Dude mounts rocket launchers onto his motorcycle

This guy has apparently watched Megaforce too many times for his own good...

As cool as that looks, I can't help but think that a bike-mounted minigun like the one at the end of the Machete faux trailer would be much more useful/intimidating.

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Real-life X-Wing Fighter goes down in a blaze of glory

Remember the story a week ago about the X-Wing Fighter from Star Wars, that was an almost life-sized replica built by Polecat Aerospace? Well, a few days ago they actually launched the thing!

So how did it do? The X-Wing got off the launch pad and remained intact for about 3 seconds of flight before disintegrating spectacularly over the California desert.

Mash down here to watch 2 videos of the carnage. In spite of the destruction, this was still an awesome effort by the Polecat guys and it sounds like everyone had a great time!

EDIT 3:01 pm EST: Here's a YouTube video of the X-Wing taking flight...

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An X-Wing Fighter that actually flies!

An outfit calling themselves Polecat Aerospace in California has built an almost full-sized X-Wing Fighter from the Star Wars movies. It's 21 feet long, has a 19-foot wingspan, and it really flies!

It is made of wood and some aluminum, and is propelled by four solid-fuel rockets. It even has an Artoo unit that can rotate its head by remote control. And to top it all off, the wings can adjust position in flight just like a real X-Wing would!

Polecat Aerospace is going to launch it next week. Can't wait to see the video of this thing in action!

More details about the X-Wing here.

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This blog is now illegally exporting munitions data

I wonder if I'll get a "cease and desist" from the U.S. government for posting this amazingly detailed cutaway diagram of the Saturn V rocket. Slashdot is reporting that NASA is censoring information about the Saturn V launch vehicle.

How much information? Well, there are reports that NASA is ordering the confiscation and destruction of Saturn V posters that were purchased at gift shops at Kennedy Space Center and other NASA facilities. And now UpShip.com, a website that's loaded with technical specs and blueprints of various air and spacecraft, has been sent a warning from officials at NASA's Export Control Office that files pertaining to the Saturn V the site has on this page are in violation of the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR). That's the list of things that the federal government doesn't allow to be disseminated because it classifies them as "weapons".

So of course, I couldn't resist posting the biggest, most detailed picture of the Saturn V's internal structure that I could find.

Some are wondering if the appointment of one of Karl Rove's cronies to the position of White House liaison to NASA has anything to do with this ridiculous move to ban images of the Saturn V.

I'm expecting jack-booted thugs to bust through the door at any moment now to confiscate my 10th Anniversary Edition DVD of Apollo 13.

Does this mean that the Bush Administration will soon move to ban the sale or purchase of Estes model rocket engines because they could conceivably be used by "terrists" to deliver armed payloads? Seriously, I have to wonder if this government would actually consider doing that.

This is one of the loonier things that I've seen the federal government do in the past several years. If it sends me a sternly-worded e-mail or some other communique about the placing of the above image, I'll make sure to share it with y'all.

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