KerbalX

Description

A Tri-Wing propeller fighter designed for one-on-one dogfighting with a top speed of 154 m/s (344 MPH).

Lore:
With the outbreak of the Great War, air combat became a gruesome reality. Young pilots eager to serve King and country strapped themselves into metal birds and went off to war. The Balkan Union’s ‘Flyer’ quickly established itself as the king of the skies, shooting down enemy scout planes in numbers unseen before. Inevitably, some were shot down over enemy territory and were reverse engineered. The Prussian Kingdom quickly contracted fledgling aircraft manufacturer Luftjäger to reverse engineer the ‘Flyer’ and develop a craft that could rival or outclass it. Within five weeks, a prototype was created and flight tested before the Luftkommandant (Air Commander). The three winged design turned faster at high speeds and allowed it to take off at lower speeds and on shorter airfields. The ‘Kämpfer’ introduced an incredibly important innovation: the synchronization gear. The synchronization gear allowed a gun to fire through the propellers of a plane without hitting the blades. This replaced the current method of mounting a machine gun on the wing and using a series of wires and pulleys to fire with the draw of a lever. This new method allowed the plane to hold its own weapon on the nose which allowed greater accuracy and higher calibers. A major drawback to the design of the Kämpfer was it had slow acceleration and because of its tight turning circle could stall easily. This required not only a skilled pilot who could balance agility with speed, but also one who could endure high g-forces with sudden turns and stops. This craft became highly coveted as the Apex Predator of the Prussian Luftwaffe (Air Force) and became incredibly sought after by Ace pilots. Some of its most famous pilots include Rainer Fokker AKA ‘Blitzzählung’ of the legendary Schädel Squadron with 122 victories over 80+ battles in his seven year career in the plane and Maria Von Ehrenberg of Zirkus Squadron with 73 victories over 69 battles in her five year career. The Kämpfer served for seven years from 1914 to 1921 as a commander-only fighter. It was retired from service on April, 11 1921 with 85 of the remaining 91 being placed into storage and the other six being sent to museums. The Kämpfer attained almost a mythical status among pilots and the public as the greatest fighter of the early years of the war.

A mod aircraft called Luftjäger Fighter Kämpfer. Built with 59 of the finest parts, its root part is MK1Fuselage.

Built in the SPH in KSP version 1.8.1.

Details

• Type: SPH
• Class: aircraft
• Part Count: 59
• Mods: 2

Mods

• Airplane Plus
• Squad (stock)

Character Profile: Rainer Fokker
Rainer Fokker was a Prussian flying Ace from Buhrung who served in the Prussian Luftwaffe from 1914 until his retirement in 1930. Born to peasant parents in 1896, he lied to recruiters about his age in 1913 to enter the Army along with his older brother Lothar. When the war broke out, he saw fighters battling overhead and left his post, demanding to his commander ‘Put me in one of those planes’. Surprisingly, his CO liked his determination and put in a request for him and his brother to be put through a flight aptitude test. He and his brother passed with flying colors, and were transferred to Geschwader 11 were he racked up three victories in his first battle. Over the next three months he quickly rose through the ranks as his victory count grew. In the final days of 1914 he was assigned as the Kommandant (Commander) of the newly formed Schädel Squadron. The Squadron was made up of 11 pilots ranging from veterans to promising recruits. With his brother Lothar as his second in command, they fought across the western front for five years, constantly moving. Their white, black, and yellow color scheme struck fear and respect into those who saw them fly into battle. The squadrons official insignia was a skull and crossbones, but Rainer had the insignia on his plane changed to a skull with crossed golden lightning bolts, earning him the nickname ‘Blitzzählung’ or ‘Lightning Count’ in english. In 1919 Schädel Squadron was reassigned to the eastern front where Rainer seved until 1925 when he was forcefully promoted and removed from frontline combat. He continued to serve for five more years as the commander of Fluggruppe 18 until his retirement in 1930. He then served as a test pilot for several major aircraft development companies until 1939 when he retired to live a peaceful life with his pregnant newlywed wife; Susanne Wenz. They lived in a small cottage in his home town of Buhrung until his death in 1970 at the age of 74 due to sepsis. He was given a televised military funeral with full honors at Buhrung National Cemetery. The funeral was attended by his wife, son, a thousand civilians and soldiers, and the Kaiserin and her Royal Family. Every six months his grave is reviewed for any damages and blemishes. A bronze statue of him, his brother, and the first four aces of the war was erected in front of the Luftsitz (air headquarters) building in Vienburg where it stands to this day.