Lifting the fairing does not seem to me nearly as challenging as catching one on the fly.
Quote from: leetdan on 03/15/2017 09:21 pmQuote from: IanThePineapple on 03/15/2017 09:12 pmThe fact that CCAFS is an air force base should fare well for helicopters catching fairingsSpecifically, CCAFS and the 920th Rescue Wing (HC-130P, HH-60G) are both headquartered at nearby Patrick AFB.Yeah, but it's not like SpaceX is going to use military assets to recover fairings.
Quote from: IanThePineapple on 03/15/2017 09:12 pmThe fact that CCAFS is an air force base should fare well for helicopters catching fairingsSpecifically, CCAFS and the 920th Rescue Wing (HC-130P, HH-60G) are both headquartered at nearby Patrick AFB.
The fact that CCAFS is an air force base should fare well for helicopters catching fairings
Quote from: D_Dom on 03/16/2017 03:15 pmLifting the fairing does not seem to me nearly as challenging as catching one on the fly.True, but ironically, the same helicopter that can catch a fairing may not be able to take off with one...Fuel weight is a big deal for helicopters in long range operations. Also, the weight you can carry while move forward is higher than what you can carry while hovering, so a helicopter may grab a fairing, and actually not be able to set it down, until later, when it burned off the rest of its fuel.Ah, but at sea level you get more lift than at whatever altitude they'll be catching them at. But then Florida air may be warmer. Helicopters are a pain in the a**.
ignoring all the cons, would in-air recovery be the least stressful option on the fairing structure? or does it not even have that going for it?
Oh great, inflight refueling...This is looking more and more like a bad idea.
Quote from: Robotbeat on 03/18/2017 01:24 amOh great, inflight refueling...This is looking more and more like a bad idea.Most of the combat SAR helos of the USAF are already equipped with the inflight refueling kit. They need it for extended operational radius and/or time on station.
Quote from: Zed_Noir on 03/18/2017 02:00 pmQuote from: Robotbeat on 03/18/2017 01:24 amOh great, inflight refueling...This is looking more and more like a bad idea.Most of the combat SAR helos of the USAF are already equipped with the inflight refueling kit. They need it for extended operational radius and/or time on station. They have unlimited cash, and own the refueling tankers...and they ain't cheap.
Not to state the obvious too much but since fairings come in halves all these special operations have to be done twice and simultaneously. This makes catching it look daunting. Two barges, two landing pads, two refuelling ops, two specialist pilots. How close could the Heli's get to each other? And what happens if you only catch one, how useful would it be without its partner?
After some thinking. Maybe SX will just added a parachute with radar transponder and some floatation devices to the PLF. Then fished the 2 PLF halves out of the water with a crane. Might need a couple of spotter aircraft to tracked the PLF descends and maintained visual contact until recovery assets are on the scene.
Quote from: Zed_Noir on 03/19/2017 01:48 pmAfter some thinking. Maybe SX will just added a parachute with radar transponder and some floatation devices to the PLF. Then fished the 2 PLF halves out of the water with a crane. Might need a couple of spotter aircraft to tracked the PLF descends and maintained visual contact until recovery assets are on the scene.Sounds reasonable but Gwynne Shotwell said in her LC-39A interview that they don't want the fairing to get wet. Which surprised me somewhat.