KerbalX

Restored footage of the first I-12 Kuruwa ever built undergoing testing, circa 1936.

Description

This craft and related world-building are a part of the very talented HolidayTheLeek’s ongoing ‘Forever War’ universe.

The mid 1930’s were a time of great progress for the increasingly authoritative Ikan Empire, as they enjoyed a period of reasonable economic growth due to flourishing trade routes with Bavria, and a considerable increase in the size of their industrial infrastructure. To supplement their penchant for expansion and increasing military capability, much work was done in studying the ever-growing range of technologies with which war could be waged. This was done purely for the benefit of their scientific literature, they assured the increasingly uneasy coalition powers.

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The utility of aircraft in warfare was firmly established, though most nations employed land-based aircraft which required the construction of large aerodromes and runways. This would be a significant and costly undertaking in the tropical environment of the Ikan Empire, and many areas proved to be too marshy to permit the establishment of an airfield. As such, focus was turned to the flying boats and float planes which were used to great success by other nations for carrying passengers and cargo across long distances. Given their aquatic nature, they could takeoff and land from virtually anyway on the planet, without necessitating the usage of a runway. Ikan research and development into flying boats was limited, and had amounted to the production of only a handful of small aircraft used for navigating mangrove forests. The Royal Isles were the leading authority on the construction and usage of flying boats, accounting for the production of around seventy percent of the world’s flying boats at the time.

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In 1934, a tentative offer was made by the Ikan Empire to allow for construction of Islish designs under license, in exchange for a number of precious resources including access to rubber, which was in short supply for the Islish. Cautiously, the Royal Isles accepted the offer, allowing the manufacturing under license of two aircraft, the Arch-Buckley Hanford, a two-engined cargo plane, and the Dunnock Seaway, a two-engined biplane patrol aircraft. The deal was short lived, and within eighteen months The Royal Isles withdrew their terms as a war-jittery population questioned the decision to allow a foreign land to steal their secrets. However, a number of Ikan copies had already been assembled and flown, allowing for the reverse engineering of many crucial components and informing Ikan doctrine on the design of flying boats. Six months later, the first eight-engined flying boat of Ikan design left the hangar and took to the sky in the form of the I-12.

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The I-12 Kuruwa was the first Ikan attempt to construct a maritime patrol aircraft that could operate from the water and cross the gulf of ocean to their then closest ally, Bavaria. Even more disconcertingly, it had the range to reach New Australis’ northern coastline, awakening much of the world to the Ikan Empire’s newfound military capability. However, it was kept secret from the world that the aircraft was not armed, and that the flight to New Australis had pushed it’s range to the maximum, eventually running out of fuel and ditching in the ocean. Despite this, the propaganda effect was enormous, and the Royal Isles was blamed for negligence and association with an untrustworthy foreign nation. The ensuing political turmoil within the Isles would plant the seeds for it’s instability and rash actions following the assassination of King Tobias, and ultimately leading to it’s embroilment in The Great War.

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The I-12 was slow, ponderous and unarmed, but it represented a milestone in the development of Ikan technology. Produced from 1936 to 1944, just over 200 aircraft were constructed, serving as patrol aircraft, light bombers, anti-submarine warfare platforms and transport aircraft. It carried 11 crew members with room for several tons of cargo, or 4000 ib of bombs and torpedoes. Performance was poor. Despite sporting four sets of contra-rotating propellers powered by eight engines, it had a maximum speed of only 280kph and a cruising speed of 210kph. It had a service ceiling of 12,000ft, which was often insufficient in avoiding bad weather. As such, it had a perilous safety record, with 80 aircraft being lost to accidents over it’s 20 year service history.

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Press ‘2’ to toggle the fuel cells and motors.
Use the throttle keys to increase and decrease power.
Use the ‘H’ and ‘N’ keys to adjust the propeller pitch and reach the aircraft’s top speed of around 70m/s.

Built in the SPH in KSP version 1.7.3.

Details

• Type: SPH
• Class: aircraft
• Part Count: 594
• Pure Stock