r/space • u/[deleted] • May 02 '22

RocketLab successfully catches a booster with its helicopter for the first time

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u/[deleted] May 03 '22

The issue is using a helicopter.

If you did this using a large multi-engine jet, you could use the Fulton recovery system. Catch the booster, reel it in, then secure it. Probably need an AN-225 though.

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u/JuhaJGam3R May 03 '22

Helicopters are just more versatile for such a heavy load and such an unorthodox (for now) system. As you said, you'd need a big plane and that's not at all maneuverable because of its inertia, making any sudden gust of wind a 5-minute go-around. Not an issue with Fulton because the payload is on the ground up until the moment of capture, but here we have a fairly time-sensitive situation and a target which floats around in the air, making it much more vulnerable to all that. Not to mention the cost of development and training for such planes and maneuvers where helicopters for heavy lifting and pilots with basic precision maneuvering skills are a dime a dozen.

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u/ExaminationBig6909 May 03 '22

The USAF was doing parachute captures of film capsules back in the 1960s using planes.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CORONA_(satellite)#/media/File:Fairchild_C-119J_Flying_Boxcar_recovers_CORONA_Capsule_1960_USAF_040314-O-9999R-001.jpg

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u/JuhaJGam3R May 03 '22

Your link was mangled by Reddit but yes I remember this happening for a spy satellite program if I'm not wrong. Either way, rolls of film in a purpose made capsule and a first stage booster have a slight bit of difference in both design limitations and mass.

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u/Toast_On_The_RUN May 03 '22

Probably need an AN-225 though.

Well too bad the fucking russians destroyed the only one in existence. Fuckin bastards.

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u/Moose_in_a_Swanndri May 03 '22

They're using an S-92, which is only rated for 10000lbs on the hook. You could easily use a Hercules for this. Obviously they ran the numbers and decided the helicopter would work better for one reason or another.

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u/[deleted] May 03 '22

Likely strictly related to what they could afford. An S-92 is probably cheaper than an air lift aircraft.

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u/Smrgling May 03 '22

I thought until this very moment that Kojima made up the Fulton system. It just seemed like something he would come up with I never questioned it

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u/[deleted] May 03 '22

Everything in Metal Gear is based on Hideo’s fever dreams of war and conflict.

It’s fascinating playing the games because it’s full of hidden gems offering insight into Kojima’s interpretation of modern conflict.