There are two current problems with commercial jet aircraft.
First, few people are aware that thousands of gallons of fuel must be consumed before jet aircraft can land safely. The Boeing B-52 and 747 have approximately 250,000 lbs. of fuel on board when they take off. This fuel, about 35,000 gallons, when consumed at high altitude (above approximately 15,000 ft.) releases much high level contamination, which circulates the earth for a considerable time period (several weeks). Some people think this jet exhaust at high altitude is the cause of worldwide weather change. In contrast, contamination of the air from earth sources and low flying aircraft is normally returned to the earth’s surface with the next rain, snowfall or by gravity.
Second, the terrorist actions with passenger aircraft is a familiar and well-publicized subject. Rather than standing by during the termination of employment for Boeing personnel, our government should have them design and install an experimental high-speed train system, between major West Coast cities. The Japanese and French have developed and installed 150 to 250 mph trains. These high-speed trains have provided passenger service between city centers in less time than as required for jet aircraft (with little or no air pollution). It appears that two methods are used to lift the train off the tracks, at high speed, thereby eliminating friction between train and rails. With this friction drag eliminated along with a streamline design of pusher engine, train speeds of 300 mph are possible and within today’s state of the art technology.
Granite Falls
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