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The Mark II of my VTOL Harrier jump jet design, updated and redesigned to work with For Science! Much like its predecessor, it has full VTOL and STOVL capabilities, the Panther main engines on the original design have been swapped out for Wheesleys to accommodate the heating changes in For Science; While they lack afterburners, Wheesleys are actually more efficient than Panther engines, thus yielding an overall much higher range along with the extra two tons of fuel capacity, while maintaining the same non-afterburner top speed of 330m/s from the original design. This redesign has an extra pair of Whittle engines to support the increased mass of the vessel, the wing tips have been augmented with an additional pair of landing gear, making precise vertical landings far more stable and easier to perform than with the original design, which was notorious for tipping over upon landing, the wings have also been adjusted to make the plane generally far more stable and the plane is also equipped with a probe core now in case you want to do some shenanigans with it without risking a poor Kerbal's life. Finally, the redesign comes pre-armed with two hypermaneuverable high-velocity atmospheric probes, warranty void if pointed at something that isn't the atmosphere. Specifications: Dry mass: 10.83t Wet mass: 17.12t Part count: 91 Height: 3.57m Width: 8.64m Length: 11.83m Action groups: Activate main engines Deactivate main engines Activate VTOL engines Deactivate VTOL engines Toggle main engine thrust reversers Advice: Best way I've found to transition from horizontal to vertical flight is to pull up into a straight 90 degree climb over your landing target, cut your main engines and stall yourself, glide down towards your target, activate the VTOL engines and then stall yourself again as they're throttling up, then you'll have killed enough of your velocity to transition cleanly into hovering for landing once you pitch back down. When fully fuelled, the VTOL engines have a TWR of 1 at 85% throttle, and a maximum TWR of around 1.16. The landing gear is rather sturdy; you don't need to worry about making your landings tremendously smooth, after all any landing you can walk away from is a good one. The throttle response time on the Whittle engines (The engines used for the VTOL engines) is very bad, be prepared to make throttle adjustments a few seconds in advance of when they're needed. Along with most other plane designs, SAS absolutely hates this thing while in flight, get used to setting trim and making adjustments if you plan on taking this thing any long distances. Contradicting the previous point, SAS is absolutely your best friend while hovering and landing this plane VTOL, the reaction wheels on this craft are powerful enough to allow for very fine control and adjustments while hovering. Remember: the thrust direction of your VTOL engines moves with the attitude of your craft and isn't strictly vertical; if you have too much horizontal velocity in a direction try pitching your VTOL engines in that direction to cancel out your horizontal velocity. Download here: https://kspbuilds.com/build/VTOL-Harrier-Mk-II

I noticed no one has made a good stock Launch pad for the BDB Little Joe II rocket so I decided to make on my own Here is an Explosion view: I hope you enjoyed my creation

(The links lead to my youtube videos in case you are courious about those crafts) Hi, there. In case you don't know, I love building replicas of ships (from Star Trek mostly) that have an actual functional interior. I built the Galaxy class, the Nebula class and the Type 7 shuttlecraft. Now you have the opportunity to vote one of the following ideas for a future replica. This is for after Discovery One comes out. So here we go: 1 - Constitution Class (Star Trek: TOS) 2 - The Phoeinix (Star Trek: First Contact) 3 - Miranda Class (Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan)

I built a functional Millennium Falcon. Here it is landed on Minmus, and there it is docked to my Enterprise. I use these mods:

I built a functional Enterprise replica (Original series). Here it is orbiting Jool. Here is a list of the mods I use:

Need a way to quickly evacuate due to a launch mishap? Or want to setup a airline to reap in those tourist bucks? Try out these commercial jets! Lockheed L1011 Tristar: Lockheed's finest commercial airliner. Flies a bit slow but will get you were you need to go. Boeing 747: Try out the Queen of the Skies! This big beast can transport 151 passengers and 4 crew to wherever you need! Boeing 737-200: You are now free to move around the Country. Try out this regional airliner in a certain discount airline colors. Note we are not responsible for any cancelled flights due to archaic scheduling software. Wasp Flyer: Try out this nimble little jet with excellent range. Lots of fun to fly. Craft Files: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/17h8Z0TC5xs4ScFqJZQ-f5P5AVzpXNB9i?usp=sharing

https://youtu.be/xg17hOZNPTE

All planes have been hand crafted by kerbal artisans and have been rigorously tested per standards provided by the FAA and the DoD. All planes are guaranteed to fly. Export Limited F-5 Tiger: The F-5 Tiger is a light and highly maneuverable jet that is capable of flying under the bridges with ease. Not the quickest jet around with the XS jets but it is very accurate to the real deal. Hopefully in time I can improve the performance with better, modded engines. Video of the jet in action F4U Corsair: Try out this iconic warbird now in jet form! I am planning on updating this once the robotics parts are out to be prop driven but for the time being try out the jet version. It is a very steady flyer and is very capable. Best flown with SAS disable, as the SAS is kinda buggy and introduces a wobble.' F-4 Phantom II: Try out this Cold War classic, this is a stable flyer though not the most nimble. Press 1 for Afterburners F/A-18E Super Hornet 80's Tech meets modern conveniences in this up-sized F-18. A personal favorite of mine and one of the few jets I've worked on IRL. A very nimble flyer, lots of fun. F-15 Eagle Try out the baddest fighter in the sky the undefeated F-15 Eagle. A very nimble and quick plane capable of Mach 2 speeds. Another person favorite of mine from work. F-15E Strike Eagle F-86 Sabre & Mig-15 Try out these Korean war era fighters! Both are nimble though not the quickest flyers. Lots of fun and will be a good time once MP is out. YF-23 I've included two versions one flies nicely but the Afterburners are glitched and the APT-1 is a more accurate version that can fly but honestly is a chore to keep on course. After burners work but is ill advised. Pe-8 Russia's WW2 strategic bomber including bomb load. Flies as a big bird should, very stable. Press 1 for bomb bay doors. X-17 Night Sabre One of my own creations, a very nimble fighter that is fast with endurance to boot. Lots of fun to fly and easy to land. Capable of Mach 1. X-21C Rolling Thunder Another of my own creations. This time a fighter bomber variant of the X-17. Not quite as nimble as the X-17 but still quite handy and very easy to land. Su-27 Flanker Try this very nimble fighter bomber. Press 1 for Afterburners SR-71 Blackbird: Try out the quintessential Mach 4+ spy plane. Including parachutes for landing. Not very nimble but is extremely fast. B-2 Spirit: Try this late cold war terror! Finally got this working with the latest update. Kinda wonky but flies well enough. Craft Files https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/17h8Z0TC5xs4ScFqJZQ-f5P5AVzpXNB9i?usp=sharing

While I was walking through the National Museum of the United States Air Force last Saturday, I was reminded of all the KSP replicas of those same aircraft. Some of them looked like they can be done with pure stock parts and no DLCs, while others (mostly the older ones) need mods that come with more parts. So, I started this thread for everyone to showcase their replicas of the aircraft that the four large hangars (plus the Missile Gallery) have on display. The guidelines for this showcase thread are simple: You are free to use any and all parts necessary, including ones that come in DLCs and mods. Vehicle has to be functional. Which means pictures/video of the craft in action. Similar performance stats are a plus. EXCEPTION: if the craft in question could not move on its own (as in it needed to be attached to a larger assembly to go anywhere) then the functionality requirement may be waived. e.g. the Apollo 15 command module. You'll only need one picture of your best replica (or half-assed; it shouldn't make a difference in that case), since it's useless unless attached to the rest of the spacecraft. If you want to make the rest of the rocket assembly, fine. Only the capsule made it to the museum, and that's what I need. Vehicle has to look as close as possible to whatever real-life craft you're trying to copy. Therefore, it is highly recommended that you have photographs to reference. Build something not yet claimed on the checklist (link below) first. EXCEPTION: for craft that appear more than once in the museum (such as the Superfortress and the Twin Mustang), you may only sign off on one of your craft's variants. Leave the rest of them for others to claim. e.g. I only do one Twin Mustang; the one in the Korean War section in Hangar 2. I'll leave it to someone else to get the other Twin Mustang in Hangar 3 and claim it on the log. If you want to show something that's already been showcased on this thread, fine - but you don't get credit for it. I don't care if you built the craft 7 minutes or 7 years ago, so long as it's yours. If you have an old stash of aircraft replicas that you're willing to showcase (and can work), great. Weaponry (e.g. guns, bombs, missiles) not necessary, although I won't object to them either. If the original aircraft was manned, so is your replica. If the original aircraft was unmanned, so is your replica. I won't object to a probe core for your manned aircraft if it doesn't deviate too much from the aesthetic, so long as you include the appropriate crew module/s. You don't need to match the passenger/crew capacity of your original aircraft, so long as your replica comes close to looking like its real-life counterpart AND it's functional. e.g. if you use one or more Mk. 3 Passenger Modules for an Air Force One variant, as long as your aircraft makes a convincing replica I don't mind you exceeding or falling behind its real-life counterpart's passenger capacity. Those things weren't designed for carrying a lot of people anyway; just provide comfort for the president and his staff. (SIDE NOTE) Whoever builds the Douglas VC-54C "Skymaster," I'm not requiring you to install an elevator in the back to load polio-stricken passengers in and out. If you do and the plane still flies smoothly, even better. The one housed in the museum was designed specifically to transport then-president Franklin Delano Roosevelt, who needed a wheelchair. Craft files a plus. Below is the link for the replica checklist: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1tA9IGsSCQIuTFjw9eNHYcgv8JboCxKiAy9ep5-nflR0/edit?usp=sharing Here are the instructions on how to use it: Pick an aircraft that has not already been built Like I said earlier, if you want to build something that's already been done here, don't steal credit from the original kerbalnaut. And for duplicates, you can only claim one of the type. Once you're done, write: Column D: Your KSP Forum name Column E: The link to the specific forum post showcasing your replica/s It is acceptable to put more than one craft in the same post. Just leave a link for everyone to find it. Column F: Whatever DLCs you used to make the replica If this doesn't apply to that specific craft, leave it blank Column G: Whatever (parts) mods you used to make the replica If this doesn't apply to that specific craft, leave it blank Column H: (IF YOU WANT TO) Additional notes that other readers may find interesting Please don't modify someone else's notes. If you want to debate/talk to someone about their craft, don't do it on the spreadsheet. Source for my list: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_aircraft_at_the_National_Museum_of_the_United_States_Air_Force Click here to see this thread's replicas assembled on KerbalX As a prize, if you make at least one replica from each of the four hangars (not counting the air park or missile silo since they're too small; specific hangar category (e.g. Early Years vs WWII, Experimental vs Space) doesn't matter), you'll earn this sweet badge: I made it myself. It's a representation of all four hangars by using a combination of the following four logos: U.S. Army Air Corps, whose planes dominate Hangar One. Classic U.S. Air Force, which became mainstream at the time period Hangar Two covers. Modern U.S. Air Force, which has a lot of planes in Hangar Three still in service. NASA, since the space gallery is in Hangar Four. Entries from the Missile Gallery can be used as "wild cards." They're ultra-rare, so get them while they last. Depending on what hangars you lack, it can be used as either a Hangar Three or Hangar Four entry. To make things fair for everyone, only one Missile Silo entry per person All Four Hangars Badge Recipients @Mars-Bound Hokie (Me, the OP) @swjr-swis I'll start us off with my favorite, the SR-71 Blackbird. The SR-71 Blackbird on display in the SPH Picture taken February 2020. Ted Kerman enjoying himself flying at high altitudes at a speed higher than the aircraft's real-life counterpart. There you have it, folks. Have fun, and I can't wait to see what you got. Build a plane from each of the four hangars, and you get the badge.

https://kerbalx.com/schwank/Gemini-Spacecraft--Titan-II-GLV

In this guide I will teach you how to make a Starship replica. First place a probe core and construct a fairing around it Now make it silver Place fuel tanks (this provides fuel and structure for the fins) And now time for fins. Big ones on the bottom, small ones on top Add 3 mastodon engines, This makes it able to achieve orbit, and looks like a Raptor And now you just need to name it! If you want better control you can add RTGs, reaction wheels, batteries, etc... Now its time to launch! Wenhop? Hop now And the most important part of any starship replica? Answer in spoiler I hope you managed to make a cool looking starship replica, please share them below so I can see Also in case you haven't figured it out, this is a satire of Starship replicas. I feel like people are overdoing it on the replicas and I thought this would be a humorous tutorial poking fun at the simplicity of the design. No offense meant to people who work hard on making replicas, they are super cool.

Thought this build deserved a thread of its own. This project started out as a side project when I was making my Saturn V, with a simple question: could I build an MK3-sized shuttle without using MK3 parts? This resulted in the following shuttle build. But right after I finished building that shuttle, the flags got released in the KSP update, so I tried replacing some of the parts in that shuttle with flags that could better emulate the texture of the real shuttle. But then I realized it would look very jarring if some of it was flags and some of it just regular KSP flags, so I decided, why not make the entire thing out of flags? Contrary to what you might think, building the shape of the shuttle was the easy part. Getting it to fly, was most definitely not. I thought the flags were physicsless. They were not. Every single time I tried to do a drop test from orbit, the shuttle would spin out of control. Every. Single. Time. I could not for the love of me figure out which part in particular was causing the problems, which pretty much stalled out the process of building. I ended up rebuilding it from scratch in an effort to figure out just what the %$#! was wrong with it, as well as to try and lower the part count (orbiter went from 1100 parts to 900). Eventually, after on and off months of testing, I finally managed to figure out how to fly it without losing control. After many hours of losing my sanity at sub 10 fps, I present to you the best stock shuttle replica I can build. Flight instructions, custom flag downloads and such are on the KerbalX page. KERBALX DOWNLOAD Fancy pics:

It's been a very long while since I released anything on the forums, and longer still since I started working on this replica. I've been working on and off on this replica for over a year, and the sheer complexity of this thing made it very hard to really finish. Unlike the real thing, I couldn't do any "all-up" tests and I had to do flight testing of every stage, and let me tell you, it was difficult-I spent a lot of time just making the first stage not explode on launch. And because of how long I spent building, I made many changes here and there to the craft, never being really satisfied with the results. And the part count also ballooned, from just around 700 for the early versions to a whopping 2577 in its current form, which made testing even more difficult. Combined with having to study for my final exams, this thing has spent a long time on the backburner. That's why you'll see some outdated aesthetics methods used on this craft, most notably the custom lettering on the second stage. Normally would have swapped it out for flag lettering, but I was so proud of that I decided to keep it instead even at the cost of about 400 more parts. But now, I've finally finished this thing. Hope you like it. FLIGHT MANUAL Saturn V ascent 1. Stage to activate main engines, then slowly throttle up: do NOT hit full throttle. 2. Fly straight up to 2000m 3. Slowly start your gravity turn, do NOT make large control inputs 4. Don't be alarmed when there are sudden spikes of lag during stage separation 5. Ignite Stage 2 engines after the sepatrons burn out Unbreakable joints and infinite heat tolerance is recommended for ascent Transposition and docking 1. Stage the fairing 2. Make sure you don't decouple the wrong part (check the staging, I'm not sure if its right) 3. Perform the usual docking stuff Landing 1. Enter low (~10km) munar orbit 2. Zoom your camera into the CM, the three kerbals are housed in chairs, EVA them across to LM 3. Zoom camera into the back of the LM, you should be able to see the chairs in there 4. Munar landing: do not spend fuel loitering, it does not have the fuel margins to do so 5. After surface operations, set throttle of the LM descent engine to 0, hold SAS radial out 6. Stage and separate ascent module, initiate gravity turn higher than with normal mun missions 7. Rendesvous and dock with CSM: you may have to switch to the CSM if the ascent module runs out of fuel Returning to Kerbin should be straightforwards enough, not going to bother writing instructions here Flight pics DOWNLOAD

KSP Version: 1.8.1 DOWNLOAD

With a historical launch this year of the Mars Perseverance Rover and the Ingenuity helicopter drone, space nerds have a lot to be excited for. To celebrate this momentous occasion, I'd like to see people's take on replicating this marvel of engineering in KSP. So the challenge is, Replicate the Mars 2020 Rover mission. Rules: No cheating with debug menu or HyperEdit or anything related. DLC is fine, as is MechJeb (for info only), information mods, visual mods and TweakScale. I'll also be allowing Realism Overhaul as well RSS (Real Solar System) for those who want the added challenge of dealing with more Delta V requirements. No other part mods unless part of realism overhaul, and no other physics-altering mods other than RSS allowed. How to win: Create a Duna rover (or Mars rover with RSS) preferably resembling Perseverance, and a drone helicopter resembling Ingenuity (optional). Launch it on a rocket, preferably resembling an Atlas V, and land it on Duna (or Mars for RSS). OPTIONAL: Then, take your helicopter drone for a short flight and land it back on the red surface. Include a video of the mission or pictures of important parts of the mission. Cant wait to see what you all come up with! Also, if anyone wants to make a badge for this, I'll happily give them credit, as I am not much of an artist. Good Luck!

Remember the WIP B737 I posted progress of? It's finally completed! Truth be told, it was done a long time ago. I was just lazy to edit the video of it. Anyway, we'll skip the life story. You're here for the pictures. Cockpit instrument panels and overhead panel Forward and Aft Galley Forward and Aft Lavatories E&E Bay Passenger Half Rear Airstair Tail Compartment - Cable Drum APU Compartment Wheel Well Trailing-edge surfaces + more things. Look at everything in the album here. Want to download this? Bad idea, buddy! 3250 part Stripped, No Livery version. 4100 part Stripped with Livery version. 7500 part Full Interior version. Life story time Never before had I worked with parts in such a small scale. The most obvious section that displays this is the cockpit instrument panel. To do the gauges, it required me to use parts I, frankly, never thought I would use for a build. The gauges were made by, believe it or not, the Mystery Goo Containment Unit. The needles themselves were angled Communotrons, and the redlines were thermometers. If you actually look at the Mystery Goo Unit, you'll see for yourself how small the scale actually is. On the overhead panel, due to lack of space, a new part entered the fray. The small circles are actually struts. They have little balls at the ends of them, that when clipped properly shows as a small circle, perfect for these things. The "3 Green" lights are batteries. That's it really. Nothing special about them. Everything past the cockpit is pretty obvious. Perhaps the next special item is the galley, specifically the food you can see on it. As it so happened, the Barometer looks exactly like a tray of airline food. Cheap-looking, unappetising and minimal. But Kerbals have had worse. The other notable feature is the Lattice Livery. You might make claims like "That looks exactly like the A350's carbon fibre livery!" and "You copycat!", in which case you'd be right. Other than that, there's nothing else to really talk about. Hope you like the detail, and may your PC rest in pieces. Happy Flying!

Over my time playing Kerbal Space Program and participating in the community, I've repeatedly either felt a need for a part that seems like it should be available in the stock game or caught wind of recurring requests for one part or another to be added, so I finally sat down and listed them all out. They're not in any particular order but are sorted into categories for parts I think are most important to add, parts that maybe aren't so essential but that I at least would find nice, and additions specific to the DLC packages. Many of these parts are already provided via one mod or another, but to obtain all of them would require downloading many different mods, creating issues with compatibility, game balance, and having tons of extra parts that change the game beyond the scope of filling in gaps in the stock parts. Having extra new parts isn't something I'm saying is bad - it's just not the goal here. What I'd like to discuss in this thread includes others nominating parts that the game really seems like it was supposed to have, but more importantly whether I should try to assemble a pack out of existing mod parts (and navigate redistribution permissions) or recreate those that exist (and create afresh the few that don't) and who else is interested in helping, largely as I'm vaguely okay but not that good at 3D modeling or texturing (evidence: my old Jump Drive mod) - certainly not up to par with those who made the game's newer part models. I essentially see this as a collaborative community project, though if it turns out I'm the only one who wants these or can't find useful common ground, I accept the risk of having to try to do it all myself or give up on the whole thing. If the curators of mods that contain these parts are interested, feel free to nominate your own parts for inclusion in this hypothetical pack. This is not a vanity opportunity and in all likelihood parts that don't closely match the stock look, scale, and functionality won't be included as-is, if at all, but if you do have a good fit, perhaps we can combine our work into a holistic one-stop package. Important: Optional: DLC-specific:

McDonnell Douglas F-4E "Phantom II" Parts: 231 Weight: 26.36t Length: 15.7m Top Speed (asl): 317m/s F-4E Phantom II on KerbalX The E variant of the phantom was an upgrade over previous models of the Phantom, including a built-in M61 Vulcan and an elongated nose to fit the new AN/APQ-120 radar. The F-4E became the leading variant of the phantom, with almost 1,400 produced. This craft has functional airbrakes and drop tanks, and is completely stock. Enjoy!

The Queen of the Pacific Theater Ask any Allied sailor or pilot in the Pacific which plane they'd most like to see overhead and they'll speak the glories of a most un-glamorous twin-engined flying boat called Cat, Canso, or Dumbo. The Consolidated PBY went by these names and more as it did everything except the shooting in the Pacific. It ran search and rescue, flew aerial reconnaissance, raided convoys, harassed enemy troop encampments, hunted submarines, and carried personnel long distances overwater. It was a workhorse which could handle any job you threw at it, and every downed pilot, sunken ship survivor, or military planner would tell you, it did more than any number of fighter planes could ever do. I've loved the Catalina for a long time, so I took GameplayReviewUK's 30's challenge as a sign to finally give the PBY a replica worthy of its legendary service. I pulled no punches here, so I hope the craft speaks for itself. Craft Download: https://kerbalx.com/servo/PBY-Catalina Flight Manual: Happy flying, and sail on! - Servo

The future of Kerbin is in your hands... "The Time Machine" Get it here before time runs out. Created in Kerbal Space Program 1.8.1 with 136 parts. Breaking Ground DLC : Surface Mounted Lights : TweakScale : Textures Unlimited : Textures Unlimited Recolor Depot

A faithful yet somewhat psychopathic sentient robot, Maximilian was the servant and enforcer for Dr. Hans Reinhardt on board the doomed deep space science vessel "Cygnus." Maximilian is capable of deploying fully functional spinning blades and comes with three pairs of fully articulated arms on rotating shoulder joints. Eight tons and 268 parts requires Breaking Ground DLC, and TweakScale, with Textures Unlimited and Textures Unlimited Recolor Depot for custom coloring. Availabe on KerbalX

The Matrix, Sentinel (an HvP sci-fi replica) At only ten tons and 1630 parts, this "Sentinel" drone is the perfect search-and-destroy machine. If you have certain subversive biological elements that fail to integrate into your virtual reality matrix these intelligent and highly efficient living machines will ruthlessly carry out infiltration and elimination missions in the "real world."* *the real world is assumed to be the planet Kerbin, its stellar system, and associated planetary bodies. Not liable for failure to operate in a higher order reality if Kerbin is found to itself be code in a computer generated virtual reality. In addition to the Making History DLC, and (excessive) use of Tweakscale, coloring and textures are provided by Textures Unlimited and Textures Unlimited Recolor Depot. Recommend deploying only in ½ Kerbin gravity. Moderate use of autostruts secure the tentacle ends to root of craft. It stands on its own, but is still very unstable - be patient. Craft is in a fixed state and cannot be moved without Vessel Mover or like mod.

The Century Series A dual story of progress and creation The Century Series before the introduction of the F-106 in 1959. Clockwise from upper right, F-105 Thunderchief, F-101 Voodoo, F-102 Delta Dagger, F-100 Super Sabre, and F-104 Starfighter In the early 1950s, the U.S. aircraft manufacturers had taken the lessons learned from the first generation of jet fighters into account when designing a new suite of aircraft for the modern air war. These planes would keep pace with the rapidly advancing technologies of the time, with powerful engines, radars, afterburners, and complex fire-control systems coming into their own for the first time. The North American F-100 Super Sabre was the first U.S. Jet capable of level supersonic flight The second generation of jet fighters for the newly minted United States Air Force would take the naming convention used by the previous subsonic fighters to a new level. The F-100 Super Sabre led off the now-iconic Century Series, which ultimately saw the addition of five other aircraft. Other aircraft shared the naming series, but only the ones discussed here saw any production beyond the prototype phase. They entered service at a key time for the USAF, fighter command as it was expanding its role and reach to include more roles - peacetime interception of enemy bomber patrols, reconnaissance overflights of key targets, and tactical strikes made by fighter aircraft instead of lumbering bombers. The McDonnell RF-101 Voodoo was a reconnaissance platform which made key low-level overflights of missile sites during the Cuban Missile Crisis Another key development during this time period was the development of the doctrine of air-to-air refueling. The Century Series were the first planes equipped to take on fuel during flight, a technology which extended both operational ranges and mission durations, while also increasing mission readiness. This air-to-air refueling was used for a novel purpose in October of 1957, when during Operation Sun Run, a trio of stripped-down RF-101 Voodoos took off from Los Angeles and over the course of the next seven hours flew to New York and back, after a total of 25 air-to-air refuelings across the fleet. The Convair F-102 Delta Dagger was delayed three years due to difficulties in understanding the aerodynamics of transonic flight These new technologies weren't without their troubles, though. The aerodynamics of supersonic and transonic flight were poorly understood in the 1950's. The design of the experimental aircraft which broke the sound barrier were modeled off of 50 caliber bullets, since that shape was the only one known to be stable at supersonic speeds. Early supersonic planes such as the F-101 and the F-100 dealt with the problem of aerodynamics mainly through experimentation rather than theory, and relied on relatively thin wings and perhaps good fortune on the part of the designers. However, when the first F-102 prototype took to the skies, they realized that something was wrong with the design. The supposed Mach 1.5 interceptor couldn't even go supersonic - and it wasn't entirely the engine's fault. Extensive research led to the rediscovery of the Whitcomb Area Rule, the guiding rule for transonic drag on aircraft, and its implementation on the F-102 allowing it to reach much higher speeds. This is responsible for the shock bodies seen on the engine nozzle (modeled here by the landing gear), as well as the characteristic wasp-waist of many of this era's fighters. It is most noticeable on the F-102 and F-106, but it is present on the F-105 as well. The Lockheed F-104 Starfighter looked like something out of fiction, but soon helped turn spaceflight into science fact In the 1950s, as the space race heated up, both the Soviet Union and the United States began looking for candidates to fill the ranks of their astronaut corps. Both found a natural fit in their highly-trained jet fighter pilots, and particularly the subset of test pilots. This would be enough to cement the relationship between the Starfighter and the first spacecraft, but the F-104 had another unique contribution to the space program. The U.S. Air force needed to train its prospective astronauts to navigate out of atmosphere, using RCS thrusters instead of control surfaces, but had no good way of testing the systems in a full-system way. They tapped Kelly Johnson of Skunkworks to develop a testbed for the new technology, and in 1963, the NF-104A made its first flight. This was a modified starfighter equipped with rocket engines to boost the maximum altitude of the F-104 from 50,000 feet to 120,000 feet in high arcing climbs during which the aerodynamic control surfaces of the fighter would become useless and the pilot would use the RCS system to maneuver instead. This testbed worked, and the technology was proven for use in manned spaceflight. The Republic F-105 Thunderchief was a victim of a changing air war, saved only by the development of the SEAD role for the platform Introduced too late for the war in Korea, the first real tests of the series came in the skies over Vietnam. They soon discovered that air war had changed, and not in a way that favored the jet fighter. The proliferation of radar-directed fire control, nimble and hard to hit enemy MiGs, and the newly-proven surface-to-air missile led to loss rates far higher than any in the USAF upper echelons expected. Hit hardest by this changing battlefield was Republic's F-105 Thunderchief. True to its spiritual ancestor, the P-47 Thunderbolt, Republics newest jet fighter was the heaviest single-engine, single-seat fighter ever built. It was designed to carry bomb loads heavier and faster than a B-17, get in, and get out alive. However, the world of agile fighters,and accurate AA fire firing more powerful munitions meant that being tough wasn't a ticket to survivability any more. The F-105 ultimately became the only U.S. aircraft pulled from frontline fighting due to heavy loss rates, and would have been deemed a complete failure were it not for the development of the Suppression of Enemy Air Defenses (SEAD) team. SEADs squadrons, better known as Wild Weasel squadrons, flew the EF-105, which carried advanced electronics monitering and tracking systems, as well as radar-seeking missiles. They would fly ahead of the strike team into defended air space and bait the enemy radar installations into attempting to lock onto their aircraft. Then, they would track the radar signal and direct guided weapons to destroy the air defenses. Fitting for a squadron whose main job is playing chicken with SAMs, their slogan was "You've got to be (screwing) me", reportedly said by the Captain when he was first tole what his mission would be. The Wild Weasel squadrons live on today, now flying highly modified EA-18 Growler. The Convair F-106 Delta Dart was the last dedicated interceptor fielded by the U.S.A.F, showing a shift in the roles of fighters in the Air Force The Century Series tells the story of a developing air force, and a consolidation of the roles played by its fighters. The F-100, F-101A, and F-105 were fighter-bombers which were designed to tangle with enemy fighters and ground units, while the F-101B, F-102, F-104, and F-106 were dedicated straight-line interceptors designed to get somewhere as fast as possible and take out enemy bomber formations. This dichotomy was a holdover from the days of WWII when a variety of aircraft filled different roles. However, the consolidation of the aircraft industry (it took a large company to enter the jet market, so many mergers occurred and smaller companies exited the market) and the rise of the multi-role fighter ended the lines of the dedicated interceptor and the dedicated fighter-bomber. This is immediately evidenced by the fact that in the U.S., only a single plane is considered a Third Generation fighter (the Century Series, among others, make up the Second Generation): The F-4 Phantom II. The fact that a single aircraft could be used across the USAF, USNAF, and USMC in all manner of roles was revolutionary at the time, and echoes the consolidation present today with the Joint Strike Fighter. The Century Series represented a period of extreme technological growth and progress from the fledgling USAF As with the USAF, the Century Series has been a metric of progress for myself as I continue to push the boundaries of what's possible with stock parts My first act as a stock replica builder, three years ago yesterday, was to upload the entirety of the Century Series to KerbalX. They were fair replicas, nothing extremely fancy, but they were recognizable and set the stage for the years to come (at least for me). But I take a lot of pride in these first steps, since they show the seeds of what the future held in store, both for myself and the rest of us stock replica builders. There is a lot of growth that came between these two screenshots, but what is more interesting is what stayed the same. Larger than expected replicas, allowing for more detail Strange use of parts - airbrakes, parachutes, and communotrons are used to get colors and shapes right Using the craft to tell a story - the early series were the first planes I built in my Jet of the Day series As we move forwards into a new decade, remember to look back and reflect on how far you've come, and just think how much farther you have left to climb. Here's to a good 2020 -Servo

The Stealth Fighter This is another one of those planes that needs no introduction - it redefined the face of modern warfare in much the way that its spiritual ancestors from Clarence "Kelly'" Johnson's and Lockheed's Skunkworks design group did, but under the leadership and vision of a new generation. I'd bet that anyone who's into aviation in the slightest has seen this plane, and many aircraft nuts like myself have read (or in my case, are currently reading) the tale of its creation right from the metaphorical horse's mouth. Ben Rich was the successor to Kelly Johnson as the head of Lockheed's Advanced Development Projects division, more commonly known simply as the Skunkworks. Rich was one of the first to see the value of radar stealth to an attack aircraft, and championed the project from its conception to delivery in 1983. His excellent memoir (aptly titled "Skunkworks") has an image of his iconic fighter on the cover, and as soon as I picked up the book, I knew that I wouldn't be satisfied until I could see that view myself, in KSP. How'd I do? Chasing screenshots aside, this is my favorite build in a long time, for a large number of reasons. Probably the most important is the fact that the Nighthawk is a plane that has vexed me for a long time. My early forays into replicas were consumed with the Jet-of-the-Day project between @NorthAmericanAviation and myself, in our attempt to replicate every single military jet aircraft that the U.S. has ever flown. We succeeded in all but two. The first was Kelly Johnson's magnum opus, the SR-71 Blackbird, partially because we couldn't top the absolutely jaw-dropping replica from @eorin and @Exothermos, and the second was the F-117A, because neither of use felt that we could take it on. Now, two and a half years later, I've returned to finish what we started. The second reason is that this craft is a fantastic example of why 1:1 replica building is so rewarding. The parts are just the right size to accurately render the shapes of each and every one of the Nighthawks oddly-shaped panels (even the ones on the bottom!), the functional elements are here too, in the form of bomb bays and landing gear doors, and creative part usage is literally front and center in the cockpit glass and air inlets, and somehow, it maintains passable flight characteristics even for such an un-aerodynamic design. At any smaller scale, certain elements would be lost: the shape of the cockpit glass, the angles of the body panels, the wingtips, the shape of the vertical stabilizers, and on and on. Plus, the perfect 1:1 scale really lets you appreciate the size of aircraft in comparison to each other. The F-117 might look small, but it's roughly the same dimensions as a F-14 Tomcat, and the scale lets you appreciate the shape of the plane in all its glory. All of this plays into this being an absolute joy for me to fly. Just looking at it when it lifts into the air gives me chills. And I hope it does the same for you. If you haven't heard the story of the F-117 and the other black projects that helped the world survive the Cold War, I highly recommend Rich's account, but aside from that, the next best thing I can give you is the download link. Craft Download https://kerbalx.com/servo/F-117A-Nighthawk For optimal flying characteristics, trim pitch up 50% and fly without SAS. If you dial in the trim, it's solid as a rock without SAS, somehow.