Quote:
Originally Posted by nuke11
Anything that is converted to fusion should be a 1 for 1 swap, if the airframe has 4 engines then 4 fusion engines are changed that are similar in details.
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@mmartin798 beat me to a lot of this, but really the combination of engine/transmission/fuel system/fuel gets replaced by electric motor/transmission*/reactor/fuel system/fuel, and there is no inherent need for the form factor to remain identical or for the number of engines to remain the same or anything like that. Even balancing within the aircraft is manageable with relatively little work, especially given that there is a decent chance that the fusion system will offer
more power than the comparable gas system, which in turn allows for the placement of ballast. Or just tweak the design.
*: Electric motors don't need transmissions at low speeds (like what a V-150 would do) but do need them at high speeds. But it would not be the same transmission as the gas motor regardless, it would be much simpler and smaller.
Quote:
Originally Posted by nuke11
Something this size, it wouldn't be out of character to have a limited operating timeframe, say 3 to 6 months, before the engine has to be pulled and then refurbished (this would nicely simulate a real world maintenance cycle for the gas counterpart).
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I can see something like this needing to be refueled more often if fuel capacity is sacrificed to make weight, but I don't see why refurbishment would be necessary. I am honestly not sure if there is much in there to be refurbished in the first place!