[Richard T. Eger]

Dear Ed,

Okay, I bit, and went to Google. I entered in "lifter technology" as you suggested. Apparently prominent in the field is a fellow named Tim Ventura. I went to the site recommended and viewed a video clip of a supposed device kept in the air by lifter technology. It was a small triangular skeletal structure giving the appearance that it was moving horizontally within a room. However, upon observing the background, it was clear that the camera was moving around the device, rather than the other way around, and the video was sufficiently small that any supporting wires could easily have been masked.

But, given the possibility that lifter technology is an actual possibility, which I would love to believe, the indication is that the structure must remain very light to lift at all, i.e., NASA's ion propulsion isn't going to produce a lot of thrust either.

So, the question is where is the heavy lift capability to make such technology actually useful? And, while I remain quite skeptical to your claim that ridicule of flying saucers has allowed a full blown program to remain secret for 50 years, why on earth would NASA not utilize such technology rather than constructing conventional rocket propelled craft with their huge fuel consumption?

I've been a member of the American Institute of Aeronautics & Astronautics, the premier technical society of the aerospace community, essentially since Sputnik - and interested in rocketry and space propulsion since childhood. I do think that advanced propulsion systems are going to be needed to be able to practically explore the solar system and beyond. In the propulsion meetings, papers on advanced propulsion concepts are presented, yet I'm not aware of anything that has gone into practical vehicle propulsion as of yet. The closest thing as far as I know was the successful flight testing of scramjet technology.

I find it rather curious that the professionals on the cutting edge of advance propulsion concepts would be completely kept in the dark for 50 years about saucers utilizing some breakthrough technology. Ed, it stretches credulity.

Regards,
Richard