[Radoye]

http://www.luft46.com/arado/are381.html

Some of these German late war "uber" ideas were too complicated to make them work, this seem to be one of them IMHO.

Couldn't this be viewed as simplifying the process as you don't have to create complicated landing gear and you eliminate the takeoff?

But in the long run it's more expensive running two craft simultaneously (one for takeof, the other actual fighter) than just one w/gear and all. First, you use more fuel (but this is probably necessary because of the limitations of the rocket engines - and it's exactly the reason why rocket powered fighters aren't used nowadays anymore) and also you need two pilots and pilots were the commodity Germany could not afford to waste. So instead of putting up TWO jet fighters they fly one useless unarmed jet carrier plane, and one short range rocket interceptor for roughly the same cost.

I'd rather have two jets...