Reaching out into the realm of even more expensive cruise missles, there is work underway for a missle called the RATTLRS, which has the basic aerodynamic shape of an engine nacele from an SR-71, complete with aero-spike and virtually nothing else. Speeds capable of an estimated 3.5 Mach, using high-temperature turbine technology. A picture of the missle was printed in Scientific American, but I have not yet been able to locate one on the web. Explosive payload is 250 lbs. Jane's will probably have more info as it nears production. Picture! |