CommNet Dish Inspection Challenge

[Klapaucius]

I am really making things difficult for myself. My own play has evolved into a mission using a lot of the planes I have built over the last year but not really used.  I am rapidly discovering their strengths and moreso their shortcomings. Some have turned out well, some good, but inefficient, and a few are just junk.

Anyway, I decided to take a stretch version of my speed run plane and head out to Harvester.  I decided to head from there to Woomerang to rendezvous with Valentina and company.  What could go wrong I thought? It is only 100 km further than KSC.

I ran out of fuel, and despite my best gliding efforts, landed 54 km short, thus nullifying my whole trip out--unless--I can figure out a way to land another vehicle and push it to Woomerang!

 

Edited January 2, 2019 by Klapaucius

[GeneCash]

Wait... you can SEE the Woomerang dish from the pad!! (edit: at least on my 4K monitor)

And also, why didn't Squad use the awesome Baikerbanur dish model for all the non-KSC tracking stations...?

And FYI, if you're on a dish base and switch to map view, you go boom with "collided with/crashed into Base00/Base01/the surface". I filed bug 18500 a while back.

Edited January 2, 2019 by GeneCash

[Klapaucius]

21 minutes ago, GeneCash said:

Wait... you can SEE the Woomerang dish from the pad!! (edit: at least on my 4K monitor)

And also, why didn't Squad use the awesome Baikerbanur dish model for all the non-KSC tracking stations...?

And FYI, if you're on a dish base and switch to map view, you go boom with "collided with/crashed into Base00/Base01/the surface". I filed bug 18500 a while back.

Yes, you can see it...and on a standard 1080 monitor as well.

As for Baikerbanur, I think it is cool they made the others different. It makes Baikerbanur even more unique.

[Death Engineering]

Dish Inspection Final Sorties

  Harvester Massif flyby

Added 450 liquid fuel to the DE-AB2 using fixed tanks under the fuselage and wings to complete Harvester Massif inspection. This was a long mission but did much of the flying while I did other things.     

  Landing Inspection

Had hoped to make this and Mesa South in one flight but reserves after the first landing said otherwise. In the end, barely made it back but landed safely with 47 fuel remaining. Total flight time 3:34. Pics for this flight.

  Back to KSC

Next flight to Mesa South allowed for a lighter plane so added only 300 fuel to the base model using fixed fuel pods. Not a lot to see on the way down, but a great view from the dish!

  South Mesa Inspection

Another chute-assisted landing at the dish, this was a little too close but landed safely. I think this is the best view of all the dishes so couldn't resist taking a leap off the steep ledge to the plains below.

  BASE jump from dish

Circled the mesa twice on the way down and skimmed the snow above a lower ledge before plunging straight down the steep side towards a flat area to await pickup.

  Looking back at Mesa

Jeb used gravity to get airborne then lit the engines for landing during the pickup, demonstrating the AB2's reasonable glide ratio.

  Coasting to pick up Bill

Easy flight home chasing sunset total time just under three hours. Enjoyed the relaxing flights punctuated by tricky landings at the dishes in this challenge! The BASE jump off South Mesa was great fun.. might even make for an interesting challenge.

  Back to KSC

Images of the mission. This should complete the challenge, but may repeat the effort with some other goals. 

On 1/1/2019 at 3:46 PM, Klapaucius said:

That was a pretty gnarly flyby of Crater Rim. Did you intend to get that close? 

Oh, of course.. Houdini escapes are always 'planned'. 

 

[Klapaucius]

3 hours ago, Death Engineering said:

The BASE jump off South Mesa was great fun.. might even make for an interesting challenge.

 

 

Cool stuff. I think a base jumping challenge is a great idea.  I'll be there when you do it.......er, once I actually finish my own challenge 

[NHunter]

Since I have a bit of a time before the next maneuver node in my GPP Career, I decided to make a second try at this challenge... With a couple of twist:
1. Now flying on Gael, rather than Kerbin.
2. While I do have KK installed, only two runways will be usable: GSC and Rook's Glory. All other bases will count as commnet dish installations and will need to be visited, but can't be used for refuelling the craft.

Green dots are bases that I can use, blue dots - bases that need to be visited, purple dots - proper commnet dishes (I suspect, they are in exactly the same spots with Kerbin ones). I will post proper coordinates when I actually obtain them. 

 

P.S. @Klapaucius, update my Kerbin entry, please : I've finished the challenge 

Edited January 5, 2019 by NHunter

[Death Engineering]

Albatross 3 Inspection Non-stop tour

  Stock Albatross 3

Using the stock Albatross 3 altered only with one autostrut enabled midway down the main wing to reduce flappy-wing and 3 lights added for the night flybys, this circumnavigation visited all seven dish locations without landing.

  Mesa South

Not sure this is the most efficient order, but started by heading to Mesa South. Val joined Jeb as backup pilot and Bill handled the inspections again.

 HM

Still daylight when passing near Harvester Massif, but nearly lost the aircraft after the flyby when it stalled trying to climb over the mountain range to the north.

  Nye Island

Flew into darkness for the Nye Island flyby but lights gave Bill a good enough look.

  Woomerang

  Crater Rim

Dropped to a low and slow pass by Woomerang before powering back to cruising altitude toward Crater Rim.

  Baikerbanur

Short hop to Baikerbanur for a dusk flyby before heading to North Station, again back into darkness.

  North Station

Swinging back to a southern heading back home for a night landing. Left KSC with full tanks of 4880 fuel and landed with 1800 remaining.

  Landing KSC

Not a points-attempt at this challenge of course, but the non-stop flight did add an interesting element, especially having TAC LifeSupport installed at the time and not bringing enough supplies to complete the trip (everyone still survived).

  Stall recovery

Would have needed to modify the Albatross 3 even more to pull off some of those landings, and part of this attempt was to complete the tour as non-stop in a "stock" craft. 

  Into sunset

Had plenty of fuel left so probably could have done the landings as well, but didn't want to cut the fuel too low and have to start over. Total flight time was 7h 7m and covered distance (by Waypoint Manager) was 4871 km.

 

On 1/4/2019 at 2:22 PM, Klapaucius said:

I think a base jumping challenge is a great idea.

Wasn't sure it would even work as the first few tries saw Bill tumbling instead of deploying the chute, but was kinda neat and could have easily made it 10km away from the jump point. I tried something similar on Duna using EVA pack to get up to about 11km then chuted down. Covered almost 20km!

 

edit: POIDH

Edited January 5, 2019 by Death Engineering
pics

[Klapaucius]

4 hours ago, NHunter said:

Since I have a bit of a time before the next maneuver node in my GPP Career, I decided to make a second try at this challenge... With a couple of twist:
1. Now flying on Gael, rather than Kerbin.
2. While I do have KK installed, only two runways will be usable: GSC and Rook's Glory. All other bases will count as commnet dish installations and will need to be visited, but can't be used for refuelling the craft.

Green dots are bases that I can use, blue dots - bases that need to be visited, purple dots - proper commnet dishes (I suspect, they are in exactly the same spots with Kerbin ones). I will post proper coordinates when I actually obtain them. 

 

P.S. @Klapaucius, update my Kerbin entry, please : I've finished the challenge 

Cool!  What is the key to the colour codes on your map?  I have the GPP installed on another KSP copy, so may try that down the line.

Sorry for the delay in getting your entry updated.

Edited January 5, 2019 by Klapaucius

[Klapaucius]

@Death Engineering, @NHunter

 

Don't forget to grab your CommNet mission badge of honour! 

Edited January 6, 2019 by Klapaucius

[NHunter]

And so I take to the skies...

00: Gael Space Center (lat = 8.63 deg, lon = -168.23 deg)

01: Commnet Ground Station 01 ("Crater Rim") (lat = 9.45 deg, lon = -172.11 deg)

02: GSC-2, "Baikerbanur" (lat = 20.58 deg, lon = -146.51 deg) -- there is no actual dish there due to Modular Flight Integrator...

03: DomRok base (lat = -7.29 deg, lon = -114.77 deg) -- wow, you can see Grannus in the sky!

04: Commnet Ground Station 02 ("North Station One") (lat = 63.09 deg, lon = -90.07 deg)

And my progress so far:

----------------------------------------

2 hours ago, Klapaucius said:

What is the key to the colour codes on your map?  I have the GPP installed on another KSP copy, so may try that down the line.

As I said here:

6 hours ago, NHunter said:

Green dots are bases that I can use, blue dots - bases that need to be visited, purple dots - proper commnet dishes

> green dots are bases where I can land to refuel / recover / resummon crafts;
> blue dots are bases that are I count as additional commnet ground station stations and, thus, need to visit;
> purple dots are actual commnet ground stations.

Edited January 5, 2019 by NHunter

[Klapaucius]

5 minutes ago, NHunter said:

As I said here:

> green dots are bases where I can land to refuel / recover / resummon crafts;
> blue dots are bases that are I count as additional commnet ground station stations and, thus, need to visit;
> purple dots 

Ugh. And I just got new glasses .

That's cool that the CommNet stations carry over. I did see that the Woomerang launch pad is on a very small island when I did my big flights around Gael a few months ago.  I think on another planet pack it was underwater!

Edited January 5, 2019 by Klapaucius

[NHunter]

Part 2 of Gael Commnet Dish Inspection:

05:  Rover Test Site (lat = 23.38 deg, lon = -57.28 deg) - I don't think this one has a commnet dish...

06: Cironaut's Hope Launchsite (lat = 42.46 deg, lon = -31.54 deg)

07: Northern Valley Launchsite (lat = 15.58 deg, lon = -32.31 deg) - why is it called "Nothern"? It's within tropics!

08: Commnet Ground Station 03 ("Mesa South") (lat = -59.59 deg, lon = -25.87 deg)

And mission progress so far...

[Klapaucius]

29 minutes ago, NHunter said:

Part 2 of Gael Commnet Dish Inspection:

05:  Rover Test Site (lat = 23.38 deg, lon = -57.28 deg) - I don't think this one has a commnet dish...

 

Are these other sites, like the Rover test site, part of the base planet pack, or are they something you added?  I only remember the Island Airfield, which was transferred to way inland.

[NHunter]

9 minutes ago, Klapaucius said:

Are these other sites, like the Rover test site, part of the base planet pack, or are they something you added?  I only remember the Island Airfield, which was transferred to way inland.

You get these with Kerbal Konstructs installed.

And, I haven't found the Island airfield on Gael yet. It must be underwater or something since you start on an island just offshore 180-th-meridian continent.

[Klapaucius]

28 minutes ago, NHunter said:

You get these with Kerbal Konstructs installed.

And, I haven't found the Island airfield on Gael yet. It must be underwater or something since you start on an island just offshore 180-th-meridian continent.

The Island Airfield is actually not located where you think it would be.  It is very far inland, west of the KSC.  You can see it at 3:00 in this video tour I did.  Unfortunately, I don't know the exact location coordinates-wise. I have the DLC, so was able to launch from there.  I'll load my GPP Game this evening and find out what the exact location is.

 

 

Edited January 7, 2019 by Klapaucius

[NHunter]

Part 3 of Gael Commnet Dish Inspection:

09: Southern Launch Site (lat = -61.09 deg, lon = -0.61 deg)

10: Commnet Ground Station 04 ("Harvester Massif") (lat = -11.95 deg, lon = 33.74 deg)

And, finally, arrival to Rook's Glory Space Center (lat = -0.15 deg, lon = 35.95 deg)

And since I've finally reached a space center I can use within the rules I set for this challenge, I'm going to swap my plane for something better. In 1.4.3, where I imported it from, it's only problem was it's eagerness to pull 15g maneuvers leading into various uncontrolled spins. Here, in 1.5.1, it still has this problem, but also its takeoff speed is now 60% higher AND its power plant is prone to random spikes of overheating, which cause some serious, potentially-fatal, issues.

Anyway, here is the map of the mission progress so far:

I have only two ground stations and one base left to visit.

[Klapaucius]

A lot going on this morning. A few downed aircraft (but surviving Kerbals) meant some rescue pickups.  I've had a few too many crashes, usually when trying to land at night or getting distracted. The prototype belowis potentially repairable.

 

This prototype was also destroyed due to poor decisionmaking, trying to land near Harvester Massif. Rough terrain in the dark = bad idea. They were lucky to survive.  The craft was obliterated.  I have noticed that Kerbals in command seats survive spectacular crashes more often than those in crew compartments.

Fortunately rescue came in the form of the reliable and very long-range Trillian aircraft.

And as a bonus, mission accomplished at the Harvester Massif.

Another rescue was mounted after this crew discovered that large supersonic passenger jets are not the best for pulling high Gs.

The plane broke up around them, but fortunately no passengers were aboard and the crew compartment remained intact. Parachutes were deployed and then it was just a few lonely nights out camping before pickup. Despite the difficulties, the general consensus is the aircraft is no great loss. It is NOT one of K.R.A.S.S.H. Industries better moments in aviation design.

Meanwhile, the Uhura science and communications plane left the crowded Dessert Airfield for Bakerbanur.

The previous night, another mission was launched from KSC to Nye Island. This time, using infrared radar (the Planet Shine mod) a successful night landing was achieved. It was decided to camp out under the wings of the plane and do a proper inspection in the morning.  This is Italo, a very fast and long-range plane. It could have done all the inspections on its own, but political considerations and the chance for a trip away from the office, relegated it to just one mission.

And finally, another crew headed out from the Dessert Airfield to do a fly-by inspection of Mesa South. They crossed into darkness, and have found a nice spot near a large lake to spend the night. The mission will continue when the sun comes up.

More was planned, but the Kraken bug decided to wrap its tentacles around my mission, so we are putting it aside for the moment and awaiting some feedback on our queries.

Edited January 7, 2019 by Klapaucius

[NHunter]

Here's the fourth and final part of Gael Commnet Dish Inspection.

And, first of all, meet my new plane:

12: Commnet Ground Station 05 ("Nye Island") (lat = 5.36 deg, lon = 108.55 deg) - Apparently, Gael has suffered a global sea-level rise since the construction of this dish was completed - it's completely underwater. And I haven't packed any diving equipment...

13: Broken Arrow Launch Site (lat = -17.92 deg, lon = 116.42 deg)

14: Point Spetses Launch Site (lat = 51.34 deg, lon = 159.09 deg) - apparently, there is no Woomerang site on Gael, and the map I've been using so far has a large mistake.

And, finally, return to the GSC:

The final map of the inspection flights (corrected for the fact there there is no Woomerang, but Point Spetses):

[Klapaucius]

After a pleasant night out camping, the crew of the Umberto plane woke up to a lovely sunrise.  A short hop to the Mesa South dish and some barnstorming around it before a trip back to KSC. The tank was a bit emptier than hoped but they made it okay.

[Azimech]

Report, stock parts. All flights started and ended on the KSC.

At first I tried with my multi-role fighter but then discovered I needed even more control at very low speeds.

So I made a smaller version with the same wing surface area.

First stop: Baikerbanur.




Went on to the Crater Rim.

And the North Station.



It was time to head home. This picture was taken after landing and a Hyperedit refuel.


Out of time, off to work. I'll finish the report when I get home.
 

[Klapaucius]

On 1/7/2019 at 2:36 PM, NHunter said:

You get these with Kerbal Konstructs installed.

And, I haven't found the Island airfield on Gael yet. It must be underwater or something since you start on an island just offshore 180-th-meridian continent.

Actually, the developer moved the Island Airfield to a totally different location. It is at -71.88524 Longitude, -1.52562 Latitude.  You cannot really see the icon in the picture, but it is pretty much dead center.

And just for fun, I Mission Buildered my submersible airplane to the underwater dish.  It's around 500 meters deep.

 

Edited January 11, 2019 by Klapaucius

[Klapaucius]

@Azimech

 

7700 so far for you. Sorry for the delay in responding and getting you up on the leaderboard. I was very stoked to see your entry!

 

PS. Cool plane!

 

Crater Rim inspection with the Pythagoras aircraft.  I was quite pleased that this plane managed to leave the Dessert Airfield without refueling, inspect Crater Rim, fly and land at Woomerang and then return to KSC all on one tank of gas.  The crazy wing configuration sure gives it a lot of fuel!

 

Meanwhile, the gals woke up to a lovely sunrise and pulled off the Mesa South inspection.

Much fun was had barnstorming in the mountains.

However, all that barnstorming used up fuel and the return flight was a bit of a nailbiter.  They put down on the field because if they  messed up the runway approach, there was a good chance there would be no fuel for a second attempt.

Edited January 20, 2019 by Klapaucius

[Klapaucius]

Well, I finally got the Woomerang Dish inspected, though not without a long trip and a bit of drama. My Wilfred Thesiger plane--or rather Thesigner plane and Wilfred rover (named after the great explorer) was something I first built for @Triop's Temple Race Challenge.  I decided to use it for this, and try rovering up the mountain rather than killing any more Kerbals trying to land.

Since it's range is just barely 1000km, I had to fly first to the Dessert Airfield and then to Woomerang, coasting in on almost fumes.

 

Spoiler

 

 

 

The next morning we took off and placed it down over the ridge. The crew dropped the nose and the rover drove off. All was going well until a bit too much speed over a bump resulted in the loss of the decoupler on the rover. The rover was still driveable, but it would have to return to Woomerang on its own steam, since there was now no way it could recouple itself to the aircraft.

So Thesiger flew back and Wilfred took a very steep descent off the face of the mountain range. Success!  We do need to return to KSP after some coupling repairs at Woomerang (I'm not 100% sure that fits in with my own rules, but I have had so many incidents on this challenge, that I think I can assume Woomerang has a repair shop.)

 

Unfortunately, the video is a bit stuttery.  My screen capture software got a bit bogged down.