The Core

It suddenly occurs to me that the reason there were so many direct flights between relatively small destinations is because figuring out routing for millions of people is dramatically simplified. Obvious, but I had never put the two things together.

>So, how many machinists, welders, and assembly crew did this replace?

"Virtually all new rocket companies and space startups are adopting 3D metal-printing technology. It accelerates their development phase, helping them survive the crucial years before they manage to get anything into space. Of note are Rocket Lab, which uses its 3D-printed engine to launch rockets from New Zealand, and Relativity Space which is 3D printing its entire rocket. In the UK there’s, Skyrora and Orbex. The latter aims to launch a rocket using a 3D-printed engine as early as 2022.

3D-printed rocket engines: the technology driving the private sector space race
https://theconversation.com/3d-printed-rocket-engines-the-technology-driving-the-private-sector-space-race-168146