UK space plane passes key review

BBC : A revolutionary UK space plane design was recently evaluated by the European Space Agency. In their report , the agency’s experts concluded that “no technical or economic impediments have been identified” that would prevent the project from going forward. Skylon is a proposed hybrid reusable aircraft that would do the job of a big rocket but operate like an airliner, taking off and landing at a conventional runway, writes Jonathan Amos for the BBC. The aircraft would use a combined-cycle, air-breathing jet engine to reach orbit with only a single state. Whereas the price for launching a kilogram of payload into geostationary orbit is currently more than $15 000, Skylon could bring that down to less than $1000, claims its manufacturer, Reaction Engines Limited.