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The prospects for European aerospace transporters - Part 1: The derivation of a first order parametric method for estimating the development cost of aerospace transporters

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  04 July 2016

D. M. Ashford  and
P. Q. Collins
P. Q. Collins
Affiliation:
The Management School, Imperial College, London
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Summary

Manned spacecraft cost typically ten times as much to develop as advanced technology prototype aeroplanes of similar weight. For example, the Hermes spaceplane, which is designed to be launched into orbit by the expendable Ariane 5, has an estimated development cost of $4 billion, which is about ten times greater than the cost of the Experimental Aircraft Programme (EAP) demonstrator of the European Fighter Aircraft ($350 million). The Hermes spaceplane and the EAP are of comparable size and weight and both use very advanced technology. The EAP is already more mature than Hermes would become because, although the EAP is only a prototype, it has made more flights than are planned for Hermes over its entire operational career.

This part of the paper attempts to identify the factors which explain this difference in cost and then to determine which of them would apply to fully reusable, piloted, aeroplane-like launchers, i.e. aerospace transporters.

Type
Research Article
Information
The Aeronautical Journal , Volume 93 , Issue 921 , January 1989 , pp. 1 - 10
Copyright
Copyright © Royal Aeronautical Society 1989 

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References

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