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thegunnersdaughter
·1 yr. ago

This was used to push around large test/research reactors at the Idaho National Lab that were part of the Aircraft Nuclear Propulsion project in the 1950s. From https://inldigitallibrary.inl.gov/sites/sti/sti/3028280.pdf
To visualize the IET [Initial Engine Test area] layout, readers should imagine the railroad journey of a HTRE from the A&M building as if they were passengers inside the locomotive riding along with its two operators. The locomotive is heavily shielded, windows limited to the front and rear. It pulls the HTRE rig westward from the A&M building on a double-wide dolly toward the railroad turntable. Because of the extraordinary weight of the loaded dolly, the track has four rails. The locomotive travels only on the two center rails, while the dolly rides on all four. The journey is slow. The locomotive's top speed when burdened with the HTRE is3.5 miles per hour. However, it would be extremely inconvenient if any of the rails were to spread and cause a derailment, so the operator travels no faster than 2.5 mph. The locomotive remains in radio communication at all times with the IET control room and video-camera observers in the Hot Shop.
Plenty more in the doc - I have only skimmed a bit so far.
 

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Hi,

in NEPA program,Fairchild had been competed another 9 proposals from others
companies ?.
 
Hi,

in NEPA program,Fairchild had been competed another 9 proposals from others
companies ?.

We can imagine what were them,or from which companies,the competitors as I suggest;

- Fairchild
- Convair
- Boeing
- Douglas
- Lockheed
- Martin
- Bell
- Curtiss
- North American
- Northrop
 
Hi All!

"Fairchild had been competed another 9 proposals from others
companies ?"

What is the source of this information?
 
We can imagine what were them,or from which companies,the competitors as I suggest;

- Fairchild
- Convair
- Boeing
- Douglas
- Lockheed
- Martin
- Bell
- Curtiss
- North American
- Northrop

Sorry my dear Nugo,

I miss understand,I wote the Info quickly and don't seen the whole article,there were nine companies involved in developing NEPA,but the weird thing is subscribing of Northrop in this one design ?!.

So we can consider these firms in my list were generally who submitted a proposals for Nuclear-powered aircraft.

American Aviation 1946.
 

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Last edited:
Hi hesham!

Maybe, in this case Northrop participated as a developer of the propulsion system.

Maybe there was a competition for an atomic aircraft, in which won Fairchild.

or, during the course of consideration of various firms, Fairchild was chosen and in this case, Northrop suggested the N-34.
 
My dear Nugo,

I meant in all of the program,which began in 1946 and ended in late 1950s,not a particular
competition.
 
From Aeroplane 1956,

here is a hypothetical design by Mr. L. Morgan,for 1000-seat atomic-powered flying boat project.
 

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Hi,

was there any known drawing to Lockheed CL-263 ?,I think that I saw it in a book,
but which one ?.
 
From Aeroplane 23 August 1957,

what was this ?.
 

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NORAIR NUCLEAR POWERED AIRCRAFT GROUND SUPPORT SYSTEMS

WESTERN AVIATION
MISSILE AND SPACE INDUSTRIES
VOLUME 40
NUMBER 12
DECEMBER 1960
PAGE 6-7 and 38

Artist's concepts...
- "Flight testing team"
Convair NX-2 and Lockheed C-130 with radiation monitoring tow targets
- "Aerial fire truck" Douglas C-133
with air-droppable shielded nuclear emergency vehicles
- Nuclear engine handling trailer
- Engine seperation facility
- Shields on wheels
- tank-type nuclear emergency robot
 
NORAIR NUCLEAR POWERED AIRCRAFT GROUND SUPPORT SYSTEMS

WESTERN AVIATION
MISSILE AND SPACE INDUSTRIES
VOLUME 40
NUMBER 12
DECEMBER 1960
PAGE 6-7 and 38

Artist's concepts...
- "Flight testing team"
Convair NX-2 and Lockheed C-130 with radiation monitoring tow targets
- "Aerial fire truck" Douglas C-133
with air-droppable shielded nuclear emergency vehicles
- Nuclear engine handling trailer
- Engine seperation facility
- Shields on wheels
- tank-type nuclear emergency robot

That sounds like a fun job. When a nuclear-powered plane crashes, you get to parachute onto the scene with your portable radiation shields, roll up to a crash site with unknown damage to the reactor, then try to dismount the engines and use a robot tank to haul them onto a trailer and drive away. Where do I sign up?
 
From Aeroplane 1956.
 

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Also from L'Air 1951.
 

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An interesting pic showing Crusader at rotate, with the crew door open! WAS it just doing fast taxis?
 

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Looks like the Nuclear Princess (Convair).

I think that,you are right my dear Scott,

 
looks like Northrop's Project Opossum nuclear-powered bomber
 

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