Pixie - Ultralight SSTO Drop Ship

[Cupcake...]

Hey all,
It's my great pleasure to present the Pixie, my first single engine drop ship capable of flying return missions to the Mun all without LV-Ns or Ion engines! It's also very cute.



Boasting an extremely light wieght chasis with almost no excess weight the Pixie is designed for pure performance and maximum range.



The drop tanks are twice the size of my previous light SSTOs making for a much more efficient design.



It can do return missions to Minmus without breaking a sweat.



I've noticed since the .22 update KSP has got a bit grumpy about my light drop ships sitting on their engines, to combat this I've included a special mobile launch platform which will let you fly from a variety of scenic locations. Hopefully once .23 rolls around I'll be able to lock the landing gear down and do away with the launch platform altogether but for now it's the best option.



OWNERS MANUAL:

You can find the craft file here:

http://goo.gl/yzUbl4

Like all my craft the Pixie features a horizontal axis cockpit for suborbital flying and a vertical axis docking port for orbital piloting and navigation. The top docking port operates in line with the engines and must be used when performing burns with the navball. You can also use the top docking port if you'd rather fly the Pixie like a regular rocket. A joystick is highly recommended and SAS should be kept on at all times.

The Pixie is quite unusual in that it doesn't actually have any extra reaction wheels relying instead on the command pod for torque. While I did have a prototype version with a reaction wheel the Pixie is so light and compact I just found it developed a serious case of ADHD. As a result the handling's quite heavy for such a small ship although you do get used to it.

CONTROLS:

1 - Toggle Jets
2 - Toggle Rockets
9 - Toggle Ladder
0 - Activate Air Sync

ABORT - De-Couple All Ports/Eject Drop Tanks
SPACE - Eject RCS Pods/Release Landing Gantry

Air What?
Air Sync works by closing all the intakes before takeoff, the same intakes are also set to toggle along with the jet engine. In short this means jet engine on - intakes Open, jet engine off - intakes closed, all without having to lift a finger.

SSTO Mission Profile:
Before you head out to the runway you'll need to be clear on what mission you're flying. If you need the RCS pods for docking you'll need to half the size of the drop tanks and re-link them to the gantries fuel supply. If you're not docking then delete the RCS pods otherwise you won't make it off the ground. Anyone flying Munar missions can even add a couple of round 8s to each drop tank, like in the video.

After finding a launch site to your liking pull the handbrake, press 0 to activate air sync and 1 to light the jet engine. Keep an eye on the thrust of the engine, you'll want it to spool all the way up to 112.5kn before you release the landing gantry, the gantries on board fuel supply will keep the ship topped up as long as it's still tethered.

After liftoff climb vertically to 15,000m then pitch over to a 45* angle on a 90* heading. Now would be a good time to switch to vertical axis control by right clicking on the top docking port. Once you hit around 25,000 pitch over to the horizon and slow your rate of ascent. You'll want to squeeze as much speed as you can out of the jet with a target of 1800m/s at 30,000m. Once you're there pitch up to 45* and press 2 to fire the rockets, keep the jet going as long as you can by reducing throttle before pressing 1 to shut it off once it runs out of puff. You can now set full throttle and pitch flat to the horizon to round out your orbit.

If you're flying to Minmus you can make it there and back without dumping the drop tanks. However with the Mun I recommend dropping the tanks otherwise you'll struggle to get home again. Once you make it back to Kerbin press 2 to shut off the rockets, and 1 to reactivate the jet. When landing I recommend having the rocket engines on as they help get rid of the throttle lag from the jet.

While I did have a prototype ion powered version for Laythe journeys I just felt myself losing the will to live the minute I unleashed the awesome power of the ion . So yes, if anyone does want it let me know.

Apart from that I hope you enjoy the ship, and I've made you guys a little teaser of what's coming next...

Cupcake...

Edited November 6, 2013 by Cupcake...

[Cranium]

I don't think the music fit with your video, but otherwise, it looks really nice! It's a shame they tweaked things with the masses sitting on top of engines, cause now I have to build things like you are. Can't wait to see what you have planned next!

You seem to make these too easily...I might be tempted to challenge you with a ludicrously large dropship, capable of bringing an entire large fuel tank to orbit.

[glibbo]

Your work amazes me, awesome, added rep.........

[Cupcake...]

I don't think the music fit with your video, but otherwise, it looks really nice! It's a shame they tweaked things with the masses sitting on top of engines, cause now I have to build things like you are. Can't wait to see what you have planned next!

You seem to make these too easily...I might be tempted to challenge you with a ludicrously large dropship, capable of bringing an entire large fuel tank to orbit.

It is a bit odd the whole engine thing, I'm not sure why they bothered changing it, oh well. Unfortunately when I first uploaded the video I ran into a spot of bother with the custodians of DRM and ended up with a list of blocked countries as long as my arm.

So yes, I kind of had to chuck in another soundtrack at the last minute, this is the song I originally wanted to use. (I'm assuming that last video won't play, but let me know if it does!)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eo4u4JJAPGk

I'm afraid I'll have to politely decline your challenge to raise a red tank to orbit. I'm already pushing close to 300 parts on my heavy SSTOs most of which are intakes. I think if I add more jet engines things will just start turning into a slide show, either that or the molten remains of my motherboard will leak out all over the floor. I was actually thinking about this a few days ago and have decided to impose a limit on myself of 4 jet engines, which is stil more then enough to do some very long trips....

Your work amazes me, awesome, added rep.........

Thanks very much!

Cupcake...

Edited November 6, 2013 by Cupcake...

[inigma]

aw, so cute

[speedboiae86]

Stupid Youtube, I hate it when they do that. You really need to find some "royalty free" music to use for your videos... Anyways...

I gave the Pixie a download, did a little reverse engineering, halved the size of the drop tanks and deleted the RCS pods, retrofitted it with an ion propulsion system and XL solar arrays to power them. Now it's more like an impulse class long range cruiser. I may try to create a launching vehicle and interplanetary stage for it, see if I can get it to Laythe. Despite how much I dislike the noise they make, the Rockomax 48-7S engines are pretty efficient. I was a little worried when I initially flew it and started loosing altitude on my way up after the jet suffocated, but I was still picking up considerable speed. Eventually I found myself rising back up, so I wasn't too worried.

[Cupcake...]

aw, so cute

There's nothing else to say really it just is...

Stupid Youtube, I hate it when they do that. You really need to find some "royalty free" music to use for your videos... Anyways...

I gave the Pixie a download, did a little reverse engineering, halved the size of the drop tanks and deleted the RCS pods, retrofitted it with an ion propulsion system and XL solar arrays to power them. Now it's more like an impulse class long range cruiser. I may try to create a launching vehicle and interplanetary stage for it, see if I can get it to Laythe. Despite how much I dislike the noise they make, the Rockomax 48-7S engines are pretty efficient. I was a little worried when I initially flew it and started loosing altitude on my way up after the jet suffocated, but I was still picking up considerable speed. Eventually I found myself rising back up, so I wasn't too worried.

That's great! I hope you can post some pics of your adventures in the Pixie. I wish I wasn't so impatient because an ion propulsion pack makes a lot of sence really. You're right about the music btw, usually I seem to get away with it but it's always a gamble.

Cupcake...

Edited November 7, 2013 by Cupcake...

[The14th]

You seem to make these too easily...I might be tempted to challenge you with a ludicrously large dropship, capable of bringing an entire large fuel tank to orbit.

I'm afraid I'll have to politely decline your challenge to raise a red tank to orbit.

Not to worry Cupcake, your bulldog already has it covered... (sort of)

EDIT: Oh, and I almost forgot... I can't wait to give the Pixie a proper try out this weekend! Excelling ship once again!

Edited November 8, 2013 by The14th

[Cupcake...]

Not to worry Cupcake, your bulldog already has it covered... (sort of)

EDIT: Oh, and I almost forgot... I can't wait to give the Pixie a proper try out this weekend! Excelling ship once again!

Just had a look at your Bulldog shots, my hands are still shaking. Sir, I tip my hat to you! I hope you enjoy the Pixie.

Cupcake...

[Lohan2008]

soooo sweet

Hyperglycaemic shock ! Must reach for my insulin >>> going grey ....

[The14th]

I had a great time trying out the Pixie! Definitely keeping it in my SPH folder for future use!

I was even more pleasantly surprised to discover that the Pixie is sub-assembly friendly!

(once you re-configure the action-groups of course!)

Thanks for another great ship Cupcake.

Edited November 10, 2013 by The14th

[Cupcake...]

I had a great time trying out the Pixie! Definitely keeping it in my SPH folder for future use!

I was even more pleasantly surprised to discover that the Pixie is sub-assembly friendly!

(once you re-configure the action-groups of course!)

Thanks for another great ship Cupcake.

My pleasure! I probably should have mentioned about the sub-assembly thing, I just forgot. Oh, and cheers for the brilliant pics as usual, you've got a real eye for this stuff.

Cupcake...