NorthAmericanAviation

THIS CRAFT IS NOT MINE---BUILT BY @Soundwave__007 I don't mean to be coarse with the allcaps but I want it to be absolutely clear that I did NOT make that model, I just showcased it because my F-117 craft hit major development issues and I ran out of time (and energy). All I did was a short article. I will continue work on mine for eventual release, but I did not want to hamper the schedule of this thread. Apologies.

October 1983: Lockheed F-117 Nighthawk 3rd-Party Entry---from @Soundwave__007 (Disclaimer: This article was created by me, the craft is his.) The Lockheed F-117 truly is the definition of a stealth fighter: ugly, purpose-built, and undetectable, at least by 1980's radar standards. The F-117 is one of the major recognizable developments of the 'Skunk Works,' using sharp angles to deflect radar-return signals. developed from the proof of concept codename Have Blue, the F-117's development was necessitated by the realization that the Soviet defense network of radar systems would almost certainly pick up the then active U.S. fighter jets, so something beyond a reconnaissance aircraft (SR-71) would be needed in the case of a confrontation. Learning from experience with SAM's in Vietnam, Lockheed's approach for a stealth fighter has stood the test of time. Despite it having been retired in 2008, there are still a few Nighthawks in active service, and the rest are in regenerative storage, meaning they are maintained to sub-airworthy standards for long-term storage, only being fully restored to airworthiness if/when called upon. This is similar to the way some A-10's were stored until recently. Anecdote: the reason the F-117 is suffixed "-117" was to confuse enemy intelligence. The idea was that they would believe there were other fighter aircraft between "F-111" and "F-117," as well as to make radio identification arduous, maybe confusing. Download Link: https://kerbalx.com/Soundwave/Lockheed-F-117-Nighthhawk Tomorrow's Craft: McDonnell Douglas AV-8B Harrier II

Hiatus ought to be over this weekend, but you'll see some stuff I've either been hiding or perfecting in what little meanwhile is left---note how ridiculously extensive the WB-57's page is, hehe

Will start thread about it and the Yak.

Yup! It will break my trend of only U.S. built craft once I upload it, and having handled a few VTOL KSP craft before I can say with confidence that it will be one of the easier ones to fly. (and its got that cool swivel-blower hookup---hype!) I mean, as much as any VTOL is 'easy to fly,' hehe

Honey, I shrunk the Thermometer-Hinge... Since I'm on spring break---away from JotD--- I can focus on some personal favorite aircraft that I previously had no time for. I have since built the rest of the plane this micro-hinge was designed for, any guesses as to what it is?

I REALLY want to see how that (Russian JotD) turns out! Big fan of turboprops, would like to help with development sometime! This is much smaller than my conventional landing-gear-bearing designs, how are you mounting the shaft in that Mk.1 Structural Fuselage? Nevertheless, I have another update on my 1:1 scale YB-60: Cockpit added, weight shifted towards COL. Wing still needs to be re-profiled. It wreaks of 1950's and I LOVE it. Here's the real deal --- Coming soon.

August 1975: McDonnell Douglas YC-15 The YC-15 is McDonnell Douglas' entry into the AMST STOL competition, competing with the previously uploaded Boeing YC-14. Neither aircraft was accepted, but McDonnell Douglas used the design of their YC-15 as a basis for the successful and reliable C-17 Globemaster. The resemblance is pretty obvious. Like the YC-14, the ‘dash-15’ uses a ‘supercritical’ airfoil, allowing up to 30% less drag at transonic speeds, but keeping drag low at landing/takeoff speeds. (Photo Credit: NMUSAF defense.gov) Unlike the YC-14, though, McDonnell Douglas' design uses a blown flap instead of an overblown wing. this means that thrust-lift can be varied from maximum to zero, very useful in creating emergency/immediate lift for short-field operations. This model does not duplicate those effects because it isn’t useful in the KSP aerodynamics model. Replica Statistics Builder: NAA Part Count: 151 Mass: 40.5 Tons Crew: 2 Service Ceiling: 9000m Powerplant: 4x Panther (No A/B) Top Speed: 240m/s Dimensions: 31.8 x 26.4 x 8.7 LWH This plane is a great flyer; expect 400m takeoff rolls or less when cargo bay is empty. Assuming you don’t clip parts, the cargo store volume is full long before weight capacity is reached, so it can take literally anything you can fit. Download Link: https://kerbalx.com/NorthAmericanAviation/McDonnell-Douglas-YC-15 (This is definitely a personal favorite.) Tomorrow's Craft: McDonnell Douglas KC-10 Extender

Not quite: the YC-15 looks much more like the C-17

August 1976: Boeing YC-14 The YC-14 was Boeing's entry into the Advanced Medium STOL Transport competition, aiming to replace the Lockheed C-130. It Competed against the McDonnell Douglas YC-15, but neither were accepted. The knowledge gained from test flights, plus the unique characteristics of both aircraft would influence the design of the very successful C-17 Globemaster III. The YC-14's Design employed a 'super-critical' airfoil, which reduced transonic drag; this allowed a higher top speed while maintaining lift at low speeds. Replica Statistics Builder: NAA Part Count: 132 Mass: 36.7 Tons Crew: 2 Service Ceiling: 11km Powerplant: 4x Panther Top Speed: 270m/s Dimensions: 22.3 x 26.7 x 9.0 LWH This KSP model is definitely an ugly duckling if I ever saw one: had a custom cockpit, scrapped it due to drag issues. Otherwise, this model flies very well and is true to its STOL design in real life: I achieved a 370m takeoff roll with full fuel, empty cargo bays. It's a pretty forgiving plane in the air; super rugged, but requires some pitch-up attitude for level flight. 1 Toggles Afterburners, 2 Toggles Leading Edge Flaps. Download Link: https://kerbalx.com/NorthAmericanAviation/Boeing-YC-14 Tomorrow's Craft: McDonnell Douglas YC-15

I assume you mean in whatever thread succeeds this one (Russian JotD/Prototype JotD).

Man, I gotta perfect my unorthodox KSP gimmicks like you, but Turboprops are hard to shrink! of course, I might have a helicopter to publish... some time... but for the meanwhile, here's this: February 1974: Lockheed S-3 Viking Designed to be an anti-submarine aircraft, the S-3’s initial form replaced the aging Grumman S-2 Tracker. The role of the aircraft consisted of tracking Soviet submarines as they cruised about. This role ended with the fall of the Soviet Union in 1992. As deployed for Persian Gulf War, though, they would receive missile hard-points, avionics upgrades, radar equipment, and different crews to perform attack and ELINT missions. Sixteen aircraft would be converted into the Electronic warfare-specified ES-3A Shadow. Apart from that, they were also armed with different air-to-air missiles, and actually destroyed a Naval/Leadership target during operation Iraqi Freedom with a ‘Maverick’ missile. Retirement and Possible Service Outlook The majority of S-3’s were retired in 2009, with 3 remaining in service for a few years, and one continuing in operation with NASA. However, some analysts believe that returning the stored masses of S-3’s to service as tankers would be beneficial in order to extend the range of current strike fighters such as the F/A-18 and F-35B. In 2014, Lockheed-Martin offered to refurbish 35 of the 91 stored S-3’s, re-labeling them C-3’s to fulfill this role and ‘carrier onboard delivery’(COD). COD is essentially a personnel and supply ferrying-type job. Replica Statistics Builder: NAA Part Count: 50 Mass: 5.8 Tons Crew: 2 Service Ceiling: 9500m Powerplant: 4x Juno (thrust limited) Top Speed: 180 m/s Dimensions: 7.7 x 9.4 x 4.0 LWH This recreation flies well, has good range, and plenty of illumination! it’s good for practicing short landing rolls and other fundamental carrier operations. Download Link: https://kerbalx.com/NorthAmericanAviation/Lockheed-S-3-Viking Tomorrow's Craft: Grumman F-14 Tomcat

Maybe I will start a thread and leave it open for people so sign on/up to the project (for a period of time), so it could include more people overall. A lot of required communication, though, but I really do want to do a Prototype-of-the-day type thread, maybe one for (Stock) VTOLs and Rotorcraft separate from conventional aircraft. I'll keep it on the 'back burner.'

March 1968: Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird By: @eorin and @Exothermos, our only (thus far) 3rd-party entry Designed in part by Lockheed's long-time chief aeronautical engineer, Kelly Johnson, the SR-71 "Blackbird" was a Strategic Reconnaissance aircraft designed to fly at Mach 3+. Origins of the A-12/F-12 and SR-71/M-21 can be found in the A-11 and "Archangel" series of designs drafted between July 1958 and April 1962. The first is shown below. The titanium construction of the aircraft meant that heat vs. area expansion coefficients were so high as to prevent the fuel tanks from being any more than roughly 1/3rd full on the ground due to how much they would compress. The fuel tanks were also designed to vent excess, so there would sometimes be a streak of fuel dribbling from the aircraft, mid-flight. The Blackbird's anti-radar construction was so effective, in fact, that the radar footprint of the aircraft was equivalent to that of a seagull's, according to some. The J-58: Revolutionary Powerplant The Pratt & Whitney J-58 turbojet engine was and is still today a remarkable piece of advanced engineering, being designed for a peak efficiency and output at Mach 3.2 and delivering a knuckle-whitening 34,000 pounds of thrust each, while afterburning. The unique inlet cone was completely conical, down to the very tip, making a stream of air that fed directly to the bleed system of the J-58 with little to no pressure loss, where it was slowed to subsonic speeds. Onto combustion, things are fairly tame, but once the exhaust gasses reach the ejector nozzle, they are accelerated to Mach 3 from around Mach 0.4-0.5. "Started" airflow from the intake also controlled expansion during exhaust ejection and cooled the engine by venting out of the aforementioned bleed ports. Unstarts The unique 'lossless pressure flow' of the J-58's intake section was achieved by 'starting' the shock cone of air so that a tangent line could be drawn from the tip of the intake spike to the forward-most edge of the intake cone. The conditions required to induce this seamless flow were very low-tolerance, like the rest of the plane, and were all dependent of the thrust balance between the intake vents, engine output, and exhaust ejector. Bill Weaver: Disintegration at 3x the Speed of Sound On January 25th, 1966, 11:20 AM, SR-71 Aircraft T-No. 952 took off from Edwards Air Force Base with Bill Weaver in the 'driver's seat' and Jim Zwayer in the back seat. They took on fuel from a KC-135 and headed to 78,000 feet, which was standard cruise altitude, and continued their route. During a 35 degree right-turn, they experienced 'unstart,' and the starboard J-58 lost power. Their aircraft now pitched up and banked even further to the right, despite the cross-tie system doing its best to control the roll and attempt to re-start the bad engine while keeping the other going. At this point, the control produced no response, but given as ejection at Mach 3.2 probably wouldn't end well, the two stayed with their ship for as long as they could until cumulative failures and extreme attitude caused the aircraft to disintegrate around them. The extremely high G-forces plus the air-blast of being hit by Mach 3+ air in a pressure suit caused Weaver to black out and Zwayer to, unfortunately, break his neck. Weaver was unconscious for some time during his descent and could hardly believe what had transpired when he finally came to. Weaver's suit stayed pressurized, the small oxygen tank doing its job, all the way to the ground and protection him from the sub-zero temperatures of high-altitudes. Even after the buffeting and direct exposure to such high speeds, the suit was intact. Bill Weaver and the body of Jim Zwayer landed on a ranch in New Mexico, whose owner promptly came out to investigate what had happened; it was about then that he reported to Weaver that his colleague had not survived. The ranch owner, Al Mitchell Sr., offered Weaver a ride to the Tucumcari hospital---an offer he initially refused, thinking "I just survived a disintegrating aircraft at Mach 3, and this guy wants to fly me to the hospital in a beat-up sprayer-Helicopter! I'm going to die on the way to the hospital!" He eventually accepted the offer, albeit barely, I've heard, and recovered at Tucumcari. Two weeks later, though, he was back in the hot-seat of another Blackbird! I decided to take a more narrative approach for this entry, given the SR-71 and all variants are so well-documented and researched. Below is the original post for this craft, it belongs to @eorin and @Exothermos, I am merely showcasing it. KerbalX Download Link: https://kerbalx.com/Eorin/SR-71-By-Eorin-and-Exothermos-12 Tomorrow's Craft: Lockheed C-5 Galaxy

April 1965: Lockheed C-141 Starlifter Designed to meet a new set of requirements to replace aging C-124 and debatably unreliable C-133 propeller driven cargo aircraft, the C-141's design took shape between 1960 and 1963, with U.S. President John F. Kennedy's First act in office being to allow the development of the 'Lockheed 300' project, which would be submitted to the USAF. A passenger version was also created, but there were no takers, so Lockheed sent the aircraft to NASA. The C-141 Enjoyed a 41-year service life, from 1965 to (Roughly) 2006. The C-141 was much more useful to the U.S. Military than the C-135, due to the fact that the C-141 had a large unloading door/gate, whereas the C-135 had only side-loading doors. Despite minimal participation in Vietnam, the Starlifter performed many roles as a cargo dropper, medevac, and general hauler, proving itself a reliable workhorse; in Desert Storm and Desert Shield, over 8,500 airlifts were flown between all the deployed craft. Replica Statistics Builder: NAA Part Count: 288 Mass: 110 Tons (full fuel) Crew: 2 Service Ceiling: 7500m Powerplant: 8x Panther (thrust limited) Top Speed: 170 m/s Dimensions: 53.1 x 50.3 x 10.0 LWH This replica is very easy to fly, just be mindful of tailstrikes; it sits low for easy cargo-loading. It is also 1:1 scale, roughly, so it is quite capable of handling heavy loads---the exact capacity is unknown (will test soon) but the only limitation is the lobe of fuel surrounding the wing-mounts. The nose/cockpit is nothing to write home about, though... Download Link: https://kerbalx.com/NorthAmericanAviation/Lockheed-C-141-Starlifter What is today, but yesterday's tomorrow?

KSP has a nasty tendency to partially seize up / bug out in a way that renders the button functions in the top-right useless, including "Save." Ugh, I'm not making this up, either... I only detected AFTER I built the wing, tail-plane, and engine pylons. Technology will be the downfall of us all, I swear! not really... (Craft on the way, sorry for inconsistency.)

Given all the above stuff, it's time for more Vietnam goodies! Sometime 1963: Cessna A-37 Dragonfly The A-37 is a light ground attack aircraft developed from the Cessna T-37 basic trainer. Being as it was derived from a lightweight trainer, some modifications were made to make it more combat-ready, including strengthening the design of the wing, adding fuel, adding pylons for bomb load-outs, and even a 7.62x51mm (NATO) Minigun. Dragonflies in Vietnam flew thousands of sorties, proving their worth and also being supplied to the South Vietnamese Air Force as of 1968. According to U.S. records, only 22 losses were recorded during Vietnam. Douglas A-1 Skyraiders put to the dangerous task of ground attack missions were being shot down at a greater rate than expected, and so the smaller, nimbler A-37 fit the bill and production ramped up to meet demands. After Vietnam, many aircraft went to South American countries, such as Colombia, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Peru, and Uruguay who currently operate them, and Chile and Ecuador, who are former operators. Thailand also received a few, as well. Four aircraft of the A-37 designation are known to be under private ownership in the U.S. Replica Statistics Builder: NAA Part Count: 62 Mass: 10.78 Tons Crew: 2 Service Ceiling: 8300m Powerplant: 4x Juno Top Speed: 200m/s Dimensions: 8.4 x 10.6 x 4.1 LWH This model is slow to turn, but stable as a rock. It is an ideal candidate for practicing strafe or low-altitude bombing runs, provided you outfit it with some BDArmory goodies, I left these stock with ‘Dummy Bombs.’ Went a little overboard on the KerbalX page... Download Link: https://kerbalx.com/NorthAmericanAviation/Cessna-A-37-Dragonfly Tomorrow's Craft: North American XB-70

June 1961: North American A-5 Vigilante The A-5 was initially intended to replace the Douglas A-3, is a Mach 2+ reconnaissance and attack aircraft. Weighing in at 32,000lbs, it’s a big, heavy plane to launch from a carrier, not to mention its design calling for supersonic cruise—a trait not easily adapted to a carrier-borne aircraft of this size at this time. The A-5 used instruments, housings, and design elements developed for the F-108 Rapier, as well as the VAID (Variable Air Intake Duct) system implemented on the F-107. A reconnaissance and electronic warfare specific evolution, the RA-5C, saw heavy use in Vietnam as part of ELINT operations. it employed a side-sweeping radar and an infrared line scanner, crucial in strategic/strike attacks, despite never carrying any weaponry. It also carried a primitive digital computer, called Versatile Digital Analyzer, or VERDAN to run all the instrumentation. Replica Statistics Builder: NAA Part Count: 44 Mass: 21.2 Tons Crew: 1 Service Ceiling: 24.5km Powerplant: 2x Panther Top Speed: 960m/s Dimensions: 15.4 x 10.0 x 5.6 LWH This model flies very well and is so agile, in fact, I turn the pitch control limits down to 70. For realistic speed, set the thrust limit at 50%, but otherwise this is a super-fun high-flyer; in the configuration everything is in upon download, it’s turned up to 11. 1 toggles afterburner. Download Link: https://kerbalx.com/NorthAmericanAviation/North-American-A-5-Vigilante Tomorrow's Craft: Grumman A-6 Intruder

Something big is rolling out of my hangar: A faithful A-4 chase plane trails behind this lumbering giant: The Convair YB-60 Here's an an album of the build thus far:

Sure was! Here's a very in-depth article on the plane and its systems: www.aviation-history.com/convair/b58.html

March 1960: Convair B-58 Hustler Designed to be a low-altitude supersonic bomber, the Hustler was an idea heavily supported by the SAC (Strategic Air Command) and easily fulfilled this role by being capable of sustained Mach 2+ flight. For its time, the avionics in the B-58 were rather advance; a combination of pilot skill and terrain guidance meant that constant low level flight could be achieved, even at maximum thrust from the four GE J79s. Despite all this the B-58 was not easy to fly—Differential thrust issues upon flame-out, very specific and high angle of attack at subsonic speeds, fuel sloshing changing the center of mass, and general unwieldiness plagued the supersonic, lawn-dart-shaped plane. Given these characteristics, though, B-58 pilots made great selections for SR-71 pilots given their experience with the low-tolerance, high-performance nature of large supersonic aircraft. The B-58 even served as a Hughes radar testbed for the F-12 (sister program to the RS-71), Who Knew! Replica Statistics Builder: NAA Part Count: 158 Mass: 29.7 Tons Crew: 2 Service Ceiling: 15km Powerplant: 4x Panther (gimbal locked) Top Speed: 535m/s Dimensions: 20.6 x 12.2 x 8.0 LWH This model shares all the aforementioned characteristics, although it is much more forgiving in terms of stability. (I chose to make the engines larger because Junos suck.) Download Link: https://kerbalx.com/NorthAmericanAviation/Convair-B-58-Hustler September 1960: North American GAM-77 "Hound Dog" Cruise Missile Designed to be launched from a B-52, the Hound Dog was an early standoff cruise missile Designed by North American in 1959. The Hound Dog was developed on the SM-64 Navaho missile. The GAM-77’s namesake is Elvis Presley’s song of the same monicre. The design of the Hound Dog being parasitic to a B-52 was very conventional; the idea of a self-contained long-range missile with no launch vehicle or a disposable launch stage would follow this style of design once the use of rocket fuels was reliable and powerful enough to launch heavy nuclear/explosive payloads. This model contains only ballast so apply payloads as you see fit, although this missile is more of a decorative piece as it is hard to aim. Replica Statistics Builder: NAA Part Count: 23 Mass: 12.7 Tons Powerplant: 1x Whiplash Launch Altitude: < 1km Payload: Base Ballistic Download Link: https://kerbalx.com/NorthAmericanAviation/North-American-GAM-77-Hound-Dog Tomorrow's Craft: McDonnell F-4 Phantom II

November 1959: North American T-2 "Buckeye" The T-2, introduced in 1959, served to train student naval aviators for nearly 50 years until its retirement in 2008, being succeeded by the T-45 Goshawk, a licensed and modified BAE Hawk. Buckeyes originally came with one Westinghouse J34, but in the T-2B was replaced with two Pratt & Whitney J60 engines. The final non-export version used two General Electric J85 engines, designation T-2C. The T-2D and E were sold to the Venezuelan and Hellenic Air Forces, respectively. They remain in active service in the latter. Replica Statistics Builder: NAA Part Count: 56 Mass: 8.2 Tons Crew: 2 Service Ceiling: 11km Powerplant: 4x Juno (Thrust Limited) Top Speed: 290m/s Dimensions: 9.2 x 10.2 x 4.4 LWH This model is no beauty queen, but neither is the real plane. it’s easy to fly, easy to land, hard to lose control of, just as it is in real life. It is an excellent trainer for subsonic flight and KSP newbies, if so desired. This model also has a trailing wheel to prevent engine-strikes, as well, but was removed for pictures. Slow landing and takeoff speeds in the range of 60m/s can be expected. Download Link: https://kerbalx.com/NorthAmericanAviation/North-American-T-2-Buckeye Tomorrow's Craft: Convair B-58 Hustler AND GAM-77 Hound Dog Missile

Bad News: Schoolwork finally caught up to me so the T-2 will be uploaded tomorrow alongside the B-58. Sorry 'bout that.