Bristol Boxkite: Pre-WWI Biplane (Now with engines!)

[pTrevTrevs]

A couple of you may remember the tow glider I made a few version ago based on the Bristol Boxkite. My original plan was to build a replica of the plane, but there were no engines in stock KSP at the time that would fit on the plane, so i converted it into an unpowered glider. Now, thanks to the 0.625 Juno engines, I can give you my original vision; a functional, powered replica of the Bristol Boxkite.

I have also used some advanced building techniques that have been brought to my attention since I built the glider to accurately replicate the tail structure and forward elevator. The offset mod has allowed me to reduce the number of cubic struts and achieve a smoother, more aesthetically pleasing shape while minimizing the number of parts required.

You may ask "Why the Bristol Boxkite? Why is it so famous?" Well, Boxkite may not have been the first airplane, and it may not have been used in combat, but it was one of the first airplanes to be produced in significant quantity, with 78 of the type constructed. It was primarily used as a training aircraft prior to World War I, and many British fighter pilots learned to fly in a Boxkite. It continued to be used as an instructional aircraft until sometime in 1915.

My Boxkite performs very well, with good maneuverability, great speed, and fair range. I built this plane with ease of operation in mind, so this plane will be good for perfecting your flying skills before taking on large, high speed jets or giant airliners and bombers. The aircraft's top speed it about 98 m/s, although it can easily break 110 m/s in a dive. It has enough fuel to make a flight to the KSC Island, but not quite enough to make it back without refueling. In case you run out of fuel, the plane is a good enough glider to land somewhat safely (Vehicle not guaranteed to operate safely after crash landing). In fact, I have ditched the plane in the ocean several times without losing any parts, I was even able to take off again one time!

The real Boxkite had ailerons that could only be pulled down. In flight, the force of the air would return them to their normal position. I have tried to recreate this here by adding an action group that deploys all the ailerons. It's really more of an aesthetic feature than a functional one, however it does help you slow down for a landing more quickly, so it isn't completely useless.

 

Flight Instructions

• Be careful when taking off. If you try and pitch up immediately after starting the engines, you'll overheat your elevator, and then bad things will happen. The plane should take off by itself before reaching the Spaceplane Hangar. If it still hasn;t left the ground by then, you may want to consider using the elevators.
• Don't pitch or yaw for too long, the engines will heat up your elevators and rudder and possibly make them explode.
• When landing, control your speed by killing the engines completely and lowering your flaps (AG1). When you touch down, be careful with the brakes, this plane does not have a tricycle undercarraige, which means it will tip on its nose if you brake too hard. If you need to, apply the brake for a second or two and then turn it off. Once the back wheel touches the ground, you'll usually be okay to brake to a stop, but be careful anyway.

 

Thanks for taking the time to read this, if you download it, I hope you enjoy flying it as much as I did! Please don't hesitate to leave your thoughts here. I'm always happy to hear what people think of my craft, and I will take any ideas for improvement into consideration.

DOWNLOAD HERE

[SpaceplaneAddict]

An engineering masterpiece... 

[Columbia]

Looks awesome!

Resembles the Wright Flyer a bit..

[pTrevTrevs]

Huh, for a while I thought nobody was going to reply to thi- uh... I mean... uh.. 

 

Yeah, I would assume that it looks like the Wright Flyer because that was a plane which had been proven to work, and they decided to keep the same design features for simplicity and ease. For example, you will notice both planes have elevators on the front, and pusher props. That's my guess, anyway, I could be wrong.

[Raptor9]

That's an extremely nice-looking design. Does it break the smell-barrier?

[Majorjim!]

I love it! The simplicity, the strutting. It's very Kerbal too. Good job man.

[Abraxsas]

I like it 5/5

Edited September 3, 2016 by Abraxsas

[Deizelpunk]

I wish infinite offset still worked. ;-;

[pTrevTrevs]

26 minutes ago, Deizelpunk said:

I wish infinite offset still worked. ;-;

Wait, the offset mod is broken? If this is true it's sad news indeed.

No, it can't be, I've used the mod in 1.1.3 for my new U-boat!

Edited September 12, 2016 by pTrevTrevs

[Deizelpunk]

1 hour ago, pTrevTrevs said:

Wait, the offset mod is broken? If this is true it's sad news indeed.

No, it can't be, I've used the mod in 1.1.3 for my new U-boat!

Really? It didn't work for me! Can you send me the link for your file?

[mrmcp1]

@Deizelpunk I think it has been integrated with the editor extensions redux mod

 

[pTrevTrevs]

3 hours ago, mrmcp1 said:

@Deizelpunk I think it has been integrated with the editor extensions redux mod

 

Ah yes, that's it. I forgot about Editor Extensions.

[Deizelpunk]

49 minutes ago, pTrevTrevs said:

Ah yes, that's it. I forgot about Editor Extensions.

So this is the one? Gunna try it when i get home.