KerbalX

The Kettering Aerial Torpedo on display in the SPH.

• Due to the aircraft’s skinny fuselage, a single EM-32S motor was required. For the propeller blades, (for the final prototype, at least) I used two R-12 ducted fan blades set at 16 degrees. Unless I planned to have the craft be rocket powered (SPOILER ALERT: it was for a bit), I didn’t have much choice in terms of engines available.
• Just like the real-life Bug and my XF-85 Goblin replica, this craft was mounted on a detachable set of wheels for takeoff. After all, once it is launched, there is no going back.
• Also like its real-life counterpart, it had detachable wings for when it reached its target. To pull this off, two TT-38 radial decouplers were installed on the sides and a wing was mounted on each one (and had their tips moved up). For the second set of wings, I simply copied the old set and mounted them on a small stack of cubic octagonal struts.
• The Lf+Ox tanks in this prototype are there for weight and balance purposes now. After the first several test flights on the EM-32S alone ended in abysmal failure, I considered cheating and installed four 24-77 Twitch engines hidden in the back - which meant I needed more Lf+Ox tanks; the motor would have been for decoration. Though those test runs were relatively successful, I had to go to bed immediately afterwards. The next day at work, I thought about my Saltrider and realized that I should have set my propeller blade angle to 15 degrees. First chance I got, I removed the rockets, installed some more batteries - while keeping some tanks to move the CoM to the right spot - and set the blade angles to 16 degrees (it wouldn’t settle on 15).

I also installed some reaction wheels in an attempt to counterract that stupid prop, but those alone didn’t work. So, after watching Jake Allen’s video on how to take care of it, I adjusted the ailerons to move the CoL right a little bit. However, that seemed to make the roll worse in the opposite direction. Whether it was because of the craft’s size or me doing it all wrong didn’t matter, since the real-life Bug relied on an autopilot to get to its destination. So, after getting this craft to altitude, I engaged MJ aircraft autopilot and had it fly straight until its power supply was too low to carry on.

The Bug right after taking off and ditching the wheels. Once the craft reaches a velocity of 30 m/s, pitch up and detach the takeoff wheels. For this prototype, expect to keep climbing.

• Before rockets were used for this replica, the Bug would fly up for a second or two and then plop back down (mostly tail-first).
• I still had a bit of motor-induced roll to deal with, but that’s why I activated the MJ aircraft autopilot as soon as I could.

The Kettering torpedo replica after being launched from the KSC over the ocean.

• Obviously, the Kerbal Space Program did not exist at the time real Kettering torpedoes were used. More specifically, they were invented during the First Imperial Wars.
• Unlike their Earth counterparts, they were actually used in combat. However, they were almost ineffective against Heinkelian infantry due to their limited range and low accuracy - and their launch sites blowing up. To maintain the secrecy of how the Bugs worked in case of imminent capture, Allied Command ordered all their front-line storage tents and rail runways rigged with explosives and gave their technicians cyanide pills. Such a drastic measure never had to be used, since the Bug launch site explosions that weren’t a result of a lucky artillery shell were due to idiotic personnel. Some couldn’t tell the difference between a candle and a dynamite fuse.

The model being flown here is a replica that was recently made by Super-Cool Aircraft Museum restoration engineers on a dare. None of the real Kettering Bugs are still around, so this is the only functional replica in existence on Kerbin. Although another replica was built decades prior, it is for static display only.

The Bug shortly before its battery gets too low to carry on. Just like its historic predecessors from the First Imperial Wars, this one is being kept on course by an autopilot - only a far more advanced one than from that time period.

Once the Bug’s batteries were close to getting depleted, the wings were detached and it was BOMBS AWAY!

The now-wingless Bug using its remaining momentum, as well as its potential energy from being kept at cruising altitude, to descend on a dummy target in the ocean. Unfortunately, an unexpected gust of wind at the beginning pushed the Bug to the side caused the Bug to miss completely. At least the engineers who made this functional replica proved its effectiveness - at least for the time period it was intended for.

Historic photograph of a Kettering Aerial Torpedo being launched. This most likely took place during a test or a demonstration flight, as it was never used in combat. Nevertheless, it paved the way for UAVs and modern-day cruise missiles.
As of May 2023, only one Kettering Bug still exists - and it’s a replica built by personnel from the National Museum of the United States Air Force. It was put on display in 1964, and is currently in the Early Years Gallery of Hangar One.

• Image taken from museum website.
• Information on the only surviving Kettering Bug obtained from Wikipedia as well as the museum website.