To Whom It May Concern,
I am responsible for the design and creation of the Ariane V / Hermes models that are currently available on Alfonso X Moreno's website. Approximately six months ago, I sent an email to Ton Noteboom requesting his permission to modify and update his Ariane V design. His original design was based on the Ariane V that was originally flown in 1996 - and the European Space Agency had made significant modifications and improvements since that time (specifically, the creation of the new upper stages). I wanted to create a paper model of the current (and near-future) versions of the Ariane V for any potential hobbyists and/or teachers.
I originally took Ton Noteboom's model, reverse engineered the parts (so as to accurately get his measurements) and then recreated the Ariane V in my own way - reducing the number of parts wherever possible and simplifying the design so that children (students) could attempt to build it in a classroom. My version of the Ariane V was deliberately designed so that it could be built with either glue or with 'sticky-tape'... enabling children, who have a limited degree of patience, to be able to construct it within only 2 or 3 hours; i.e. in only 2 or 3 one-hour classroom lessons.
Obviously, since I work as a teacher and teaching will be the underlying motivation for the creation of any future models, all of my near-future designs will be engineered as "binary" models; i.e. capable of assembly via glue [by adults] or sticky-tape [by children].
Also, the request that I made to Ton Noteboom (asking if I could modify his design) was not a way of being lazy and trying to "punk out" someone's pre-existing design... it was a deliberate act that was done so that my design could be integrated with other modeller's "enhancements and additions" - I am, of course, referring to the Ariane V Launch Platform (ALP), designed by Michael K., that is currently available from Johnathan Leslie's website.
The image of the ALP can be found at:
http://jleslie48.com/ariane_platform/alp.jpg
... with the model on the web address:
The Lower Hudson Valley Paper Model E-Gift Shop - Photo Gallery - Russian and European Spacecraft
This is also the reason why the Ariane V is available from Alfonso's website... but not the launch platform. Michael K. has done a magnificent job in creating the ALP and I would simply be "reinventing the wheel" if I were to attempt to recreate his design. More importantly, his ALP is far too complex a design to provide to school students (unless they are teenagers in high school). Since the ALP could not (or should not) be attempted by children in the classroom, I have abstained from attempting to contact Michael K. and I have not created my own [simplified] ALP.
With regards to the Hermes model... a few months ago, I managed to contact Yoannc (via email) and he was gracious enough to provide his initial design (parts) for the Hermes. Yoannc attempted the Hermes several years ago but never fully completed his original design - and as a result of this, the Hermes has not been available to the wider paper-modelling community. Realising what was needed to the done... I then did the same thing with his Hermes that I did with Ton's Ariane V; i.e. I simplified it.
I took his design, reverse engineered the parts, simplified the design by amalgamating and re-connecting the parts (this is most obvious when you look at the single-part that is the entire wing/tail structure) and then scaled the entire model to match the 1:96 scale of Ton's original Ariane V. This Hermes model is (to the best of my knowledge) the only Hermes paper model that is currently available on the internet - anywhere in the world... a real first for myself and Alfonso!
When I completed the final documents (PDFs), I sent a copy of the 1:96 scale parts sheets and the manuals to Ton for his opinion and approval. He replied that everything was OK... but he stated that the manuals should be created in a format that is more like his own; i.e. only visual descriptions (photos only) and without any written instructions underneath each photograph. Ton stated (in his email) that there are a multitude of international paper modellers who neither speak nor read English (many of his friends living in Europe). Assembly Manuals (in his opinion) need to be primarily visually-based forms of instruction - with no written text whatsoever. This is in direct contrast to Alfonso's Manuals which have text to clarify what is shown in the photographs.
I have already finished the 6-metre diameter "Ariane VI"... a near-future design which has been described in various engineering and technical documents published by ESA in the mid-2000s. This Ariane-VI is described (in the technical literature) as having 6 SRBs, 1 Vulcain main engine, and 2 Vinci upper-stage engines... with a payload capacity of 50-tonnes to low Earth orbit (see the accompanying images). The ESA documents describe how this booster is to be used in manned flights to the moon and for the creation of an independent ESA space station.
Although I have not yet had the opportunity to create them... it is my intention to design and create the reusable liquid rocket boosters (LRBs) for the Ariane V. These LRBs will be based on the fully automated flyback boosters that have been under study by the European Space Agency for the last decade. Although my SRBs allow the original Ariane V model to be placed on Michael K.'s launch platform, the design (and increased diameter) of these new LRBs will prevent the Ariane V and Michael's creation from being integrated.
Lastly, I have spent several weeks in the creation of the world's first paper model of Gomersall's Single Stage to Orbit (SSTO) design from the early 1970s. Edward Gomersall was an engineer working in NASA during the Apollo Programme. In 1970, he published an internal NASA technical document which presented an alternative design for NASA's future space shuttle. His design consisted of an SSTO which could also have been used as a launch vehicle for Apollo lunar missions (via the use of as many as 12 strap-on Titan III solid rocket boosters). After the release of his technical report, he was "reassigned" to another department within NASA (where he would be unable to give any input towards the design of the Space Shuttle) and his report was suppressed for the next two decades... collecting dust on the shelves of the NASA archives. My model, built in the 1:96 scale so as to utilise Ton Noteboom's Apollo/Saturn V model, is to be a close approximation of his design - see the accompanying illustration.
If anyone has any queries regarding the Ariane V and/or Ariane VI, the new upper stages for the Ariane, the Hermes spaceplane, the new LRBs... or even Gomersall's SSTO, please feel free to send an email to this forum. I will attempt to answer any questions that you may have...
Yours sincerely,
David Brown.