Suzaku

I tried to land my spaceplane on Jool, but failed miserably...

You have to use stock unmodified parts to qualify for the K-prize.

So I got a 11.2 Ton SSTO into orbit. The thing works, but it barely has enough fuel to enter a decaying orbit lol. XK-17 Pitch Dark Landing It definitely works, but would completely useless for transporting crew members to a space station which was one of the primary goals of the k series SSTOs.

I used MechJeb so that disqualifies it. I also have failed to get it under control to fly/glide it post re-entry, and in my books that disqualifies it as well. However I think it proves that 11 to 12 tons SSTO is possible in v0.17. Ooooo, I see your design and I know what's wrong. Due to the modified physics engine and fuel tank drain, flying wings are now just as unstable as they are in real life and have the tendency to backflip. Though a 11 ton ssto is intresting and as you've shown it's possible. I will attempt a lighterweight ssto later, but keep us up to date on your design.

I aerobroke your spaceship hehehehehe....

A bit of a late response, but I have been busy with Work IRL and Out. Boolybooly, I also might be too busy for taking care of the K-prize. I'm not sure if I can do it by myself. Anyways, here is my newest single man SSTO, the K-17. It retains all the previous features of the K-15, Vertical Take Off, Efficient Design Single Stage, Etc. Minimalist Record Attempt 13.5 Tons. The tail has been removed in favor for wing rudders due to tail fins wanting to participate with the function of rolling. Getting ready for launch The new starsphere is pretty.... In Orbit Missed KSC by this much...

Though Aerospikes are just that efficient in real life as they are in-game.

I really like the way the K-prize is set up. If I were to assume control over it, I will keep the rules and the objectives the same (with the exception of adding the new planets and planetoids added for acomplishments of course). Cargo Drops, Mods, except for Mechjeb will of course not be included, and an achievement for achieving orbit and landing without Mechjeb will be added as well. etc.

The problem is, I'm am in between many games atm as well as managing a full guild in another game. I do not know if I'd be able to manage a thread that is as popular as the K-prize is. I am willing to take control of it, but I would like some help with reviewing the posts. Speaking of which, the K-15 and the exelion remake for .17 both made it into orbit. The exelion needs some modification to stabilize it due to the new fuel tank drain mechanic but should be making round trips to murs, minimus, and beyond soon.

So everyone ready for 0.17 achievements?

Wow, how much does Delta Wing weigh?

It launches vertically and lands vertically with parachutes too.

Presenting my SSTO.

It landed successfully, but I don't want to list it until I can actually get it to land on a runway like a normal plane.

So I've managed to get a 400 ton SSTO into orbit, but landing with parachutes makes me feel dirty...

Full set of images here, including closeups: http://imgur.com/a/vsPcK (mun trip was one way so it doesn't qualify for astrokerbal) 14 landing gear bays (14x0.5 = 7 tons) 18 Delta Wings (18*0.07 = 1.26 tons) 2 wing shaped boards (2x0.05 = 0.1 tons) 24 Turbo Jet Engines (24x1.2 = 28.8 tons) 24 200L Fuel tanks (24x1.125 = 27 tons full, 24x0.125 = 3 tons empty) 2 Large Rocket Engines (2x7 = 14 tons) 12 3200L Fuel tanks (12x18 = 216 tons full, 12x2 = 24 tons empty) 8 Fuel Ducts (8x0.05 = 0.4 tons) 24 Landing Legs (24x0.1 = 2.4 tons) 10 XL Parachutes (10x0.3 = 3 Tons) 1 RCS tank (1x0.5 = 0.5 tons) 6 RCS Thruster Blocks (6x0.05 = 0.3 Tons) 1 SAS (1x0.8 = 0.8 tons) 1 ASAS (1x0.8 = 0.8 tons) 6 Advanced Canards (6x0.04 = 0.24 tons) 2 Struts (2x0.05 = 0.1 tons) 1 Inline command module (1x1 = 1 ton) Take off weight: 303.7 tons according to the parts list, 295.8 tons according to mechjeb. Empty weight: 90-100 tons Craft file: [ATTACH]32734[/ATTACH] It's a little sensitive at takeoff, if you try and turn too fast it can flip out of control but other than that it's perfectly flyable manually and mechjeb is happy with it too. The design itself is pretty robust, although if you're landing with much more than 100 tons you'll probably need to slow it down with the engines. Wow, that is a monster of brute force craft. You should be able to get far further with that much fuel. Have you tried adjusting the thrust to weight ratio? The twin Nacelle design is excellent, even better than my twin-hull design. I think It might inspire my next line of SSTOs.

^ This ^ My kind of Spacecraft Engineer.

I'd be willing to do it, but only if you're too pre-occupied to take care of the K-prize.

I was wondering if it would be possible to have the K-prize thread be modified by multiple people and updated to include new achievements for 0.17. I do have a thread saved for creating a SSTO that can reach other planets in 0.17 but only for that.

spaceplanes Ftw you need to adjust angle of attack during takeoff and build a skeleton for the rest of the tanks to be built around.

I actually have a post that I made saved on my PC just for that exact reason. Do you plan on keeping the K-prize going through .17?

It sounds like your center of thrust is not lined up with your center of gravity. do you have any pictures of your craft?

... it can't get back though. Will send fuel to fix that. Hehehehe, your SSTO design keeps getting better and better. I'm gonna have to start watching out for you. Love the flying wing design.

Heh, this looks like a fun challenge!

Do the same thing with stock parts and I'll be impressed. For now, this thread is just facepalm fail and should be closed.