Emil Albert

It can actually easily take of vertically when switching the engines to closed cycle mode. Anyway, it's a pretty fun plane to fly and to explore with. Very high thrust, large control surfaces, can land and take off anywhere on Kerbin, Laythe and many other places. I played a lot, but wasn't that much on such forums. If anyone wants that ship I can probably share the file somehow. I had some look at what other people build. Well, seems I developed into different directions Hello to you all, fellow Kerbal builders This is my latest universal base. It can mine on asteroids, muns, has enough thrust to take off from many planets. It has a research lab, and pretty much everything, and space for 5 Kerbals. In this picture it is with its takeoff stage to get off Kerbin: just an additional stage with tanks and boosters is enough: The retractable feet, which it is standing on, are used for landing. In the centre at the bottom it has a grabbing unit for docking on asteroids. This way the drill can used to mine on both. The Nerv engines are on the top end of the base. This way they can be used to move asteroids around, while the vector engines on the other end are used for takeoff from moons and planets. The Nervs can also be used for long-haul space flight. It is just two function keys, activating either set of engines, and a control module which points into the right direction. Like most of my crafts, the base lands on Minmus, refuels, and goes nearly anywhere from there.

This is a VTOL SSTO. It uses Infernal Robotics parts to rotate the engines downwards, allowing it to land vertically: The engines are pointing a bit outwards. That makes it self-stabilizing. E.g. if it tilts forward the front engines will be more vertical, the rear engines less, so it gets more upwards thrust on the front and less on the rear, making it fly levelled by itself. Takeoff with maximum fuel is normally not vertical, but it's STOL, pointing the engines downwards to reduce the takeoff speed: It can go to Minmus using the Nerv engine. With refuelling from a refinery it can go from there to Laythe. Here it is diving in the ocean of Kerbin. After landing on the ocean it can just go downwards: I had no idea that it's possible to dive with planes! Well, it doesn't really make sense that it is working in air-breathing mode, but pretty fun.

This is a VTOL SSTO. It uses Infernal Robotics parts to rotate the engines downwards, allowing it to land vertically: The engines are pointing a bit outwards. That makes it self-stabilizing. E.g. if it tilts forward the front engines will be more vertical, the rear engines less, so it gets more upwards thrust on the front and less on the rear, making it fly levelled by itself. Takeoff with maximum fuel is normally not vertical, but it's STOL, pointing the engines downwards to reduce the takeoff speed: It can go to Minmus using the Nerv engine. With refuelling from a refinery it can go from there to Laythe. Here it is diving in the ocean of Kerbin. After landing on the ocean it can just go downwards: I had no idea that it's possible to dive with planes!

I don't know why you build so many satellites. I just started my network with two kerbosynchronous satellites, and additional ground stations turned off. The first satellite is right over KSC, the other one 90 degrees ahead in orbit. This should cover everything, beside the spots right behind the moons. And a relay in Duna orbit and one around Eve should cover these too, beside in the rare cases when Kerbol gets in the way at the same time. This should already pretty much cover the whole system.