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The drone and its NERV-propelled carrier rocket on its way for its insertion burn around Laythe.
- Truth be told, I don’t know if I got lucky saving that much delta-V or if my foresight to set up an approach burn well ahead of time is just that good.
Description
Modified version of the E-38 Earhart to get to Laythe.
The plane is also modified to include more controls such as blade angle and flaps; if you’re comfortable with the pre-set settings, just don’t touch their buttons. Also, due to (relatively) heavy air traffic on Laythe, the plane’s nav lights needed an upgrade.
A stock rocket called E-39 Earhart Junior. Built with 443 of the finest parts, its root part is probeStackSmall.
Built in the VAB in KSP version 1.12.4.
Details
- Type: VAB
- Class: aircraft
- Part Count: 443
- Pure Stock
- KSP: 1.12.4
The drone itself on re-entry to Laythe. It wasn’t nearly as intense as the Eve re-entry.
- BEWARE: just like with the E-38, after that comes the tricky part.
The delivery rocket of the Earhart Junior on full display in the VAB. I needed to increase my delta-V by a lot since I’ll be going to Jool as opposed to just Eve.
ADVICE
- ALWAYS Quicksave before the Laythe re-entry phase. That way, if you screw up the heat shield ejection phase, you won’t be depressed having to waste time and money doing this entire mission all over again (probably to fail again).
- (If you have an orbital eccentricity less than 1) NEVER make your re-entry on the dark side of the moon. ALWAYS the sunny side.
- Make sure Laythe, or at least your staging area, has reliable CommNet coverage before landing and/or flying.
- Plot your re-entry burn so that you’ll end up either on land or as close to dry land as possible.
The Earhart Junior probe with Kerbnet on after landing on Eve.
BACKSTORY
As part of the Neptune Mission Files (https://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/index.php?/topic/186703-the-neptune-mission-files/), I thought it was time to send an electric-powered plane to Laythe. I had originally designed a single-propeller aircraft, however it kept spinning about its long axis during flight. Right as I was messing with the torque settings, it hit me: since the Earhart worked so well on Laythe and on Kerbin, why not send it to Laythe? Plus, due to the twin-engine design, I won’t have to worry about the plane rolling in a particular direction mid-flight.
I had to slightly modify the plane itself a bit, but otherwise it’s fine. The rocket, however, needed to have enough delta-V to make it to Laythe. Also, since that moon is so far away from the sun, I highly recommend short to medium-length island-hopping flights DURING THE FREAKING DAY.
PLANE MODIFICATION NOTES
- Though the propeller blades are at 23 degrees, unlike the drone’s predecessor, you can adjust the deployment angle in one-degree increments using H (translate forward) and N (translate backward). It may not be necessary to use at all, but who knows?
- The RCS button controls the flaps. Although this model never really needed flaps during test runs, it’s nice to have.
- The nav lights were replaced. Hopefully, these things actually work as advertised - especially since Laythe has A LOT of planes in my career save.
