Beags,
I've heard of Muffin the mule, and I understand it was very popular in your youth, its nice that in our more enlightened times people can feel free to out their little foibles
Re reading the Reaction Engines Limited web site blurb on the SKYLON, it does mention a payload bay mounted "Personnel and Cargo Compartment", at a stretch I could see a capability for very rapid deployment of say, an SAS team to a distant area in a hostage situation. Although I suspect we would need some seriously good economic news to justify it. Mind you, by the time it's developed the SAS will probably all fit in it. It's hard to see any real military options without knowing its true capabilities, but as a few have said maybe the engine technology could be adapted to military use.
Smudge
