Ventral Jettison Limitations

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Ventral jettison.


Dummy ramjet jettison.



For all flights where the ventral (or dummy ramjet) is installed for launch, the ventral (or ramjet) should not be jettisoned at speeds above 300 knots IAS or Mach 3.5, whichever is lower. Under normal flight conditions, with the SAS functioning properly, the ventral should not be jettisoned except during the landing approach.


In the event of controllability problems arising from the loss of various SAS modes (primarily loss of the SAS roll mode), jettisoning of the ventral greatly improves airplane handling characteristics in the Mach number range of 2.0 to 3.5.


With the ventral jettisoned, the following limits apply:


  1. Maximum angle of attack: 16 degrees.


  1. Maximum rate of roll: 30 degrees per second.


  1. Maximum Mach number: 3.5, or depending on mission.