental pulse-detonation engine ("PDE" , aka "pulse jet") by the USAF Research Laboratory's Combustion Science Branch. Another pic www.innssi.com...

Relevant links:
www.pratt-whitney.com...
www.ez.org...
www.pr.afrl.af.mil... (page 2)


[edit on 20-7-2006 by planeman]

Cheers plane man!!!



how cool is that?? I want one for work and back....rofl...

Thank you very much for the links i appreciate it...

Oh and one thing that annoys me no end here on ATS is why does every one scream photoshop at the drop of a hat??? Its annoying to say the least........

I cannot find a pic of it in flight yet but I saw it reported in the mainstream aviation press about a year back. Here's another good link which substantiates it www.afrl.af.mil...


PS. I don't know anything about the "Brilliant buzzard" thing but this aircraft is not related to it. Pulse engines are quite slow.


More info direct from companies involved in the project:
Pics: www.innssi.com...
Vid: www.innssi.com...








[edit on 20-7-2006 by planeman]

Yes, it is the experimental for the new NASCAR in the skies. It is coming soon to us. Check this site out, www.rocketracingleague.com and you'll see every informations available. That picture is the prototype Mark-1. Its only prototype and it'll getting better and better. Right now they're testing the new rocket engine but it only last for 5-10 miles. The investors want to put engine that can go well beyond realstic 30 miles. I'm having high hope for this new league coming soon.

Originally posted by OneMyrmidon
Yes, it is the experimental for the new NASCAR in the skies. It is coming soon to us. Check this site out, www.rocketracingleague.com and you'll see every informations available. That picture is the prototype Mark-1. Its only prototype and it'll getting better and better. Right now they're testing the new rocket engine but it only last for 5-10 miles. The investors want to put engine that can go well beyond realstic 30 miles. I'm having high hope for this new league coming soon.

You may be right. I'm now having a hard time differentiating the Rocket-EZ racer and the ISSI PDE project. Here's the Rocket-EZ you are talking about:

Looks a good fit.

[edit on 20-7-2006 by planeman]

I think the Rocket Racer and PDE-testbed have the same airframe with different engines? Correct me if i'm wrong

Originally posted by GSA

Oh and one thing that annoys me no end here on ATS is why does every one scream photoshop at the drop of a hat??? Its annoying to say the least........

Because of the sheer number of "Look what I found!" threads that have photoshopped pics in them.

Thats a very fair comment Zaphod. Oh and many many thanks for the sppedy and informative reply - Hats of to eevery one who found piccies and information -

Slowly but slowly im starting to creep out of the aviation dark ages - I got stuck at F-14 and stayed there really.... OH but brilliant Buzzard - Its an alledged 'mother ship' from the 1980's for launching a high altitude plane into near space. It looks SO much like what that plane does, but about 50 times bigger.... Ill look for a pic for you all ( Drawings only because no ones ever seen it in real life with a camera )

(This is why when I found this piccie i got my knickers in a twist.... )

Originally posted by northwolf
I think the Rocket Racer and PDE-testbed have the same airframe with different engines? Correct me if i'm wrong

No, you are entirely right - hence the confusion. I now think the originally posted picture is most likely the EZ-Rocket rather than the PDE testbed.

Both are modifications of Rutan (as in Scaled Composites) long-EZ homebuild aircraft which normally has a piston engine with a propeller in the tail:

Rocket-EZ (aka EZ-Rocket)


Normal Long-EZ with propeller


Note the fuel tank under the modified long-EZs. Some propeller Long-EZs use small external tanks under the wings.

I am shocked and awed at the total amount of info that can be grasped at the drop of a ahat here on ATS.

I give you all applause for your magnificant effort and pics!





Thank you for all of these - They are great and helped no end.

Still, I like the pictures you posted, Planeman. I like that pluse jet version. Good post, man.

yeah I loved the pulse engines craft....blooming sweet!

Imagine that in your drive and on the commute to work...rofl

Originally posted by GSA
yeah I loved the pulse engines craft....blooming sweet!

Imagine that in your drive and on the commute to work...rofl

www.innssi.com...

Those designs look a lot like the prototypes of the competing planes in the X-prize ver 2.0 which is a rocket racing contest.