4 ms·
Putting a conventional jet engine in front of a scramjet defeats any real benefit you derive from having the scramjet there in the first place. The scramjet's
by run4yourlives 16y ago
Putting a conventional jet engine in front of a scramjet defeats any real benefit you derive from having the scramjet there in the first place.
The scramjet's main advantages are cost and efficiency; to accomplish these gains it comes with a myriad of technical problems and hurdles.
The viability of the technology is actually still very much up for debate.
- rbanffy 16y agoYou don't keep the turbofans in front of the scramjet all the time - you use them to give the scramjet enough air to start. As the speed increases, the turbofan engines would eventually cease to operate and could be shut off completely, leaving the scramjet to operate freely. The turbofans are dead weight when you are cruising at Mach 7 in the upper atmosphere, but are useful for take off and landing.