I think SpaceX should just sell this service to military clients. The other comments here are talking about noise pollution, G-forces, bank angles, and other negative downsides of the service. However, if you have a bunch of active-duty, trained personnel who need to get across the globe ASAP, this is something I could see the military paying for. Moreover, most bases are not directly next to large population centers, which helps with the noise pollution argument.
Gwynne Shotwell: SpaceX's Plan to Fly You Across the Globe in 30 Minutes [video]
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Re: Gwynne Shotwell: SpaceX's Plan to Fly You Across the Globe in 30 Minutes [video]
#42Rocket based travel will never ever ever happen on a widespread scale simply because of the G forces involved. Passengers on an airliner will begin feeling uncomfortable at around 1.2 G's and > 20 degrees of bank angle. The thought of subjecting regular paying passengers to 3+ G's and a full 360 degrees of pitch/roll is absurd. It could definitely be a niche thing for people that are physically fit, but this just isn…
If John Glenn could do a Shuttle flight at 77, I suspect you're overstating the difficulties here. People voluntarily subject themselves to 3+ Gs and 360 degrees pitch/roll at amusement parks daily, with fairly minimal levels of physical fitness being required.
If the full 30 minute flight is like a roller coaster, I would be green by the time we got there and probably have a full puke bag. But I'd still prefer that to a 12 hr long haul flight in coach.
Re: Gwynne Shotwell: SpaceX's Plan to Fly You Across the Globe in 30 Minutes [video]
#43How do you tell the difference between commercial scheduled rocket flights and incoming ICBM's?
Heavy regulation and requiring all flights to be registered with NORAD with high precision, probably.
We'd also know where the launch comes from, and how many got launched.
Russia can already stick a nuke in a commercial airliner and set it off over NYC, if they want.
Re: Gwynne Shotwell: SpaceX's Plan to Fly You Across the Globe in 30 Minutes [video]
#44As a business model I think SpaceX should be a manufacturer and not in the transportation business akin to Boeing or Airbus. There is a ton of logistics involved in transporting people globally. Of course there is the safety issues as well.
>> safety issues as well. And vomit. 4+G on launch. Freefall during cruise. 5+ G on reentry. Give me the first class ticket on a BA flight any day.
That sounds amazing actually. As of today, I'd consider a few minutes of micro gravity to be a once-in-a-lifetime experience. If that ever becomes something you can experience for the price of an airline ticket, I'd consider the ride itself to be worth the price of admission all on its own.
Obviously not for everyone, but you don't really need to be able to service _everyone_ to be profitable.
Re: Gwynne Shotwell: SpaceX's Plan to Fly You Across the Globe in 30 Minutes [video]
#45Earlier quoted context omitted.
That's not really the case. Per passenger mile commercial aircraft get ~70MPG with longer flights tending to have better fuel economy. The trend is really interesting: http://www.slate.com/content/dam/slate/articles/business/the... So, they are actually very efficient transportation for long trips. Absolute worst case flying around the world is 24,901 mi which uses the same fuel per person as a 35 MPG car commuting 2…
What is not the case? 1-2% of total CO2 footprint? That flying a full plane is equivalent to months if not a year of driving a nontrivial distance every day? I'm not saying cars are more efficient. It's just that the distance travelled is huge when one uses an airplane.
Many people use more fuel in a month getting to and from work than a round trip NYC to London flight. It comes down to both distance and fuel economy with some commuters putting in over 1000 miles a week. The range for commuting fuel uses vs transatlantic flight is much wider than 10x months to year.
Re: Gwynne Shotwell: SpaceX's Plan to Fly You Across the Globe in 30 Minutes [video]
#46Rocket based travel will never ever ever happen on a widespread scale simply because of the G forces involved. Passengers on an airliner will begin feeling uncomfortable at around 1.2 G's and > 20 degrees of bank angle. The thought of subjecting regular paying passengers to 3+ G's and a full 360 degrees of pitch/roll is absurd. It could definitely be a niche thing for people that are physically fit, but this just isn…
This may be a stupid question, but could people be put under for 30 minutes and just be woken up at landing?
Re: Gwynne Shotwell: SpaceX's Plan to Fly You Across the Globe in 30 Minutes [video]
#47Earlier quoted context omitted.
Sure, but will your grandma say the same? My point is that this will never be a normal every day thing for the masses like air travel today.
True, but I don't think BFR is ever meant for the masses. And airplanes, which are gentle but can be uncomfortable, are barely for the masses (in 2015 only 45% of Americans flew on a plane). https://www.forbes.com/sites/danielreed/2016/04/14/americans...
...only? that's a first world problem if i've ever seen one :)
Re: Gwynne Shotwell: SpaceX's Plan to Fly You Across the Globe in 30 Minutes [video]
#48How do you tell the difference between commercial scheduled rocket flights and incoming ICBM's?
The same way you tell the difference between commercial scheduled airline flights incoming kamikaze pilots?
Re: Gwynne Shotwell: SpaceX's Plan to Fly You Across the Globe in 30 Minutes [video]
#49Rocket based travel will never ever ever happen on a widespread scale simply because of the G forces involved. Passengers on an airliner will begin feeling uncomfortable at around 1.2 G's and > 20 degrees of bank angle. The thought of subjecting regular paying passengers to 3+ G's and a full 360 degrees of pitch/roll is absurd. It could definitely be a niche thing for people that are physically fit, but this just isn…
This may be a stupid question, but could people be put under for 30 minutes and just be woken up at landing?
No. General anesthesia is a risky procedure, requiring constant one-on-one monitoring by a anesthesiologist.
Re: Gwynne Shotwell: SpaceX's Plan to Fly You Across the Globe in 30 Minutes [video]
#50Rocket based travel will never ever ever happen on a widespread scale simply because of the G forces involved. Passengers on an airliner will begin feeling uncomfortable at around 1.2 G's and > 20 degrees of bank angle. The thought of subjecting regular paying passengers to 3+ G's and a full 360 degrees of pitch/roll is absurd. It could definitely be a niche thing for people that are physically fit, but this just isn…
This may be a stupid question, but could people be put under for 30 minutes and just be woken up at landing?
So you'd need a licensed anesthesiologist monitoring every passenger? Sounds expensive.