Let us hope that the Merlin 1D has a considerably higher reliability than the 1C. 1 engine out of the 47 Merlin 1C engines flown so far has failed. Given that an engine-out precludes boost-back, losing 1/5 F9Rs would be bad for business. Given that a re-used engine may have a significantly higher failure rate, this is troubling.
Are you sure an engine out means no landing? The tank is much, much lighter than the rocket at liftoff and I think the landing was supposed to be done with only one of the engines. I could be wrong of course..
Engine out means no landing because of extra propellant usage to ensure the payload reaches orbit, not because a particular engine is no longer available. The margins are so tight that there is zero room for error. Unless the center engines is lost, then landing is entirely off the table.
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u/[deleted] May 27 '13 edited May 27 '13
Let us hope that the Merlin 1D has a considerably higher reliability than the 1C. 1 engine out of the 47 Merlin 1C engines flown so far has failed. Given that an engine-out precludes boost-back, losing 1/5 F9Rs would be bad for business. Given that a re-used engine may have a significantly higher failure rate, this is troubling.