The Practicality of Airship Parts

[JMBuilder]

This is something I've been begging Squad to add to KSP for well over a year. I've seen all the mods and plugins for it, but I want to see this implemented into the stock game. I'll be discussing the many practical uses of airship parts.

For the patient pilots, flying an airship up to the edge of Kerbin's atmosphere and launching a rocket from it would be one of the most efficient and recyclable methods of launching rockets to orbit. Once the rocket was in orbit, you could switch your focus back to the airship and fly it back to KSC.

For the Jool fanatics, an airship would be the most effective method for studying the gas giant's thick atmosphere. Several Jool airships could be docked together to form a massive floating research station. If you managed it good enough, it could even act as a resupply point and launch pad.

Airships would also be good for more general uses such as cargo transport, refueling, and rescue. You could even potentially build a flying aircraft carrier for spaceplanes and the like.

A buoyancy system would need to be implemented. Also, in order to switch vessels from an airship to something else, you would need to either land the airship or leave it at a geostationary position. A special system would assist in geostationary positioning. Considering all of the things that Squad has managed so far, this should be a piece of cake.

Certain parts would be needed to make the most effective airships. Here's a quick list:

Multiple sizes of balloons

Deployable balloons

Gas tanks

Electric propellers

Turbine generators

Ballast tanks

Discuss!

Edited October 21, 2014 by JMBuilder

[DBowman]

plus they'd be majestic!

Other places one could use them:

- Eve; if the atmosphere & temp were more realistically destructive the'd be useful for lightweight science.

- Laythe; no need for precision landings...

They could do science like the mapping sats, but hi-res.

'Airships' are 'really' 'buoyancy craft' - so airships and submarines 'go together'; is there an ocean under Vall?

I know there are airship & sub mods, I've not played with them so I don't know how well they fit with the 'core game play'.

[prophet_01]

I like the basic idea. But I think it should be limited to smaller crafts. I don't know if I like big airships in stock ksp. Srsly, they don't fit into the stock game and would only work due to the size of kerbin and resulting small amount of dv(weight) you need for reaching orbit. It would by all means result in even more unrealistic gameplay.

On the other hand I gotta admit that flying carriers are rly cool. I saw some footage of the uss macon and uss acron (if there is anyone not familiar with those, google it! you are about to see something awesome ). Airships are pretty nice at least.

However, if it ever gets to stock game, which I doubt, there needs to be an anti-clipping mechanism or we get weired results once aerodynamics arrive. Invinity-glide 2.0 should be prevented

[zxczxczbfg]

This would be a fairly nice feature once the aerodynamics system is properly implemented. There could even be rigid-hull parts with cargo/aircraft bays, which would make flying aircraft carriers (Akron and Macon, etc.) possible.

[Kegereneku]

Myself I don't really like the idea.

Yes you could create a balloon part to explore higher atmosphere of (some) planet with small probes, but following Kerbal-design it WILL become a "super-rover" capable of traveling to any biomes without being bothered by the relief. And that one is unrealistic for anything bigger than a probes.

Other problem is that it require several major changes and additions :

First of all :

- You would have solve the problem of unfocused spacecraft flying in the atmosphere.

Would your airship be considered "landed mid-air" and stationary relative to the ground, and so on.

- The aerodynamic system would have to be rebuilt to accommodate them too, else you'll be seeing distinct "Airship dynamic" & "Spaceplane dynamic". Also keep in mind that each atmosphere are different, buoyancy would change, and you'll need stats to know how to build the balloons.

- Then it require to simplify the controls of a airship so it match that of KSP, with a few thing done automatically (ballast autoset to stabilize attitude)

- Lastly, it would be necessary to have as few parts as possible to not clutter the rest and waste memory space.

So all in all I only see an use for one non-controllable balloons part, and it would still have to be carefully balanced to AVOID the inevitable abuse of Kerbal Engineering.

[JMBuilder]

I think you guys are overthinking them a little. In order to change focus to another vessel from an airship, you would set it to stay in one geostationary position.

It wouldn't need a whole new aerodynamics system. It would just need a buoyancy and gas fuel system. I'll edit the original post a bit.

Airships are the one thing that I'm determined to see implemented into the stock game.

Edited October 21, 2014 by JMBuilder

[zeel]

This, along with boats and submarines, would probably make excellent post-launch expansions. You're talking about lots of new parts and concepts that would be awesome, but don't really fit into the core of the game. Having an airship expansion post-launch would make more sense.

[JMBuilder]

Whether it be an update or an expansion, I absolutely must see airships in KSP!

[Alshain]

Well, I don't think they are likely to implement anything that isn't space oriented. Planes only exist because space planes exist, just because we use them for atmospheric planes, doesn't mean that is what they were intended for. To further this example there are no prop parts in stock. There are no boat parts in stock. The only ground vehicle parts are meant for rovers. Unless some space agency comes up with a space dirigible then I don't see it as stock parts. It should stay as mods where it belongs.

[JMBuilder]

Many space programs are considering using airships to explore other planets. They aren't just for Kerbin.

[Overfloater]

space dirigible

Not space, normal one! Put it in your cargo bay, throw it into the planet and deploy!

I must say I love the idea of flying on a baloon at a gas giant xD

[JMBuilder]

Not space, normal one! Put it in your cargo bay, throw it into the planet and deploy!

I must say I love the idea of flying on a baloon at a gas giant xD

Means a lot coming from a youtuber!

Love those Astroliners!

[LABHOUSE]

Yes! I am not the only one I would make floating colonies of this were stock because I only use stock parts.

[JMBuilder]

Even if some people think they would be impractical, people wouldn't need to use them if they were implemented. Some would use them, some would abuse them, some would set them aside.

Edited October 23, 2014 by JMBuilder

[mattinoz]

Hoping there would be an Advanced Ballooning tier as well for the modern balloons that use a combination of buoyancy and body lift driven by jet engines to gain altitude.

Wouldn't KSP need multiple atmospheric flights for this to work?

I mean High Altitude manned balloons are only going up to about 25% of Atmosphere thickness. (Thanks wiki)

Google's project loon higher but still topping out 50%.

So In KSP a realistic carrier is only going to get to maybe 30km which would be great until you pilot your drop ship away at speed and the carrier disappears into nothingness after 2.5km.

[Northstar1989]

Unless some space agency comes up with a space dirigible then I don't see it as stock parts. It should stay as mods where it belongs.

You mean, like the aerobots of the soviet Vega program, which explored the atmosphere of Venus?

Or perhaps you mean an actual airship capable of flying to orbit, like JP Aerospace is working on?

Regards,

Northstar

Edited October 23, 2014 by Northstar1989

[JMBuilder]

Hoping there would be an Advanced Ballooning tier as well for the modern balloons that use a combination of buoyancy and body lift driven by jet engines to gain altitude.

Wouldn't KSP need multiple atmospheric flights for this to work?

I mean High Altitude manned balloons are only going up to about 25% of Atmosphere thickness. (Thanks wiki)

Google's project loon higher but still topping out 50%.

So In KSP a realistic carrier is only going to get to maybe 30km which would be great until you pilot your drop ship away at speed and the carrier disappears into nothingness after 2.5km.

It wouldn't disappear if it had a command pod. The rocket would launch from the airship, and after you flew it to orbit you would switch back to the airship and land it.

30km may not seem like much, but the thinner atmosphere and lower gravity would allow you to make the rocket smaller and still be able to achieve orbit.

To solve vessel change issues, read the fifth paragraph in the original post.

[zeel]

Even if some people think they would be impractical, people wouldn't need to use them if they were implemented. Some would use them, some would abuse them, some would set them aside.

Which is why doing it in an expansion makes sense, its actually a pretty big addition if you want it done right, so doing a (probably paid) expansion that people can simply choose to not buy makes sense. To do airships justice we need a new hanger (cause there is no way that tiny space plane building houses a zeppelin) with a new launch site; we need a whole crap load of new and enormous parts; we need functionality to allow buoyant craft to float in place/at constant altitude, loaded or not; we need a new resource; we need new contracts and science nodes. . . To do it up right it need to big a pretty substantial feature and content set.

[JMBuilder]

I guess it would make more sense as an expansion. I'd buy it.