JARR

[TheFlyingKerman]

I have joined the forum for years but haven't seen anyone building something like this. The underlying idea is straightforward. With a reusable rocket the way to save cost is to use jet engines to reduce fuel cost. While jet engines are useless in space, for a reusable SSTO rocket the thrust is surplus later in the launch, anyways. The jet engine also helps reducing landing speed, saving on parachutes. I call this Jet Assisted Reusable rocket --- JARR.

I found that the Whiplash seems to be the best jet engine for this purpose. It has the best thrust from around 3000m - 10000m at around 250 m/s - 800 m/s. Usually the engine cut off below 800 m/s.

The biggest pitfall with this arrangement I found, is that the rocket is sensitive to drag. The less drag the rocket has, the faster it goes and the more thrust the jet engine gives. This proportionally increase delta V.

Here is an example of the rocket I built. It uses a Skipper and two Whiplashes and six Hammers SRB to help getting off the pad. It is about 88t on the pad.