Top-mounted Shuttle

[Le Lynx]

Build a shuttle mounted on the top of your rocket, like the ESA's Hermes. You must make this with the stock parts. You must put a image or a video in your post.

[Le Lynx]

It is better if you put no fairing on the rocket.

[QF9E]

I've just been flying my Solid Rocket Shuttle for this forum's shuttle challenge. It's top-mounted and entirely powered by SRBs as the name suggests. Here's a video of SRS landing on the Mun:

 

[Le Lynx]

Nice.

[gamepuch]

can i still participate in here?

(can only give pictures)

and are there any badges or something for it?

Edited December 23, 2021 by gamepuch

[Autochrome]

https://imgur.com/a/pWBU0H0

This counts I guess, it's called the Borderline Spacecraft launched on a L-33 Anchorhead Super Heavy Lift Launch Vehicle.

Edited January 15, 2022 by Austin_Kerman

[18Watt]

Here's my entry:

More about the plane:

Spoiler

I play 100% stock, no mods.  I do have the MH and BG expansion packs, and am using the Bobcat engine for the booster stage.  The plane is 100% vanilla stock though.  Launch cost is $17,350.

Here it is sitting on the launch pad.  The booster gets it almost to orbit.  The plane's engines are needed to circularize.

This was actually a poorly-flown launch.  The plane is capable of reaching a 100X100 km orbit with about 1,250 m/s dv remaining.  I just flew a sloppy ascent this time..  The cargo bay is empty, but a small satellite would not affect the performance much.

There is a docking port, and RCS thrusters to aid docking.  The docking port does survive re-entry, but it would have been better to place it on the dorsal side.  

Side view in orbit.  The cargo bay could be swapped out for the 4-Kerbal passenger module.  That does add some weight, which could be compensated for with a larger booster section.

.

Re-Entry:

Spoiler

Reentry from a 100X100 km orbit.  I perform the retrograde burn from roughly over the Desert Airfield, and burn until my path line intersects the surface just a tad east of KSC.  I fly the entry about 10-30 degrees above prograde.

The RCS thrusters get hot, but do not explode.  

Still hot, but once your speed is <1,600 m/s you should be safe.

The plane is balanced with the intention that it will be landed with nearly empty tanks.  Because I did not actually do any orbital maneuvers on this flight, I have way too much fuel remaining.  The plane is unstable with this much fuel, so I am burning off the fuel to get the COM in the correct location.

Passing over KSC, way too high.  That's ok, I can maneuver back to the runway no problem.  I still have way too much fuel, so I'll burn a little more off before I try to land it.  A drain valve would be handy, but the intention was the plane would do orbital maneuvers, and would return from orbit with nearly empty tanks anyway.  So I didn't put a drain valve on.

Right base for runway 27.  I fly a steep approach because the Spark engines are not very effective at the surface.  I could get a small boost from them if needed, but better to just glide in and not rely on the Spark engines.

Touchdown is ideally about 40 m/s, I actually ended up a tad slow on this landing.  The plane does fly slow just fine, but if the landing attitude is too high I risk the engines hitting the pavement.  40 m/s keeps the landing attitude flatter.

Parked at KSC after an orbital flight.  I brought a pilot, but the plane could be flown remotely by adding a probe core.  It would look cool if I added a drag parachute to deploy during landing, but the plane already lands at 40 m/s (or slower...), so I don't need a drag parachute.

.

Edit: I just used this exact shuttle on an actual mission.  The mission was to add a part to a satellite, which was just beyond Mun’s orbit.  Jeb and Bill took a part to LKO.  Bill (and the part) transferred to another ship, because this shuttle does not have enough dv to explore that far out.  Bill flew out to repair the satellite.

Then the utility ship returned to LKO, where it re-docked with the shuttle.  Bill transferred back to the shuttle, and Jeb and Bill returned to KSC, mission complete.

Edited January 18, 2022 by 18Watt