I want to get to the opposite side of the Earth

[flight]

I would say it would be getting NASA to recreate a Mercury capsule and Atlas rocket. That can land in the middle of the ocean, and they went three times around the Earth in about 5 hours. So, the journey would probably take you on the order of two to two an a half hours.

Of course, that is assuming you had everything arranged ahead of time rather than the decade or two it would take to get the thing together.

Knowing the airlines these days, I wouldn’t expect to spend much more time on the launchpad that you would at the airport.

[Scuba_Ben]

The OP didn’t say “fastest available transport,” just “how long.” So since e has an infinite amount of money and has bribed everybody necessary, e may as well travel in high style aboard USAF Air Force One.

[GorillaMan]

@flight

I would say it would be getting NASA to recreate a Mercury capsule and Atlas rocket.

Doesn’t that fall foul of the OP’s requirement, that you can only use “technology and infrastructure that currently exists”?

[Si_Amigo]

@flight

I would say it would be getting NASA to recreate a Mercury capsule and Atlas rocket. That can land in the middle of the ocean, and they went three times around the Earth in about 5 hours. So, the journey would probably take you on the order of two to two an a half hours.

Of course, that is assuming you had everything arranged ahead of time rather than the decade or two it would take to get the thing together.

Knowing the airlines these days, I wouldn’t expect to spend much more time on the launchpad that you would at the airport.

Couldn’t he just pay the Russians for a ride? I’m not sure what’s on the opposite side of the Earth from where they launch but I think that they can plop that thing down in most places.

[GorillaMan]

@Si Amigo

Couldn’t he just pay the Russians for a ride? I’m not sure what’s on the opposite side of the Earth from where they launch…

Approximately halfway between Chile and New Zealand. At least there’s not much to crash into.

[slaphead]

@Ale

I´d put my money on a refurbished SR-71, if you drop the spooking gear and kick the second guy out to get more tankage you could squeeze some more fuel, maybe enough for a range of some 8000 Km (nominal was about 5500), three refuellings would be necessary and at a WAGed average speed of 3000 Km/h you could be in the antipodes in about 7 hours.

Fast enough?

Yep, SR71 or some supersonic fighter, inflight refuelling, hit the ejector seat as you go over the destination area, job done and in moderate comfort. Prepping a space vehicle for launch takes days, if not weeks. Something like 250,000 man-hours to get the space shuttle ready, IIRC.

[flight]

The question for the OP is, was all of the prep work already done, or is that considered in the total time?

[Si_Amigo]

@slaphead

Yep, SR71 or some supersonic fighter, inflight refuelling, hit the ejector seat as you go over the destination area, job done and in moderate comfort. Prepping a space vehicle for launch takes days, if not weeks. Something like 250,000 man-hours to get the space shuttle ready, IIRC.

So 250,000 men could get it ready in an hour. Now we are making progress.

[Elendil_s_Heir]

@Si Amigo

So 250,000 men could get it ready in an hour. Now we are making progress.

Naw, they keep bumping into each other.