Re:The Submersible Nuclear Ramjet: Part Nuclear Bomber, Part...
by ailideex on Tuesday December 31, 2019 @11:56AM
(#21922448)
Ekranoplan ... wonder-weapon ... ehhh ... I mean the thing technically worked but I would not quite call it a wonder weapon. It may look quite outlandish but if it was such a great idea we would see more of them.
Re:The Submersible Nuclear Ramjet: Part Nuclear Bomber, Part...
by braythwayt on Tuesday December 31, 2019 @12:28PM
(#21922715)
I kind of assumed that the expression “wonder weapon” implied air quotes. AFAIK, the term is a calque of “Wunderwaffe,” and dates back to WWII. Most of the wonder weapons didn’t work, or were rushed into production without adequate engineering or testing, and proved to be disappointments.
Thus, I have always associated the term with something that is developed in the hope of changing everything, but ultimately serves only for propaganda.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lun-class_ekranoplan
I believe it has been discussed on HN several times.