3 ms·
They didn't have an APU (weight), so towing to runway would need an external spin up too. It would probably have no air or hydraulics until it got there. Engin
by anexprogrammer 10y ago
They didn't have an APU (weight), so towing to runway would need an external spin up too. It would probably have no air or hydraulics until it got there.
Engines and intakes were designed to be supersonic efficient, which meant they were horribly inefficient at subsonic and taxi speeds. SR71, XB70 and similar big supersonics of that generation had similar, but worse, issues. Being military it didn't matter - they used to just in-air refuel the SR71 right after takeoff!
- mikeash 10y agoThe SR-71 also had the problem that its fuel tanks wouldn't seal when the plane was cold, since naturally the whole thing was designed for sustained cruises with skin temperatures of hundreds of degrees. As a result, it leaked fuel like crazy before takeoff.