Ikarus Industries: Innovation, Exploration, and Science! (Updated 06JUL14)

[Ghostshark27]

Hey guys! Just wanted to make bit of a placeholder post here to start cataloging the grand (?) exploits of my brave Kerbals in their quest to take over the solar system. After watching various youtube series', mainly Scott Manley's Interstellar Quest and iKerbal's KSO missions, I've decided to start a fresh save with a few new mods and keep track of the goings on for my sake, and hopefully you'll find it humorous or interesting as well.

So I'm going for a strong KSO based mission system, at least until it's time to start sending large amounts of materials accross the void. Other mods include the Near Future packs, Fustek station parts (and expansions), some LLL stuff, and Extraplanetary Launchpads. I'm doing this in sandbox mode, but I am running remotetech and possibly TAC life support, so it's not going to be a complete cakewalk. As I progress, I'll make sure to have some screenshots to go along with the stories.

Ikarus Industries History:

The company was founded some time after the National Kerbal Space Department folded due to budget cuts. A large group of private investers managed to raise enough funds from the population to manage a buyout of the old facilities that once housed the old space program. They were able to hire a majority of the old administrations employees, while supplementing the old timers with a group of intelligent young blood to bring a newer outlook to an industry that was beginning to stagnate. And so Ikarus Industries was born, essentially a privatiziation of the old agency with a new source of income, and a new mandate to conquer the sun, moons, and everything in between.

Projects/Status

Satellite Communications Network: Complete

Terrain/Resource Mapping: Kerbin mapped 100%. Mun/Minmus completed low-res scans, resource mapped. Mun being rescanned for high resolution map.

Odyssey Space Station: Essential modules complete. Future expansion currently being drafted.

Javelin Scout Craft: Complete. Awaiting refuelling/reassignment.

Interplanetary Space Tug: IST Agamemmnon assembled. Further missions required to refill tanks.

Mun Construction Yard: Crew Habitat/Stores designed, currently being fielded. Production facility under development.

Orbiter Missions/Status

ISS (Ikarus Space Shuttle)

Adamant: 3, Ready for Service

Dauntless: 2, Ready for Service

Resolute: 5, Post Mission Refit

Tenacious: 3, Ready for Service

IHS (Ikarus Heavy Shuttle)

Ascension: 2, Post Mission Refit, Minor Repairs to fuselage

Reliant: 3, Post Mission Refit

Mods Used:

ATM Astronomer's Visual Pack

Chatterer Connected Living Spaces

Cool Rockets Docking Port Alignment

Extraplanetary Launchpads FASA Launch Clamps

Baha EPL Parts Hooligan Lab Airships

GSI Suits GSI Purple Haze Skybox

KAS Kethane

KSO Shuttles Fustek Station Parts

LLL SXT Pack Mechjeb

MKS Colonization Near Future Technology

Procedural Fairings Real Chute

RemoteTech ScanSat

Ship Manifest Texture Replacer

Toolbar And more to follow...

Edited July 6, 2014 by Ghostshark27
Updating shuttle status, new missions

[Taki117]

PSST! You should add some pics!

[Ghostshark27]

Chapter 1: Here's the Deal...

So, I could give you a grand story on the early life of the Space Orbiters. The history of it's design, the research and building of it, and thedetails of its first few missions. Unfortunetely, that's not possible. Mission Control, in all their wisdom, decided to put all of that information on a single storage device. Said device was "borrowed" by Bill, who unknowingly erased all the info on it to make room for episodes of his favorite TV show, Kosmos, and his collection of kitten pictures. (He really likes kittens.) I can give a summary of the first 3 mission, as recalled from memory as those involved. That means it won't be very informative, but you'll get something at least.

Mission 1:

The first mission of the shuttle orbiter had Jeb flying the Tenacious into orbit to drop off the first piece of the future Odyssey space station, the habitat module. Mission Control was a bit nervous handing the keys of the orbiter to Jebediah, given his sordid history in the Rockets Division. His last rocket flight made headlines for having enough speed on reentry to skip across Crater Ocean like a skipping stone. Regardless, he managed to get the payload into a stable orbit, and get the orbiter back down to Kerbin. Unfortunately, he overshot the Space Center and was forced to land on the abandoned runway off the coastline. On landing, the shuttle bounced hard, Jeb was overheard yelling "MOAR POWAR!" while throttling up and pulling back on the controls. This caused all control surfaces to be ripped off the orbiter, and in the confusion Jeb almost let the craft roll off the runway and almost into the ocean. Luckily, the damage was only moderate, but the Tenacious is expected to be in the repair hangar for at least two weeks.

Mission 2:

With Jeb under review for his poor landing, Andan Kerman was givin the go ahead to pilot the Resolute into orbit to deliver the Space Station Tug to the habitat, in preparation for the upcoming modules to be deployed in the coming weeks. The whole experience was relatively uneventful, although Enfurt Kerman was left behind to check a power issue on the Tug. He was given very implicit instructions to NOT go joyriding. On reentry, they overshot the runway again, but managed a much more respectable landing on the island runway than Jeb. The resolute was expect to be off the roster for three or four days for basic maintenance and refit.

Mission 3:

Billy-Bobnand was next up on the schedule to pilot an orbiter. She was able to achieve an orbit and deliver docking module and central hub to the Odyssey. Upon delivery of the modules, Erfurt declared the Tug repaired, and hops over to the Dauntless for a ride back home. This trip, a different approach on reentry was attempted. It didn't work. The orbiter deorbited well short of the Space Center and Mission control was scrambling for a way to save the craft. Billy, aware that she wouldn't be able to clear the mountain range to the west of the runway, she made a daring move to turn south toward a flatter area. The orbiter was able to be brought down gently enough, however an approaching rise in the terrain catapulted the ship back into the air. After making contact with the ground a second, third, and fouth time, the orbiter had more than a few pieces broken off, and one of the engines was pointing at a really wierd angle.

No screenshots for these missions, as I was so focused on the missions, I forgot to snap any. I will leave you with this shot of my satellite network, since I'm using RemoteTech. It was supposed to be a 4 satellite system, but as I put up the 3rd and 4th I realized I messed up the timing, so I had to put up a 5th. It actually worked better, since you can never have too much coverage. The two polar orbit satellites have very long range capabilities, along with mapping abilities.

Edited June 18, 2014 by Ghostshark27
Adding the storyline and screenshot.

[Ghostshark27]

Mission 4

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ISS Resolute Crew: Jebediah, Keldred, Danlan, Billy-Bobnand, Bob, Sidford

Day 21, 2:20

Jeb was heard mumbling about having such an early launch, but he managed to make it to the shuttle in time, and everything checked out for takeoff on schedule. The launch was uneventful until separation of the EFT, where Jeb gunned the throttle before he had enough clearance from the tank. A loud scraping could be heard, and Mission Control threatened with severe bodily harm if he had any more shennanigans like that. A few burns later, and the Resolute was within a reasonable distance to the Odyssey station. The onboard cargo, the powerplant module, clipped the orbiter as it left the cargo bay, and slowly careened away. After a long and tense chase, the tug finally managed to catch it and bring the module back for assembly.

After everything was connected, Bob and Sidford went EVA from the shuttle and moved into the space station. Jeb set a course for reentry, and Keldred managed to fix the course heading before Jeb hit the throttles. The pilots are still trying to get the hang of reentry, and Jeb was no exception. He overshot the Space Center again, and Mission Control gave him authorization to use the island runway again. Jeb, ever so sure of himself, vowed he would hit the main runway even if it killed him. To say the rest of the crew was nervous would be an unsderstatement, but after a rough high speed turn while diving, Jeb managed to line up with the 270 heading of the runway and successfully touch down.

After crew debrief, Jeb was placed on suspension for doing risky stuff with the orbiter again. He left the Administration Building fuming and cursing under his breath. Various kerbals overheard him muttering something similar to "Shuttles aren't the only way to get into space." He was seen running into the Space Plane Hangar, where he reportedly locked himself in a small office. Meanwhile, up on the Odyssey, Bob was named the Station Commander, and given the task to unlock the mysteries of life and the universe. Failing that, just figure out some interesting science stuff. He requested some lab equipment so could actually perform research, and some more monopropellant to replace the stations dwindling supply. Mission Control assured him that he'd have one of the two soon, they just weren't sure which.

Edited June 18, 2014 by Ghostshark27
Mission Summary

[Ghostshark27]

Chapter 1 Continues...

Mission 5

ISS Adamant Crew: Billy-Bobnand, Bill, Gilley, Dandous, Obbus, Enfurt

Day 33, 4:30

Payload: Kerbal Lab, Equipment Storage Box

Billy had a relatively easy takeoff, aside from the fact that Bill was a bit twitchy and nervous, but that might just be frayed nerves from being Jeb's copilot for so long. Once they made final approach to the Space Station, the crew had an unpleasant surprise. The cargo loaders failed to let the crew know they had wedged the lab module in too tight, and when the crew released the module there was a loud slam and it spiralled out of the cargo bay. Sidford managed to jump into the tug and chase it down, bringing it back and attaching it to the station. Enfurt returned to the station and took the storage box, attaching it to its mount before he hopped in. Obbus also tranferred over to be the sixth and final crew member on the station, at least for the moment. Billy and Bill managed to bring the orbiter back down into the atmosphere, and become the first crew to land at the Space Center on a normal 090 heading. Upon landing, Billy was met by Jeb in the Orbiter parking pad. There was a quick conversation, and they both hurried off into the Space Plane Hanger, with Jeb muttering something about new designs.

Meanwhile, on the Station, Bob puts in an urgent request for monopropellant, since so much was used in retrieving the lab. Mission Control worked with the Rockets Division, and they whipped up a small unmanned probe. It was equipped with a decent supply of monopropellant, a 3 way elbow connecter, and a docking module with a strange adaptor and a robotic arm. The drone made successful contact, dropped of its cargo, and burned itself back down to Kerbin. The Station's residents are happy to be able to actually do something, but now they're requesting a way to renew their power. Sidford is getting tired of using a hand crank generator to power basic functions.

Mission 6

ISS Tenacious Crew: Kirlong, Billy-Bobnand, Kelred, Gilley, Dandous, Dessby

Day 37, 4:55

Payload: Truss/Power Cells

The Tenacious rolled onto the pad fresh from repairs after Jeb's first landing. This mission saw a new pilot getting his first run into orbit. Billy-Bobnand would serve as his copilot and trainer for the mission. The mood in the Space Center was a bit nervous. Jeb had been acting strangley for the past few days, and him and several engineers had taken residence in the Vehicle Assembly Building and locked out everyone else. Loud banging noises and power tools could be heard from inside. Kirlong showed to be a capable pilot, and managed to get into position alongside the station without hitting anything. A warning light spooked the crew though, and they quickly released their cargo and burned for deorbit. Upon reentry, the orbiter dipped through atmosphere a bit too fast and it appeared that the Tenacious would wind up ditching again. Kirlong managed to glide over seventy kilometers and land safely on the runway.

Meanwhile, up at the space station, Enfurt boarded the tug and manuevered the solar panels into place. He's spent so much time working in the tug, they've officially named him the tug pilot. He even moved his favorite belongings into the tug's pilot compartment, and is making it his new home away from home.

Mission 7

ISS Adamant Crew: Andan, Aldden, Edski, Dilvey, Keldred, Gilley

Day 39, 1:13

Payload: GreenLab Module

This time around, Andan was responsible for adding the last operational piece to the Odyssey, the GreenLab. Her takeoff was routine, aside from one problem. A glitch in the system prevented the orbiter from releasing the EFT prior to orbit, but they were able to release it prior to climbing up to the station. So currently there is an empty tank floating around in the target orbit area for all shuttle missions. Mission Control began crunching numbers to adjust orbits until a mission can be devised to get rid of the tank. Aside from that problem though, the Adamant was capable of reaching the Odyssey and deliver its cargo. After the Robotic arm managed to grab the cargo, Andan turned the ship around and was able to successfully land at the Space Center with no incident.

This trip, Mission Control asked the station crew to assemble new module via the robotic arm that was previously brought up. After a few tense moments, and some lost paint on the side of the powerplant module, it was realized that the arm didn't have the articulation to manage placing components properly. Enfurt took over and was able to drive the Lab into position. The station is now completed to operational design.

Mission control is currently looking into development of an orbital production facility of some sort. It's undecided if the Odyssey will host the construction yard, or if a new facility will be built for that specific purpose. The upcoming plan is to send either scout craft or satellites to the Mun and Minmus to search for ore deposits capable of supporting a construction facility.

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[Ghostshark27]

Chapter 2: Is the Mun Made of Cheese?

The recent exploits of the Ikarus shuttle crews have gained popularity in the media. Everyone is excited to see a renewed effort to learn more about the solar system and beyond. Funding for Ikarus Industries has doubled in the last few weeks as everyone watched the Odyssey Space Station progress. Potential recruits are lining up for a chance to be selected for the space program. The Administrative Office is being bombarded with contracts and sponsorship requests by companies all over the world. With all of the newfound support, new options are available to pursue. Mission Control, with a station in orbit, has decided to turn their efforts toward the moons orbiting Kerbin. If Ikarus is to reach out to the other planets, they need to conquer Mun and Minmus.

The Research Division has figured out how to miniaturize the nuclear reactors found in power stations. One of the eggheads made the suggestion that this might fit the bill for the future mission to the moons. It took several days of debating, tinkering, arguing, and eating snacks, but the designs finally came around, and a craft was designed for scouting and mapping purposes that could operate under its own power almost indefinately. Equipped with the latest in scanning technology, on paper the craft can reach a polar orbit of one moon, transfer to the other, repeat the process, and still make it home without refuel. The craft is rather heavy and fragile, so it's going to be assembled in orbit. The shuttles have been tasked with a series of 3 missions to build the craft.

In other news, there's still no word from Jeb in the VAB. There have however, been various parts and supplies from stores going missing over the last few days. Also, Faciltiy Maintenance is reporting that there may be a leak in the fuel supply somewhere, as the gauges have been dropping recently for no apparent reason. One of the more paranoid eggheads in the Research Division was suggesting that this was all related, but Admin promptly disregarded that idea. Surely, that would be crazy if Jeb was somehow staging something grand, right?

Mission 8

ISS Resolute Crew: Billy-Bobnand, Aldden, Kirlong, Danlan

Day 44, 3:20

Payload: Engine Module for Javelin

This mission is the first of three to assemble the moon scout craft, named the Javelin for it's appearance. Mission Control has tweaked protocol for the shuttle flights prior to this mission. From Mission 8 on, the Orbiter crews will consist of four Kerbins, unless the mission requires more personnel, such as passengers to orbiting spacecraft. Also, the Mission Commander will be phased into the right seat, rather than the pilot's chair. Currently, the only certified MC's are Billy, Andan, Kirlong, and Jeb, so they will be training extra pilots over the next few missions to adjust to protocol.

The mission went off pretty smooth, until shortly after cargo release. Billy radioed to Mission Control on the way down to land if there was a plan to put the craft together, since seperately none of the pieces could manuever themselves. Mission Control was full of blank stares at that point as they realized that there was that one really big problem in their plan. A representative from the Rockets Division piped up that moment with an idea that might just fit the bill. They recommended a design that they had worked up to chase asteroids, but turned out to be a bit too weak for the job. So within a couple of days, a Low Kerbin Orbit automated tug was launched, equipped with a claw device. Upon successful meeting of the tug to the engine module, the tug was able to grab the module without damaging it, and is now ready for the next component to be brought into orbit.

Missions 9

ISS Dauntless Crew: Kendald, Andan, Edski, Thromhat

Day 48, 1:42

Payload: Javelin Powerplant Module

Mission 9 was delayed a bit due to a commotion a couple days earlier. There was an unauthorized launch at the space center late one night, and the various department heads spent a full day piecing together what details they could find. So far as anyone could tell at the time, all the missing resources had went into building whatever launched, and that Jeb is missing. There's no security footage of the incident, as one of the boffins had repurposed all security cameras in the facility so he could catch whoever had been stealing his lunch out of the fridge.

Regardless, the Dauntless and her crew had another textbook entry into space. After a few hours of manuevering, they approached the tug, dropped their cargo, and moved clear. The unmanned tug ran its program, manuevered itself and the engine into place, and successfully attached both parts with no incident. Edski made an EVA inspection of the parts, ensuring everything was safe, and verified integrity of the reactor. After a good laugh of locking the orbiter from the inside, and hearing the screams of panic from Edski, they finally let him back in, and the made a successful reentry into atmosphere and landed with no incident back at the Space Center.

Mission 10

ISS Adamant Crew: Danlan, Kirlong, Keldred, Bill, Dilvey

Day 50, 4:40

Payload: Javelin Crew Module, Pilot Dilvey

The Adamant made another trip up to space to drop off the last piece of the Javelin Survey Craft, and remain on station for support until the Javelin departed for the Mun. There was a slight issue upon launch where the computer was programmed to make a stable orbit at 1200 kilometers, instead of 120, and everyone was bumped around pretty good when Danlan mad the adjustment. Other than that, the craft arrived safe and sound and was able to release the crew module without incident. The tug linked everything up and released its hold, and adjusted to a higher orbit.

Dilvey went EVA, and proceeded to link the modules together using parts and tools brought along in the cargo bay for this mission, and after several long and tedious trips between the Javelin and the Adamant, she was able to verify that everything was structuraly sound. After one more trip back to the orbiter, she had her large supply of extra snacks and krossword puzzle books stowed in the survey cockpit for what was bound to be a long trip. It took a few minutes, but Dilvey was able to get the reactor online and heated, checked all the surveyor equipment, and powered up the electromagnets on the engine. Then, after programming in her course, she started the 5 minute engine burn that would propel her away from Kerbin to be the first kerbal of Ikarus Industries to break away from Kerbin's gravity and visit another celestial body.

Once Dilvey and the Javelin reported a successful manuever, the Adamant made its manuevers and burned through the atmoshpere to land at the space center. Danlan brought it down a bit too fast though, and master alarms screamed through the cockpit upon contact. The crew was able to limp the orbiter off the runway and to the Spaceplane Hanger before the right rear landing gear gave out. Danlan is on review for the incident, but the techs estimated that the repairs were minor, and certainly not as bad as Jeb's incidents. The Adamant should be down a week, maybe two at the most.

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Edited June 26, 2014 by Ghostshark27

[Ghostshark27]

Interlude 1: New Horizons...

In the following weeks since the Javelin had left orbit for the Mun, several interesting events happened around Ikarus Industries, and for that matter, the whole world. With all the buzz from the Javelin launch and it's mission, Ikarus received even more funding to help further the possibility of an orbital production facility. The board of directors saw fit to create a new department, the Extraplanetary Construction Department. After hiring some of the brighter names in engineering and metallurgy, the department was tasked with designing a system that would allow processing of raw materials into useable goods, and provide storage of both. The EX-CON's, as they began calling themselves, went to work designing a space station that could fit the bill. One thing was clear, whatever they designed would have to be launched from Kerbin, and it would have to be big. All the departments realized that whatever they built would be large, and no one was sure that the Rockets division alone would be able to keep up with the pace or demand, let alone be cost effective.

So the engineers went to the drawing board, looking at the design or the current orbiter. While the KSO shuttles are plucky little craft capable of being used again and again, their payload always seemed to be lacking a bit. A few of the boffins in R&D declared that they could enlarge the design of the entire orbiter system, and after several long caffeine filled nights, were able to show proof of concept. The final product was a beefier version of the current shuttle, capaple of carrying 2.5m wide cargo weighing up to twenty tons into space. The board of directors signed off on a plan to build up to 4 orbiters and launch systems, with two being available after two months, and the other two between a month or two later. The new shuttle project, named the Super25, would work in conjunction with the current KSO system, rather than replace it, at least for the time being.

While the Production Department was working on manufacturing the new shuttle systems, the R&D Division worked on their next project. They were working on a vessel that would allow for large loads of equipment to be transferred from one planet to another. An interstellar space tug was devised, capable of hauling heavy loads of cargo through space, and housing personnel if needed as well. As the project took shape, it was clear that it would require several launches from the new shuttles to complete, and that at least one of the pieces would be large enough that the Rockets Division would have some work to do. Initial concept split the craft up into five pieces: Cockpit/Crew Module, Passenger Module, Propulsion and tankage, Extra Stores, and a Nuclear Reactor Module. The ship would mount its engines forward of all cargo, and essentualy pull it's load to wherever it needed to be.

The mystery of the unsanctioned launch was solved, for the most part. It turns out that Jeb and the technicians were siphoning off supplies and fuel to build a strange new craft, capable of reaching orbit and transferring between planets. Several amatuer astrologers reported seeing a strange craft flying around the planet, and one such report claimed that they saw it approach the Odyssey Space Station. The crew of the station confirmed this report, stating that Jeb had stopped by and paid them a visit, although they refuse to say what they all talked about. They just claim he stopped by for a chat before heading off to go "see the sights." After he left, not much was heard from him until shortly before the first launch of the new Super25's. A strange craft came hurtling through atmosphere over the Space Center, headed for the ocean above. Witness report that it's rocket engines appeared to be on full throttle but that it was still hurtling towards the water. Eventually, it seemed to level out about 10 kilometers from the shore, and began to fly towards the Space Center. Just before it cleared the waterline, the engines cut off and the whole ship dropped onto the shoreline and broke into dozens of pieces. When the rescue crews arrived, they found a pile of debris, and a command pod holding a battered and unconcious Jebediah inside. He was taken to the medical center, but is still unconcious and doctors are unsure as to when he'll be able to return to duty. While reviewing the wreckage, computer techs found the mission logs. It appears that Jeb visited both the Mun and Minmus, landing on each, and still making it back home to Kerbin.

Meanwhile, Dilvey continued her mission the whole time everyone was developing new technologies back home. She managed to map the surface of both planets, and the deep penetrating radar managed to scan enough of the moons to get an idea of resource location on them as well. The Javelin was able to send rough images to Kerbin, and the boffins back home are drooling over the images, waiting for the hi res copies to pull off the storage drives once Dilvey gets back into Kerbin orbit.

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(Thanks to Cupcake for his awesome landers! I just had to put one in my game, and it probably won't be the only one you see. Check out his stuff if you like the design.)

Edited June 26, 2014 by Ghostshark27
Adding pictures.

[Ghostshark27]

Chapter 3: Space Truckin'

The day had arrived. All the preparations were complete to roll the new series of shuttles into service. Press were on hand from every corner of Kerbin, just to get a glimpse at the new launch system. The first operational mission would be to launch the first module of the Space Tug into orbit. The engineers had designed as sturdy of a craft as they could dream up, and over the next few weeks, the new shuttle crews would ferry up the parts. If all went well, the tug, christened the IST Agamemmnon, would be operational within 3 weeks, and Ikarus could shift focus to components for the orbital construction facility. In between missions for the space tug, the original KSO shuttles would be fulfilling requests of the Odyssey Station for a few improvements.

Mission 11

IHS Ascension Crew: Andan, Billy, Bill, Randall, Keldred, Gilley

Day 104, 3:48

Payload: Agamemmnon pit/Crew Module

The first Super25 shuttle launch went as well as could be expected. The computer took care of most of the work, with Andan and Billy making minor imputs. All crew reported on the immense power of the launch system, and as such Mission Control saw fit to commision a new award ribbon to crews that could make it into orbit with a quickness. Some kerbals were eager to attempt such feats, while others were making lists of pilots they would not ride with.

Once in space, the Ascension maintained orbit at about 80k. The plan was to keep the construction low but just above the staging orbit to minimize fuel burn so the heavier pieces didn't need as much energy to reach it. Upon dropping it's cargo, the shuttle turned around and burned for deorbit. A few tense minutes later, the orbiter was in line with the runway, but a bit fast and steep. Andan set the Ascension down hard, bursting the hydraulics on the left landing gear, but the crew was able to bring the craft to a stop without extra damage. Fortunately, the engineers had built the Super25's with this in mind and the system could be replaced within a couple of days. Well within the time constraints to be mission ready again.

Mission 12

ISS Tenacious Crew: Danlan, Keldred, Thomhat, Aldden, Gilley, Kenald

Day 106, 0:30

Payload: Observation Module, replacement crew

Fulfilling a request from the Odyssey, the Tenacious was called upon to ferry replacement scientists to the station, as well as a new observation cupola so that the crew could actually look out into space from the safety of an environment. The launch was standard, and when the orbiter arrived on station, the Tug was launched to begin alignment procedures. And, since Enfurt was still sleeping in his bunk when they undocked the tug, everyone laughed as he scrambled to suit up for EVA and chase after it before it drifted away. When he finally got the SST up and running, it was simple to line up the observation module with the KerbalLab and drive it into place. Enfurt removed the delivery truss and sent it away from the station before redocking and entering the station.

The crew transfer had to proceed via EVA as the docking module was locked down for quarantine. Aparently, some Mystery Goo from the KerbalLabs had gotten loose, and ran amok through the station before being corralled into the docking module. The crew was in the process of venting heat out of the module to freeze the goo into a more dormant state. So the replacement crew of Aldden, Gilley, and Kenald crossed the gap between vessels, got caught up on the current research going on, and got their sleeping arrangements. Once the new crew was settled, the first three to be replaced moved over to the Tenacious. Desby, Obbus, and Sidford got settled into the orbiter, and the whole crew was able to come back to the Space Center without incident. The three station crew were given a week off, and were last seen heading off to the big city to catch up on several weeks worth of lost fun.

Mission 13

IHS Reliant Crew: Caming, Billy, Randall, Edski, Keldred, Burbin

Day 108, 0:40

Payload: Agamemmnon Passenger/Stores module, temporary crew.

Mission 13 seemed doomed from the start. A new pilot who was supposed to fly the mission disappeared mysteriously, the payload had refused to seat properly in the cargo bay, and there were numerous reports of an all black kat walking back and forth in front of the VAB doors. Regardless, Mission Control gave the green light, and with copious amounts of space tape, the payload was finally in place and ready to go. Alternate pilot Caming was checked out on the systems and given the ok to fly. Once they entered orbit though, a frantic call came over the radio to end mission and return home. It was discovered that one of the engineers on the Agamemmnon program wasn't an engineer at all! This was realized when a portion of the blueprints were labeled with such things as "Magical Pixie Dust Storage" and "The Vroom-Vroom Thingie." As such, the whole design was in question, and passenger module currently in space was in need of a refit.

So the Reliant made it's way back to the ground. Unfortunately the combination of full payload bay and slightly questionable landing profiles led to more complications. The shuttle couldn't bleed off speed, and sailed right over the Space Center. Caming and Billy were able to make an emergency landing on the old Island Runway, and the crew was able to get airlifted back to the Space Center for debrief.

Author's Notes:

So, unsure as to whether I'm going to put up pictures on this post or have on massive album of all the Tug chapter modules. I'll decide tonight when I get home and find the keepers out of my screenshot folder. The reason for the cancellation of mission 13 is that just after I had gotten it into space, I found Paul Kingtiger's Universal Storage containers, and new that that would fit my ship much better. That, along with the fact that I redesigned the propulsion from Hydrogen powered thrusters to large Xenon fueled ion drives. I was able to make the design more compact and sturdier. The redesign would also help when I converted over to TAC Life Support, which I decided to do. I figured now was better than later, since I only had two vessels, both relatively easy to get to, to refit with life support modules.

Also, a plate of cookies to whoever can guess where I got the name for the Agamemmnon. Mythology aside, it's from a book/audiobook series.

Edited July 1, 2014 by Ghostshark27

[Ghostshark27]

Chapter 3 Continued: Rise of the Rockets...

The Kerbals on the Super25 program had hit a slump. With the Ascension still down for repairs, the Reliant being refitted, and the adjustments being made to the Agamemmnon design, they were stuck on the ground for the foreseeable future. Since the KSO's didn't have the muscle to lift the big equipment, it was up to the Rockets Division to carry the company for the time being.

Operation Welcome Back

Prototype semi-reusable capsule system (Sumghai's SDHI Parts Kit)

Crew: Danlan, Rogun

Day 112, 1:10

Mission: Retrieve Dilvey from the Javelin, return to Kerbin.

The Rockets division had been itching to test their reusable capsule system for a while now, and with the Orbiter crews scrambling to get themselves in order, this seemed like as good of a time as any. The mission was fairly simple. Danlan and Rogun were able to get into orbit, and use the service module's engines to meet with the Javelin. Dilvey had managed to get a circular orbit, but because she arrived at such a high inclination orbit, she wasn't able to drop her inclination fully to zero before her craft ran out of fuel. This wasn't a huge problem for Rocket Jockeys, and they managed to pull alongside. Since there were no docking ports, Dilvey went EVA, and climbed into the spare seat in the capsule. They angled for the Space Center, and after reentry, landed just outside the perimeter. The crew made note that a water landing would probably be much softer in the future, but otherwise everyone was ok.

Operation Heavy Burden

Heavy lifter rocket launch system (LLL SXT N1 clone parts)

Unmanned

Day 113, 1:35

Mission: Lift Agamemmnon Engine/Tankage Module into orbit, rendezvous with Crew Module

The task of this mission was to have the Rockets Division send up the engine module for the Agamemmnon Tug. A large four spoked design, it weighed more than anything that the Company had ever launched before. The Rocket Jockey's assured Mission Control that they would be capable of launching the design in one piece and not break it. To do this, they used a design that had so much fuel and thrust that its launched had rivaled even Jeb's strange craft in terms of thrust off the launchpad. But slowly, the 4 stage rocket managed to climb out of Kerbin's gravity well, until it had achieved orbit with a small engine module behind it. Mission Control was able to remotely pilot the craft into docking with the Crew Module for the Agamemmnon. Once everything was linked, Mission Control released the Tug from the lift stage, and had meant to deorbit the lift stage. Unfortunately the battery was dead on the lift stage and it just drifted away, unable to receive commands.

Mission 14

IHS Reliant Crew: Caming, Billy, Dessby, Thomhat, Keldred, Burbin

Day 114, 2:41

Payload: New Passenger/Storage Module

The Reliant passed final inspections, and after an early morning cargo loading, they were able to launch without incident. Well except for Mission Control being annoyed by several assurances that the orbiter wasn't going to be called back again. The mission went rather well, with the orbiter making it to the Agamemmnon efficiently. It was determined that Keldred and Burbin would board the Tug and maneuver it onto the passenger section. So as the two temporary crew members got the systems up and running, the Reliant released it's payload and maneuvered clear. Burbin showed himself to be a smooth operator on the controls, and easily connected both parts together. Keldred and him both volunteered to stay behind to ensure all systems were coming online as they should. So Billy and Caming turned the shuttle around to head for home. They attempted a shallower descent profile this time around, and as a result had to land the Reliant in a field about ten kilometers short of the runway. The orbiter was retrieved easily enough, but the ground crews estimate that it will take almost an extra week to clean dirt and grass out of the ship's guts.

Operation Long Shot

Jool V Space Launch System (LLL's SXT Saturn V Parts)

Day 115, 2:10

Payload: Agamemmnon Propellant Storage, Ship Tender

The launch began pretty well. All stages separated successfully, and the payload was well on it way to the Agamemmnon. Unfortunately, Edski was a bit overconfident in the power of his ship's ion engines. He seperated the last of the lift stages a bit prematurely, and as such he dipped back into the atmosphere before being able to completely circularize his orbit. Once the crisis was averted, he was able to bring his payload to the Agamemmnon and connect it. He settled in for the ride, as his little craft was designed to manuever the larger diameter pieces into position behind the Agamemmnon.

Edited July 6, 2014 by Ghostshark27

[Ghostshark27]

Mission 3 Continued: Let there be light! ...And food.

Mission 15

ISS Resolute Crew: Tomfield, Andan, Phil, Ludmal

Day 116, 3:20

Payload: Odyssey Stores Modules

This was a quick mission to deliver a new food and consumables storage pod to the Space Station. Mission Control decided that it would be more cost effective to have a larger supply of stores on the station, rather than sending resupply drones on a regular basis. The payload was comprised of two parts, the removable food stores pod, and the reprocessing pod. The Resolute was able to arrive at the Odyssey safely, and drop off the two components in one piece. Enfurt used his trusty SST and manuevered the modules onto seperate areas of the station. The shuttle crew made for the atmosphere, and landed safely back at the Space Center.

Mission 16

IHS Ascension Crew: Danlan, Billy, Bill, Lemton

Day 118, 0:18

Payload: Agamemmnon Powerplant

This day's launch was acomplished using the new Energia launch system, a four booster version of the launch platform. The Ascension performed admirably, using the four boosters to push the large heavy reactor out of the planet's gravity well. The crew managed to get the orbiter to the Agamemmnon safely and released the payload. Edski used the Tender to link up the reactor to the tail end of the Tug, and the ship was finally in one piece. Bill went EVA to check out the reactor, checking for damage and that everything was connected properly. Meanwhile, Lemton took a spacewalk to connect struts to key components to make sure that the tug wouldn't come apart very easily. After several long minutes of work, everything was ready to go. Bill and Lemton returned to the Ascension. Mission Control ordered Keldred and Edski to join the crew on the orbiter so they could get some leave before returning to space. Burbin was given full control of the Agamemmnon, and was told to get ready to train up a new pilot. The Ascension returned back to Kerbin, but due to a computer glitch, it was brought down slightly off the runway. The Ground Crews estimate it will take an extra week to clean up and get it up and running.

The Story So Far...

With the completion of the Agamemmnon, Ikarus Industries was ready to begin actions toward building a heavy construction yard over one of the moons. It was decided by the department heads that the Mun would be the best choice. Even though it would be much easier to transport materiels off of Minmus, the abundance of raw goods on the Mun outweighed the cost of transportation. The Ex-Con's were hard at work designing the workspace and storage area of the station, and left the design of the crew modules to the R&D team. While the Ex-Con's were still debating the layout and capabilities, the R&D department managed to design a simple station core that was functional enough to operate independantly, and allow for expansion and the later addition of the construction facility.

Jeb's condition had stabilized since the crash, but he was still in a coma, and the doctors were unsure as to how long he'd take to recover. The head of the Astrometrics Team had announced that they were approaching an ideal transfer window, and that if readings of Jeb's strange craft are true, it's the only thing they had that could come close to reaching outside of Kerbin's sphere of influence right now. All department heads agreed that if they were to have the tech needed to reach other planets, they'd need Jeb to be awake and capable of divulging the specs of his ship.

Edited July 6, 2014 by Ghostshark27

[Ghostshark27]

Chapter 4:

With the design for the first half of the Mun Station completed, the engineers and production teams set to work on building the components that would form the station. Estimates had the first piece, the station's core, being ready about a week after the Ascension had touched down after her last mission. So while the boffins were hard at work with the shuttle program designing payloads and plans to complete the requirements, the Rockets Division was tasked with sending a new semi-permanent satellite to the Mun, to continue mapping the surface. Named the Munstar, the plan was to orbit it in a high inclination, and continue mapping the surface for raw goods to enhance the map recovered from the Javelin.

Operation Munshot

Small Payload Lift System

Day 120, 4:30

Mission: Launch Munstar mapping satellite, deploy satellite in orbit around mun.

Seeing as how the Rockets Division had launched the Engine Module for the Agammemnon, the Munstar was a mere flea in comparison. A small three stage to orbit rocket was designed, lean enough to deliver a five ton payload into orbit. Everything performed as expected, and the Munstar was able to get into orbit with all spare stages falling back to Kerbin in order to keep space clean. At the ideal point, the Munstar was ordered to fire its ion engine, and several minutes later was on an intercept course with the Mun. Several days later, while the Super 25 and KSO crews were performing their tasks back at Kerbin constructing the station core, the Munstar performed another series of maneuvers, placing it in a high altitude, high inclination orbit around the Mun. Equipped with a material scanner, and a new high resolution mapping scanner, it began it's tedious job of slowly spinning around it's parent body. The kerbals monitoring it's progress in the Deep Space Network had voiced some concerns, though. Even though it's orbit kept it in sight of the relay satellites around Kerbin at all times right now, they projected that in a matter of weeks the Mun's orbit around Kerbin would cause it to lose signal behind the moon. They requested that a smaller satellite network be put in place over the Mun to allow constant communication for Munstar, as well as any unmanned drones that may be used in construction and mining operations. Burbin, up in the Agamemmnon, suggested that they could piggyback a few satellites on his ship once they made the first trip across to the Mun. The Mission Planning team is currently working on a solution to this problem.

Mission 17

IHS Reliant Crew: Ludmal, Billy, Phil, Sean

Day 121, 3:35

Payload: Space Station Core

The Reliant took off a bit earlier than expected for this mission. An approaching weather storm had all crews scrambling to complete tasks before it fell upon the Space Center. The Reliant was first on the pad, with the Resolute in a ready state to launch as soon as the everything was cleared from the Reliant launch. Billy and Ludmal had prepped the shuttle, while newcomers Phil and Sean had made sure that the payload was shoehorned into the cargo bay. Once given the go-ahead, Ludmal engaged the computer and the Reliant roared off into space. The Energia Launch system was once again used due to the weight of the payload and as such there was still fuel remaining in the EFT when the crew had to release it. Phil made an interesting note in his mission log for a self deorbiting EFT that would burn all it's fuel before reentry, and the boffins in R&D are looking into testing this on future missions.

It was a fairly easy maneuver to reach the Agamemmnon, and once there the crew set to work prepping the payload to link with the Tug. Unfortunately, the Tender that was attached to the Agamemmnon couldn't be docked with the ship while the space station core was attached, due to docking port incompatibility, so the crews were ordered to detach it and leave it floating in space. With a full charge on the batteries, it should last until needed again. The Reliant released its cargo from the payload bay and, using it's docking port, maneuvered the core onto the tail end of the Tug. From there it was ordered to remain docked until the Resolute could arrive with it's payload.

Mission 18

ISS Resolute Crew: Danlan, Keldred, Edski, Sidford, Dilvey, Lodgel

Day 121, 0:10

Payload: Space station docking port, Replacement crew for Odyssey Space Station

As soon as the last support was cleared from the Reliant launch, the pad was prepped for the Resolute launch. The crew had final checks made and were able to launch with the approaching storm a mere fifty kilometers away. Everyone at the Space Center hunkered down for the oncoming storm as the Orbiter shot clear of the atmosphere and into the calm of space. Burning for a higher orbit, the Resolute made for the Odyssey first to swap out the Station crew members still awaiting rotation. After a few rather inefficient maneuvers, the Resolute finally managed to chase down the station and come alongside it. Sidford, Dilvey, and Lodgel replace Bob and his two fellow kerbals waiting for their trip planetside, and picked up on the experiments the previous crew was working on. Before leaving, Edski installed a new telemetry computer onto the SST, so the crew could fine tune the linkages of the station and make it much less abstract.

With one task complete, the Resolute dropped to a lower orbit and met up with the Agammemnon. By the time it matched velocities, the orbiter had barely enough fuel to get back into atmosphere. Bill and Enfurt were both asked to help transfer some storage pods to the Tug, and in a matter of minutes, they both had swapped full storage containers for empty ones. Keldred released the payload and Danlan drifted the shuttle clear. Ludmal piloted over the Reliant, and they connected to the docking port. From there it was a simple matter to mate it with the station core. Both shuttles were given clearance to land, as the storm had passed over the space center by this time.

The Resolute was the first to deorbit, since it was so low on fuel. The crew attempted for a earlier but shorter burn time, hoping to keep some fuel in the tanks for emergencies and still be able to coast onto the runway. Instead, they ended up taking too long cutting through the atmosphere, and sailed about 12k meters over the Space Center. A few high speed maneuvers, and the Resolute was lined up with the island runway. Danlan was able to touch down safely and bring the shuttle to a stop, with no damage. The Reliant performed an ideal deorbit burn, and came in for a textbook landing at the edge of the main runway. The new twin drag chute system installed on the orbiter worked splendidly, and the chutes gently slowed the craft in time for the turnoff to head for the hanger.

Mission 19

IHS Ascension Crew: Caming, Andan, Chuck, Randall

Day 126, 4:45

Payload: Station Logistics Module

On this particular mission, the engineers developed a new delivery system for the orbiters to maneuver the station modules into place. It was a relatively simple hinge that one of the mission specialists could operate to raise the docking ring out of the payload bay and be locked onto another vessel. The pilots had their doubts, as it could only raise the angle of the payload about 50 degrees out of the bay, and lining up something that far off axis would be difficult. The boffins told the pilots to stop whining, they were smart and knew what they were doing. So Caming had the honor of testing the new system and proving the design right or wrong.

Once on station, it was realized that the cargo loaders had put the module in backwards, and because of that, Caming would have to maneuver the orbiter so the engines nearly touched the reactor of the Agamemmnon. She brought in the Ascension agonizingly slow, and the ports connected. However, the elasticity of the connection caused the shuttle to swing into the Tug a bit, causing slight crimping on the top engine bell, and luckily just peeling paint off of the reactor housing. Chuck EVA'd to inspect the damage, and in the process installed a camera onto the Logistics Module that the techs back on Kerbin had forgot to add. Luckily, there were a few spare cameras in one of the new storage pods brought up by the Resolute last trip. After completing his EVA, Chuck got back into the Ascension, and buckled in for the trip back down. Andan closed and released the hatches, and Caming moved the shuttle away from the Agamemmnon in preparation for a deorbit burn. And that's when things got weird...

As soon as the hatches and bay doors were closed, the new robotic hinge began to operate on its own. The computer spit out several faults, and controls went offline for a few seconds. After several attempts to gain control failed, Andan ordered a complete shutdown of all systems and reboot. Her and Caming were busily flipping switches and controls in the cockpit, and on the passenger deck Chuck had to subdue a paniced Randall from breaking open one of the hatches to escape. A few tense moments later, and the shuttle was back online, although it was still performing strangly. The crew had control, but it was sluggish at best. Every time Caming engaged the throttle, the ship began to tumble end over end. Because of this, they missed their window to land at the Space Center, but their trajectory still had them reentering atmosphere over one of Kerbin's oceans. Working with Mission Control, they were finally able to angle their descent to point at a penninsula off the mainland that was still about 400 kilometers away from the Space Center.

The media somehow got word of the emergency, and the whole world watched anxiously awaiting the fate of the brave Kerbals hurtling towards the ground. Response teams were mobilized in the viscintiy of the landing zone, as the shuttle blazed through the upper atmosphere of the planet. Carrying a bit more velocity as anticipated, the Ascension burst out of the clouds just passing the shoreline of their intended landing site, but Caming was able to slow the craft down just enough to change heading and angle her course back towards land. Just a couple kilometers inland, she managed to bring the shuttle down for a rather clean landing, all things considered. Rescue personnel arrived, and the crew was tended to. It was decided that the shuttle would be brought back to the Space Center via one of the companies recovery boats, only refitted to handle the orbiter, and sailed back that way. The Ikarus board of directors ordered that all Super25 missions be suspended until a full overview of the systems. The shuttle engineers began a teardown of the Reliant immediately, and the two unfinished shuttles began an intensive testing phase to find any bugs in their programming. All space missions in the near future would be up to the Rockets Division to complete, and they were very loud and boisterous about being ready. They were finally ready to unveil a new line of launch vehicles, capable of some heavy lifting. The Planning Team was seen getting the last few launches in order to make the habitation section of the station ready to send to the Mun.

Edited July 12, 2014 by Ghostshark27

[Ghostshark27]

So, with the release of .24, and the fact that I had picked up a weird bug with the last orbiter mission, I had decided to put this storyline on hold. I may come back to the idea eventually, but for right now I'm going to call this one over. I wasn't really happy with the way it turned into a mission log instead of a narrative, but I was just having so much fun flying the shuttles I kept flying missions until I could barely remember which mission did what, then jot it all down real quick and get back to flying.

I'm going to give it another go, as soon as KSP stabilizes for me, and I can get back to relatively bug free flying. So keep looking to the skies, and give me some feedback, please. I want to know if I suck, or if I'm being too hard on myself.