Push-Pots-- Thankfully, they never flew...

[Nik]

Any-one else remember Murray Leinster's infamous Push-Pots, the zero stage of his 'Space Platform' and 'Space Tug' books ??

A monster jet engine, vectored thrust using vanes in the exhaust, Be/F2 JATOs for when the jets ran out of air, no wings, tail-landing, training flights launched from the back of a fast truck ??

Let's forget the impossible launch trajectories, the space platform's clunky design, the sintered hulls etc etc and just be very, very glad those crazy Push-Pots and their pilots stayed safely on paper...

Space Platform
http://www.gutenberg.org/catalog/world/readfile?fk_files=747639&pageno=1

Space Tug
http://www.gutenberg.org/catalog/world/readfile?fk_files=239453&pageno=1

But, hey, not bad for 1953 !!

 

[elmayerle]

Considering the total body of work publihsed by Murray Leinster (under that pen-name or his real name), a few clunkers are bound to show up; then again, even his "clunkers" are better than some authors' best. Still, while I'd be dubious of the sintering process for production vehicles (at least until most thoroughly demonstarted), the basic concept is used for one type of 3-D prototyping (did some concept bits for the JSF that way).

 

[RanulfC]

...and the "difference" between these and say the original Kistler "Launch Assist Platform" or many of the other various "zero-stage" LAPs would be???? ;D
Randy