SS-1 VTOL Interplanetary SSTO

[Uberdude9001]

After building many SSTOs I've finally constructed this. It has 4800m/s of delta-V and is VTOL so in theory it can takeoff and land nearly anywhere. It weighs only 18 tons. It has moderately good handling even in atmosphere. Due to its instability I would reccomend keeping SAS on at all times and not exceeding a 45 degree angle of attack. A docking port is mounted inline with its center of mass so that it can be easily mounted on an interplanetary transfer stage for bodies it would normally be unable to reach.

To get into orbit fly up to around 26km using the RAPIERs at 40 degrees upwards pitch. Once you get this high you should level out and accelerate as high and as fast as you can (generally around 1600m/s) before switching to rocket mode and raising your apoapsis out of the atmosphere. Once it is out, turn off the RAPIERs and take advantage of the NERVA's efficiency.

Action Groups:

1: Toggle RAPIER engines

2: Toggle RAPIER mode

3: Toggle NERVA

Javascript is disabled. View full album

.craft file: https://www.dropbox.com/s/kc20h62njbomqgf/SS-1.craft

Mods Used: Procedural Parts, Procedural Wings,Mechjeb, FTmN Nuclear Rockets, KW Rocketry, Infernal Robotics.

Edited April 25, 2014 by Uberdude9001