How to launch from a moving plane?

[Mmmmyum]

(I should ask stuff less)

So I was building a few planes for fun today, gave up on getting a horizontal plane that's capable of getting into orbit and came up with this:

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What would be the best way to launch the rocket? The plane doesn't have the thrust to get into a sub orbital trajectory, but it could lift heavier loads with that wingspan. edit : Just realised this isn't really a question, I need to sleep

Edited November 2, 2013 by Mmmmyum

[Smidge204]

I don't see why staging/action groups wouldn't work. Might want to activate the rocket engine first, then detach, so you're at full throttle when you separate.

Problem is you're only going to be able to control one of the two, so I hope I'm right in that the whole thing is controlled from the command capsule on the rocket part.

=Smidge=

[Syhrus]

I've had a play around with this before as well. Works out to be quite cost-effective if you recover the plane.

One thing I learned was to put the aircraft part on top. That way, when you decouple it the plane will backflip away and stay clear of the rocket.

[Taki117]

You are going to run into the issue that once you are 2.5km apart your plane is going to get deleted. (Or the pod, whichever you are not controlling)

[Sirrobert]

Are you sure you can't get it into sub-orbital? If it has only jet engines it might flame out to soon, but you could add some aerospikes to take over than.

Once you are out of the atmosphere, you can decouple the rocket, establish a stable orbit, than switch back to the plane before it reenters to atmosphere and gets deleted.

If you don't care about the plane, you could point the plane in a gravity turn-like trajectory (so 45degrees up or so), and once it gets the apoaps you want (or runs out of fuel, if it can't get to space), decouple the rocket and start steering that. If the plane is still in atmosphere while you do that, it might crash or get deleted (deleted only if lower than 23km I believe, so you might still have time)

[Taki117]

You have the B9 aerpspace mod, just use the SCRAM (I think that's what they are called) the ones that use both Air intake and can switch to using Oxidizer instead of just straight jet engines.

[boomerdog2000]

You have the B9 aerpspace mod, just use the SCRAM (I think that's what they are called) the ones that use both Air intake and can switch to using Oxidizer instead of just straight jet engines.

It's the Sabre engine.

[Taki117]

Yeah those!

[Mmmmyum]

It's too heavy to get into a sub orbital fight, it flies surprisingly like the 747 from FSX, it can only climb at 20 degrees, it keeps level flight with a trim of two mod+s's, and needs solid rocket packs to help get airborne, similarly to the heavy gliders of WW2. The problem is that I can't control both I guess, I give the rocket a slight angle, but it doesn't keep the throttle, just rolls around on top of the plane

[Hodo]

I hate to say this, but... This is the exact reason why I went the space plane SSTO route.

I am using DRE, FAR, and B9 so let me know if you need any help.

[LeFudge]

B9 has some vtol jet engines, cant remember exactly what theyre called, extremely OP, B9 definitely makes SSTOs much easier.

[Hodo]

B9 has some vtol jet engines, cant remember exactly what theyre called, extremely OP, B9 definitely makes SSTOs much easier.

VS and VA engines.

They don't make VTOLs easier, but they definitely cut down on the parts count.

[Troberg]

You are going to run into the issue that once you are 2.5km apart your plane is going to get deleted. (Or the pod, whichever you are not controlling)

Just put a control pod or cockpit on the plane, and that won't happen. I often launch multi-part missions like that. My current mission is a mission to Jool, with 6 unmanned probes which are intended to land on the five moons, with the sixth probe plunging into Jool, collecting data as it goes down. The drive stage is left as a science satellite in Jool orbit. Nothing docked in space, it was all launched in one launch. Works nicely, done two landings so far.

[merlinux]

Just put a control pod or cockpit on the plane, and that won't happen. I often launch multi-part missions like that. My current mission is a mission to Jool, with 6 unmanned probes which are intended to land on the five moons, with the sixth probe plunging into Jool, collecting data as it goes down. The drive stage is left as a science satellite in Jool orbit. Nothing docked in space, it was all launched in one launch. Works nicely, done two landings so far.

It works differently I believe when you are moving IN the atmosphere. anything past 2.5km is deleted...

[Mmmmyum]

Ah well, I guess it's impossible. Anyway this is what I eventually managed to get into the air, weighing in at 88.2t

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[JiWint]

This plane hurts my eyes,but anyway,use decouplers with separatrons placed on com of rocket to separate the vehicles (?) as fast as you can to avoid collision-related rocket disassembly

[Troberg]

It works differently I believe when you are moving IN the atmosphere. anything past 2.5km is deleted...

I don't think so. I have my base as well, which I've deployed on Eve. That base is based on Hooligan Labs balloons. Basically, it's an airship base, which can drop off a smaller ground base, a bunch of rovers and a bunch of small airship rovers. These have been way out of 2.5 km of each other.

[Garek]

But the one which you weren't controlling was probably not airborne? As far as I know (not tested or anything!) vessels _don't_ get removed if:

- they are high enaugh (about 20km on kerbin)

- landed (or count as such, e.g. anchored airships)

- withing 2.5km of the active vessel

Basically, everything which will "crash" without physics (no parachutes etc.) will be deleted.