I read this article and watched the video earlier this week. Although it sounds really cool, count me among the sceptics. I don't see any way to carry enough fuel aboard those vehicles to accomplish what they claim and still have useful payload capacity left.
The one point where they MIGHT be able to get a payoff...
Current thought process is as follows:
-We assume disposable launch vehicles priced in the tens of millions of dollars.
-So, we currently pack them with as much payload as we can, and squeeze as much "mission" into the launch as possible. Payload that might be used for recovery fuel is instead dedicated to missions equipment such as additional satellite mass or staff into orbit.
-Then we launch.
Possibly, they are angling towards:
-We focus on the goal of the launch, part of the goal being safe retrieval of capital investment (rocket).
-We cut payloads dramatically since this is a ferry system.
-We follow-up with multiple launches since each launch only costs fueling and refurbishment ($200k or so) rather than capital equipment and fuel (tens of millions).
