From: klaehn@gamemakers.de   
      
   Peter Fairbrother schrieb:   
   > Rüdiger Klaehn wrote:   
      
   [snip]   
   >>You still have not answered why wings and wheels are the only safe   
   >>technology for landing. Even if we accept the very unrealistic   
   >>assumption that a space transport must be safe as commercial airliners,   
   >>there is no technical reason that you can not get very high safety with   
   >>rocket powered landing.   
   >   
   >   
   > First, I doubt that - what if a child runs out on the landing field?   
    >   
   That is a silly argument. That has nothing to do with the reliability of   
   the vehicle. I guess trains are too dangerous for the general public   
   too, since when a child runs on the tracks in front of a train it dies.   
      
    > what if   
   > you miss the field and are committed to landing in a built-up area? Powered   
   > wings and wheels avoid that situation.   
   >   
   A vertical landing rocketship can land on any flat area, as the DC-X   
   proved. And you won't land your rocketships in the middle of a city anyway.   
      
   > and second, who's doing safe controlled rocket powered landings right now?   
   >   
   So?   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)