Mars-Bound Hokie

For hours today, I've been testing my new Gilly Lander carrier. I was inspired by @Lt_Duckweed's Nuclear Grace plane - which carried a fuel tank to LKO - and @Matt Lowne's Air-launched Rocket for design ideas, and I eventually managed to stick a three-man lander inside a plane. And, unlike Matt's plane, I won't have to worry about crashing one of the vessels while piloting the other. Also, in my career save, the Raven-Remembrance (also known as the Remembrance-Trainwreck) saga is over. For almost ten months IRL (there were a lot of gaps in between, all right) I transported about two dozen tourists (I lost count) all across the Kerbol system in different ships. Once both ships were on Kerbin, I put them on an SSTO and sent the last remaining tourists to Eeloo to finish their contract. Finally, after so many in-game decades, it's over. The Poseidon SSTO returning to Kerbin after its long journey to Eeloo and back. And yes, this one also landed at the runway. According to this Mission Report, I launched the Remembrance somewhere around Y25D342 - exact date may vary. Since it's Y60D268 in my career save now, this whole saga has been going on in the sidelines for about 35 in-game years (or more).

With all the craft-sharing sites out there (especially KerbalX, which tracks the number of times craft files are downloaded), do you ever wonder how often we use our fellow kerbalnauts' creations? If we do, then what for? Tourist runs? Relays? Confidence boosters? I've used @Matt Lowne's Eeloo ring station once, but then terminated it since I started using my own station more (and the lag sucked when I was on the Eeloo ring). I also downloaded a few SSTOs to look inside them so I can get some inspiration for my own designs - and even tested their planes since I was bored (e.g. I flew @fulgur's K Prize entry to test its reliability as a docking-capable self-refueling plane - he and I were DMming about my own design issues at the time) Last night, I downloaded @Lt_Duckweed's Nuclear Grace and modified it to carry a two-man Gilly lander. Call me a dirty cheater/thief for tampering with someone else's creation, but at least I gave the original designer credit. Plus, I've been to Gilly for tourist landings/rescue missions a million times. To me, sending two people to that rock (with a higher return-on-investment, since the carrier's coming back) is nothing more than another chore for money. Now, if I made my own carrier design (the lander is all my own), then that's something I can claim as mine. What about you all? How often do you use other craft files? What for?

After flying around on Duna (and using F9 every two minutes during landing), I decided to head for Ike's south pole to get some more science before heading back home. Dirtblood during the orbital ascent. I now have 4,966.5 science points stored in my plane's probe core, which is more than what the Neptune III came back with.

Really? I thought that spaceplanes were the norm when it came to Laythe landings. Sure, some people choose conventional landers (even Apollo-style missions), but you need to design them differently from what you would usually send (e.g. you need to account for the atmosphere and have some good heat protection). Besides that, you only have one shot to get it right or else you're stuck in the water forever - and even if you do get it right, you're limited to exploring that one island. At least @Jetski accounted for that and designed his lander to work in the water. I may have used a conventional landing-style approach in my Neptune II mission (read pg. 2 in this link for further details), but that was when I was still starting to make functional SSTOs. Once my Mun Hopper was working, I swore never to use landers for Laythe again after the capsule exploded during Kerbin re-entry. The only reason my kerbalnaut was still alive was because he was lucky that the Vall Girls were close by to pick him up in Jool orbit. Thanks. After all, landers and spaceplanes require different designs and attack plans. I have another suggestion for your scoring system: awarding points based on what your craft can do: It will motivate people to make cooler designs instead of just some five-part Minmus lander Like my High Occupancy Mun Lander Challenge that @dnbattley was in in last year. Points for Minmus landing and return < Points for Laythe landing and return < POINTS FOR BOTH Remember that I awarded more points for craft that could land on both the Mun and Minmus You still would prioritize lowest part count in your scoring system. What do you think?

Hey, @dnbattley. Long time no talk. I'd like to enter my Mun Hopper Mk. II SSTO into your challenge. I may have a higher part count than most future entries (72 parts), but it has proven itself reliable time and time again. Once in LKO, it can easily land on the Mun to refuel. If it can do that, then Minmus is a cakewalk. It takes more delta-V (and thrust) to land on the Mun from LKO than Minmus. It can then make a refueling stop on Ike before making a direct burn from Duna to Jool. After a refueling stop on Pol, all you have to do is make your burn to Laythe and then you're there. When you want to return, just fly to Pol to refuel. If you time your burn right, it should be a straight shot home. I'd submit my current variant (less drag, goo in second cargo bay), but this model has a lower part count. If you want more pictures of this plane in action, feel free to dig through the Neptune Mission Files; a mission report thread reserved specifically for Laythe exploration and colonization efforts on my career save. I hope this entry qualifies for this contest, and that it fares well with the judge/s.

I flew a Dirtblood to Duna for some scientific surveys. Making a turn while flying. It took a while, but I managed to get it pointed towards the lowlands up north. Good thing I had some oxidizer left for the RCS thruster under the nose, otherwise I probably would have died on impact. We're now refueling the plane before flying for the north pole.

ANREY KERMAN'S MISSION LOG: Y59D404 - 0H15M You're probably wondering what I'm doing on this report thread. In case you don't know me already, my name is Anrey Kerman, and I'm (now) a Level-Four engineer. I was supposed to be the sole member of the Neptune VI mission to Laythe, where I would fly around in an S-4 Hamacker. However, my mission was recently aborted due to the following reasons: Terrible mission plan I went to Dres to refuel, but realized that I would have to wait twelve years until I reached Jool. I then had to fly to Ike to refuel before making the jump to Jool. I should have went straight to Ike from Kerbin. Spacecraft design falling out of favor Crappy TWR on one NERV alone. More aerodynamically efficient SSTO prototypes have been developed since the Hamacker was commissioned as the Neptune VI. e.g. aerial probe, Laythe speeder Recent polls have put the Hamacker on the bottom of the "Favorite Interplanetary Spaceplanes" list. Unforeseen brake problem While my plane slid away, I was forced to wait inside Kyle Airport on Ike for my ride. It sure felt great having more legroom for a change. Several months of waiting later, I saw a fleet of planes (and a new relay) arrive at Duna's SOI. One of them was for scientific survey, one was for tourists going to Duna's surface, and the third was the Anubis I, stopping to refuel. Since the tourist plane didn't need to stop at Ike's surface, I got on board the Anubis I - and I'm now an on-board engineer. Us getting ready to orbit Ike after refueling, before we ascended to high Duna orbit. Our maneuver node to Jool should be in about two years from now. After we hit Jool's SOI, the plan is to: Hohmann transfer to Pol Pick up the Pinky Ring crew Refuel Fly to Tylo Rendezvous with Middle Finger Ring Fly to Laythe Refuel on the surface (yay) Fly to Pol Refuel Go home I think I'm going to like having the Mk3 crew cabin to myself (aside from that tourist, Jerdrin) for a change. More legroom, I have more stuff to do, and not to mention that he's kind of cute. In the meantime, I hear that Mission Control is making slow progress with their lander prototypes. So far, all the simulated models either ended up crashing on impact or not having enough fuel for the return ascent. I hope they make that design soon, because we now have 39 years to plant a flag on Tylo.

After putting a ring station in orbit of Pol (for a contract), I put the delivery rockets in a suborbital trajectory of Jool. Epic picture taken seconds before disaster.

ANREY KERMAN'S MISSION LOG: Y59D221 - 3H00M I made it to Ike and landed near Kyle Airport. However, as soon as I hit the ground and applied the brakes, the plane started to slide down the hill. I tried to orient it in a way that it would slow down and eventually stop, but nothing worked. I then got out of the plane and tried to fix the wheels, but it still kept moving. As soon as I managed to get on, I couldn't fix them. I then jetpacked back to the base and reported my situation back to Mission Control. To my surprise, they replied back rather quickly. I don't know if they had mind-reading tech in the Hamacker, but I was thinking the same thing. NEPTUNE VI: ABORTED I don't think I'll be waiting too long, though. I heard that three planes are heading my way - but one of them is full. The other two are docking-capable Poseidon planes, but I don't know which one they're going to pick. Anubis I - SSTO on its way to Jool for: A tourist run in Laythe orbit. Orbital recon over Tylo. Picking up a station crew over Pol. A tourist transport that will rendezvous with the U.S.S. Enterprise-D over Duna and send tourists to the planet's surface before they go to Ike and then back home. If I had to pick for myself, I'd go for the Anubis. I came to space for Laythe, and I'm not going home without a piece of it.

I tried making a prototype for a Tylo lander and ion tug - and failed miserably. Some test runs (I teleported them to Tylo orbit) resulted in crashes, others ended up with not having enough delta-V for the ascent. Below is the prototype I have so far. My ultimate goal is to put this thing in a mining-capable SSTO and do the Jool-5 with it. I only need one lander if my plane's mining-capable; if it can do Tylo, it can do Vall, Bop, and Pol as well.

TIME'S UP As fun as this challenge was, and how happy I was that you all communicated with each other to discuss strategy, it's time for this race to end. If anyone wants to restart the "Around Kerbin in 80 Minutes Challenge," - or even do a modified version of it (e.g. rockets only but stay below 35 km, around Kerbin in 40 minutes, must carry 20 or more people, etc) - please DM me first. I'd be eager to help out and/or compete in such challenges. "Around Laythe in 80 Minutes" is already taken. FINAL LEADERBOARD LIGHTNING DIVISION @ManEatingApe - 27 minutes, 37 seconds @nelso - 35 minutes, 18 seconds @vyznev - 35 minutes, 18 seconds @Laie - 39 minutes, 47 seconds @Lisias - 50 minutes, 15 seconds @Mars-Bound Hokie (ME) - 53 minutes, 18 seconds @Nantares - 57 minutes, 47 seconds THUNDER DIVISION @Laie - 24 minutes, 32 seconds @OverClock - 27 minutes, 6 seconds @nelso - 28 minutes, 45 seconds @AHHans - 52 minutes, 54 seconds @Lisias - 54 minutes, 44 seconds HEAVY RAIN DIVISION @nelso - 29 minutes, 45 seconds @έķ νίĻĻάίή - 63 minutes, 48 seconds @Klapaucius - 72 minutes, 6 seconds I would like to thank everyone who competed in this challenge and made it fun for everyone. You also had some interesting discussions on this thread (some of them with me) about how you're going to proceed using different plane designs and/or flight plans. In hindsight, I should have closed a loophole some of you exploited and required you to fly at a heading of ~90 degrees; some of you saw a way to cut your race time and took off THE OTHER WAY (despite the fact that you started at 0-9 KSC). Even so, I could tell that you put a lot of time and effort into your plane designs - and in some cases, your kOS codes. Sure wish I could do that, then I won't have to worry about the MJ aircraft autopilot messing me up while I can do whatever mid-flight. I would also like to give a big shout-out to whoever nominated me for Thread of the Month for January 2020, but I'd also like to thank you all for making this possible. I'm sure that you had a lot of fun flying (and blowing up) at high speeds. Below is the link to "Bill's Car," the plane that kickstarted this challenge. https://kerbalx.com/Mars-Bound_Hokie/Bills-Car Val's couldn't make the time. I will shortly DM the "80 Minutes" challenge badge to everyone who submitted valid entries. Speaking of challenge badges, some of you are probably wondering "Why is there an 'Around Laythe in 80 Minutes' badge in Mars-Bound Hokie's signature?" The answer is simple: I started a sister challenge in which you're supposed to head to Laythe and fly within the atmosphere in 80 minutes. If you want to show off what you can do, here's the link to the challenge. I can't wait to see your unique entries. And the best part is that there's no deadline for the Laythe challenge, since it takes a while to get there. Don't text and fly, and may you all blow up at hypersonic speeds go past your limits.

DEADLINE IN T-MINUS 2 DAYS

Looks like a TIE Interceptor when viewed from the front. Were you going for that look?

I'm going to make this simple for everyone: "Advanced Transfer to Another Planet" --> (EXAMPLES) (PRIMARILY) from one planet to the next MJ autopilot sometimes has different launch times from the transfer windows in Kerbal Alarm Clock. From Mun to Minmus (orbiting Kerbin) From one of Jool's moons to the other "Bi-impulsive (Hohmann) transfer to target" --> for celestial bodies while in orbit of a host body. For example: To the Mun/Minmus while orbiting Kerbin To Gilly while orbiting Eve Ike while orbiting Duna Any of Jool's five moons while orbiting that large gas giant Any of the seven planets while in orbit of Kerbol "Rendezvous Autopilot" --> for vessels/stations/asteroids (or debris, if you want to be weird) You have to be in the same SOI as the target Am I missing anything?

FROM THE OFFICE OF WERNHER VON KERMAN Back on Laythe, both Neptune V planes are busy refueling and checking the outposts. They still have several more islands to check out before heading back home, and we're very excited to see the completed map. Meanwhile, the SPH engineers have been busy working on a brand-new private docking-capable spaceplane for Laythe. Our original idea consisted of four rapiers to overcome the atmospheric drag during, but some of our engineers protested that it wouldn't provide enough thrust for some places. What I didn't know at the time was that a few other engineers were trying to modify the Dirtblood plane to be docking-capable. As soon as Bill got word, he notified me and I focused all our attention to that project. After all, if we can send a docking-capable dirtblood to Duna, we can send it to Laythe. Once the final design was completed, Lodock, Matster, and Shelus were sent for the test. And boy, did we get some great photos with our new cameras. Our prototype about to take off while the sun's setting over the KSC. 310 km above the surface with 1,675 m/s of delta-V left. Still need to refuel on Minmus before going anywhere else (including the Mun), but we're not doing that just yet. We rendezvoused with a standby tourist pod. We still haven't figured out what to do with it. DOCKING SUCCESSFUL. Now on a suborbital trajectory, about to land at the KSC. Coming in hot, but Lodock was able to regain control later. He and his teammates said that it made an excellent glider. Controls may be a bit sensitive, but otherwise great. We had already performed runway and off-road landing tests, so Lodock decided to try something new and land at the abandoned airfield. Finally, we have made a private docking-capable Laythe spaceplane. After we announced our success, we got a whole bunch of comments regarding it - and here are a few of them. Bill Kerman - Finally, we got a good one. Dinklestein Kerman - Shut up and take my funds! Floyd Kerman - Impressive design. Jebediah Kerman - SWEEEEEEET! Jebediah Kerman Senior - I'll take it as long as my son's not flying it C.E.O. of Jeb's Junkyard, as well as the father of kerbalnaut Jebediah Kerman Ludlong Kerman - I nominate this for the Neptune VII. Notmisty Kerman - Perfect spacecraft for a violent fugitive someone with a taste for adventure. Valentina Kerman - Too bad I'm stuck in a regular Dirtblood. I'll try this out when I get home. I anticipate sales for this craft getting high pretty soon, but I'm more excited that we finally managed to balance aerodynamic thrust and NERV thrust in a docking-capable plane. In about a year and a half, the Remembrance-Trainwreck Saga will finally be over when the Eeloo tourists return in their Poseidon. When that happens, we'll not only put this whole thing behind us for good, but we will get more tourists to flock to us - and, eventually, buy our services more and get us back to when we had ~$10M in our account. I know some people call it the Raven-Remembrance Saga, but that's all wrong. The S.S. Remembrance launched first. The S.S. Trainwreck then launched to Gilly a few years later. However, two of its engines snapped off and the tourists got stranded in Gilly orbit. Mission Control then sent the S.S. Raven to pick up the tourists and continue the mission. The S.S. Trainwreck is now a space station in orbit of Gilly. Wernher Von Kerman Year 58, Day 384 3H45M

@sarbian (and @StoneWolfPC) please disregard my notice. I figured out how to get the "Engage Autopilot" button to show up - as annoying as it is to get it. Ascent Guidance controls with both "TARG" and "OPTS" buttons on You can tell since they're green. If I select a target, then I get more crap I don't want to deal with. "OPTS" was switched off. It looks like it wants me to keep it simple Switched both off, then selected a random target. Seems like it comes with a built-in rendezvous feature (of some sorts) I then reverted to launch and selected a satellite in polar orbit, and then I hit "Launch into plane of target." It then changed my orbital inclination from 0 to 89.989 degrees before showing a countdown timer. When I hit "Engage," it waited for about 47 minutes until it launched. I then had to hit "Options" and deactivate the "Skip Circularization" button. Why do you even have that? "TARG" off, but "OPTS" on. Looks like options for the controls and how to proceed rather than what orbital parameters to aim for. I ask again, why would you skip circularization? I'll have to try out the new features for myself later, but all I wanted was to find the stupid "Engage" button.

Thanks for those details. I was also wondering what the "TARG" and "OPTS" buttons are for. Most importantly, how do I reach the "Engage" button?

@sarbian, I downloaded the latest release of MJ (on the main page) and found a problem with the ascent profile control. I can't reach the "engage" button. Even worse, whenever I drag it down to hit it, it keeps popping back up. How do I fix it? EDIT: Personally, I suggest removing some features from the ascent autopilot such as: Limit throttle - You're ascending into orbit, so OF COURSE you give it 100% Same case for the "Keep limited throttle over" button Electric limit - Why? (What are the TARG and OPTS buttons on the top for) (What exactly does "Hotstaging" do)

@boolybooly, I'd like to make a correction please. Actually, single NERV and twin RAPIERS are for Mun Hoppers. DIRTBLOODS have double-rapiers and double-NERVs. I was trying to make a docking-capable variant of that plane. This is a Dirtblood in action over Duna. It's designed to have a TWR of over 1 on NERVs alone once the rapiers flame out. You also mentioned that the plane called "Dirtblood" got me the APPA First-class award. While it is capable of getting me APPA (landing at the KSC), it cannot dock. The Martian, on the other hand, CAN - and you just saw proof in my latest entry. I hope this clears up any confusion we all may have.

I'M BAAAAAACK! While trying to make a docking-capable variant of the Dirtblood (craft file: https://kerbalx.com/Mars-Bound_Hokie/Dirtblood), I realized that it could also serve as a docking-capable Laythe plane as well. When the ascent and orbital tests were done, I decided to submit my entry - and, later, send a link for this entry to a certain forum user (I'm leaving out the name unless s/he wants to take credit) who's been helping me in the past. Thanks to the new debug menu on 1.9, I teleported to Duna's surface and ran an ascent test there. It doesn't count for my entry, but it at least assures me that I can get a TWR of 1 after using all three rapiers and both NERVs at full capacity (without using any drain valves). On with the show. I can now tell that forum user that I found my Laythe SSTO, and I got a decent TWR on NERVs alone to go with it.

(In Doofenshmirtz voice) BEHOLD, THE JOOL RING (There are supposed to be docking ports on the ends of the inline cockpits, but they got snapped off after I Kerry the Krakenpus hit the "Separate" button on the ascent boosters too early) If I can send a ring (well, two rings) to both Tylo and Laythe, then the other three are as good as mine. Craft file here: https://kerbalx.com/Mars-Bound_Hokie/Jool-Ring-Station

I built a (crappy) replica of the American F-35 Lightning II fighter. Vertical takeoff with a strong thruster. Craft file on KerbalX: https://kerbalx.com/Mars-Bound_Hokie/F-35-Lightning-II

VS. (Me) vs. (@Yeet_TheDinosaur) The plane's air-to-ground missiles would send your dinosaur back to the Cretaceous Period.

I flagged some more spots on Laythe, and I also logged their coordinates. 8* 13' 21" S 52* 20' 31" W Reflex Hammer Island 46* 28' 50" S 23* 1' 25" W Boring Island 41* 24' 39" S 37* 29' 13" W Penguin Soon-to-be Island 46* 20' 14" S 61* 28' 23" W Penguin Island 15* 20' 30" N 65* 22' 24" W Crater Island 45* 21' 36" N 121* 19' 53" W Northern Volcano 31* 02' 44" S 103* 59' 27" W Puffin Island 26* 30' 30" S 153* 39' 36" W Mergard's Courage 23* 30' 08" S 171* 08' 38" E Area D92F 24* 39' 55" S 156* 28' 18" E Site 0-3S 26* 54' 12" S 95* 25' 50" E Sector RT-F 32* 20' 12" S 91* 29' 46" E Zone 81HR0