Exclusive: LEAP launch system

Last year I made contact with David Luther who is working on a project that is different than any other spacecraft project in existence. The spacecraft takes off horizontally, separates with spacecraft (front/back, not piggyback like older designs), and both components will land as typical winged aircraft.  


I asked David to answer a few questions and he graciously sent me the following replies with pictures. Enjoy.

Elevator pitch??? GOING UP!

I think the elevators will pitch up about 45 degrees on rotation and reentry...

Today marks a new era of space commerce. Many excellent ventures are emerging to provide more affordable space access. In the 1930s aviation evolved technologies that enabled effective commercial air services. Some have identified the DC3 as a great step in that direction. L.E.A.P. is our next generation launch system to fill that role today.

Winged vehicles for suborbital flight are gaining increased attention. Orbital Science Corp has demonstrated winged vehicles for orbital launches as well. Space tourism favors the comfort and confidence of runway operations. Orbital costs may drop with real reusability features. Many proposals have been abandoned for good reasons, but interest remains. Could this be the next generation of commercial space?

Optimizing these designs may require new uses for unique aircraft types. Blended wing bodies are now considered for structural and aerodynamic advantages. Horizontal launched spacecraft must be able to lift high payloads with minimal wings. A high aspect ratio booster can aid the launch of a smaller orbiter

Orbital applications would require a second stage. Most proposals are penalized by drag from piggy back staging concepts. Vertical launchers place stages in a linear stack, and this can also be done on an orbital space plane. This gives a smaller lighter system. By using a manned upper stage and an unmanned fly-back booster, escape is an option during launch operations.

A fly-back booster can be an autonomous UAV to save mass at lift off. It would be under the command of the crew vehicle flight controls until separation. Its air breathing engines can be boosted by hybrid rockets for greater altitude for staging.

Today?

At this time a few individuals are now doing preliminary studies and prototype development. I have partnered with Aerospace Solutions LLC of Phoenix to target possible markets like NASA and DARPA. We will seek grant aid from the new Game changing technologies outreach at NASA. This staging concept may have more value for earth transportation or for unmanned weapons systems. If conventional funding lags, we have small steps to fiscal endurance available.


This model airplane can be developed as a production design for our partner at Oakdale Aircraft to market. Seeing an electric fan jet launch an Estes rocket stage could go viral on U-Tube and at model events. It can be displayed at air shows and space events. Oakdale can handle any profits in return for the publicity that could land funding interest. I can keep working on my Social Security income, as it pays as well as contract design jobs that require frequent trans-continental relocations. The VA does better health care than contract houses offer anyway.

We have volunteers working on CFD studies, and an X-Plane flight simulation. X-Plane is a good design tool and you may be able to fly it yourself. Both of these will contribute some new data on flight potential for the full sized vehicle. If funding becomes available we hope to enlist aid from Frontier Astronautics, Bill Colburn, Micro Aerospace Solutions, and DAR Corporation.

Milestone?

A NASA OK on the grant application would trigger another study paper from Aerospace Solutions. I will fly the second stage model soon, and begin design of the booster model. If NASA accepts the second phase white paper, we will dive into a much more detailed thick study on scheduling and costs for the funding. Next Winter may see the booster model begin construction with flight in the spring likely. If that goes well we will have some high quality video coverage to publish. I may then return to design changes for production versions. I learn what a builder will hate when I have to build my own goofy ideas. If NASA is paying the bill, the model may be displaced for a while by any bigger toys they want to consider.

Conference? (Space Access '11)

Horizontal access proposals have been around for many decades, and they are usually rejected. The mass penalty of wings is real. Orbital Sciences used lift on ascent only until they could dump the wings overboard. With my limited credentials and early concept I didn’t expect a lot of honors, and I was pleased to speak for a few minute on the venture. I took revenge on NASA with my own bad acronyms and commented on a preference for a new paradigm. After engine failure, Captain Sully used wings to let his passengers pray, be baptized, and to be saved. Sky Pilot! We like the wing and a prayer options for safety on ascent and landing. That is a penalty that pays back. So we plan to lose the fuselage mass penalty instead. Wing bodies are even more efficient if staged in-line to reduce frontal area. Other small savings may add up to a viable horizontal system.

Our display was next to the Frontier Astronautics display and we discovered a few valuable assets available in Wyoming. They made our display look good with their big shiny rocket from DARMA too. NASA promised a new user friendly “Game Changing Technologies” program. So far I see we must conform to the technology roadmap, which does NOT include aerodynamic discoveries. They just issued a request for information (RFI) on horizontal launch systems, and now we can’t offer one that improves aerodynamics. You can think out of the box as long as you fit in their pigeon holes. We are waiting for an answer on that issue!

Final Thoughts

Well, if you can’t join them, lick them. I was left unemployed for two years, so decided to compete with the firms that wouldn’t hire me. Sure they have better credentials, but so did the captain of the Titanic. Being the first one loony enough to try this concept, I am now happily overworked and underpaid.

David Luther
Exodus Aerospace, unincorporated pending funding
We are leaving the planet...