Quote:
Originally Posted by cdavenport
I was in an intel position at one point in my USAF career and learned about the Ekranoplan, though I was unaware of the "Loon" missile carrying version.
One of the problems we knew the "aircraft" faced was its enormous fuel consumption. Soviet engine technology at the time was decades behind the west, both in design philosophy and materials technology. When the USAF tore down the Belenko's Mig 25, they were astounded to find stainless steel and high carbon steel components in the engine.
Flying in ground effect in any jet aircraft eats fuel at a prodigious rate. The Eplan had to have a monstrous appetite with its Soviet engines.
This is a great thread and I really enjoyed the links to the various reference sites. Thanks, guys!
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The Mig-25 started design life as the interceptor to combat the B-70 - the technology was fairly old when the West got to look at it in 1976. It's a bit misleading to directly compare Soviet and Western technologies because they are derived from very different engineering philosophies.
I agree that jet engines are fuel hogs at low altitudes it's always been a puzzle to me why the Ekranolans used jet
engines.
Regards,
Charlie