Yay! Completed First Docking Mission (Career Mode)

[Rocketology]

I received my first orbital station and docking contracts, cool, let's do this! Launch up a simple "station" then launch the rendezvous rocket. As I am approaching I realize something; I forgot RCS, on both craft.

Well Dres, that sucks.

Revert flight? Nope. I ask myself, what would Jebadiah do?

So I set operator head space and timing, calibrated the ol' Mk I Eyeball and:

(Just had to share)

[The Optimist]

'mission reports section'

[Wjolcz]

Well done!

I think we need some sort of "My first X in KSP!" thread.

- - - Updated - - -

'mission reports section'

Or that

[qromodynmc]

Why do part sizes look weird? Tweakscale or perspective trick?

[Rocketology]

'mission reports section'

Sorry, didn't know there was a "Mission Reports" subfolder. Can a Mod move it for me please?

Thank you!

[Randazzo]

Why do part sizes look weird? Tweakscale or perspective trick?

The station is 2.5m parts. The tanks and adapter look to be from Modular Rocket Systems.

[Brainlord Mesomorph]

Congrats!

[Mister Spock]

Well done!

[Rocketology]

The station is 2.5m parts. The tanks and adapter look to be from Modular Rocket Systems.

That be it...

[Dafni]

Congrats! My first unplanned RCS-free docking felt better than my first Mun landing

[Starwhip]

You... docked without RCS on your first docking? Or was it just your first docking contract? Because there's a slight difference.

Either way, congrats!

[lost_in_space]

I received my first orbital station and docking contracts, cool, let's do this! Launch up a simple "station" then launch the rendezvous rocket. As I am approaching I realize something; I forgot RCS, on both craft.

Well, this couldn't have been easy. How difficult was it?

[magnemoe]

Docking small probes and landers without rcs is pretty easy but never done something so large.

One major benefit is that you can point both items towards each other.

[DancesWithSquirrels]

Pre-1.x a lot of folks were doing minimalistic ion ships to Joolian moons - as I recall a significant number of them left the RCS behind. I find docking without entirely possible for small ships (once the magnets kick in, smaller is better), but past 10 tons or so I find myself really wanting RCS.

One big point on that is to have very low TWR on final approaches. You really don't want to kick in a couple of G's when you're only a few dozen meters away, and I've accidentally bumped 'Z' more than once under those conditions