Current status: WIP, AI-settings and weapon-loadout subject to change

KSP 1.1.3

Necessary Mods: BD-Armory and B9 Aerospace Procedural Parts.

The M-GS-1 Liberator is a military air-dominance craft. It is designed to take on multiple targets on it's on, both on the ground and in the air. It's VTOL capabilities ensure both flexibility and survivability, since the loss of a wing will not lead to the complete loss of the aircraft.

The Liberator is capable of dealing and receiving great damage. On the offensive side, it has both anti-air (AIM-120 turret and gunturrets) and anti-ground weaponry (gunturrets, hydra missile turrets and AIM-65 laserguided missiles). This ensures maximum offensive power from both a large distance as well as close quarter combat. On the defensive side, flares and chaff will help distract incoming missiles, however it is strongly advised to immediately switch to active guard mode against missiles to further improve survival against missiles. Currently, the AIM-120 is the only missile that poses a serious threat to it. The sheer bulk of the aircraft as well as the way it is built provides some defensive capabilities against gunfire. It is able to absorb large amounts of damage before the aircraft becomes unflyable. Loss of wings, engine clusters or even a large chunk from portside or starboard is survivable. Should the damage become extreme, it's advisable to manually shut down VTOL engines to balance out the vertical thrust to containable levels. Survivability of this aircraft is aided by the use of reaction wheels (to counter shifts in weight and thrust distribution) and radiator panels to dissipate heat induced by gunfire.

General aircraft information:

Dimensions:

- Length: 39 m

- Width: 17,5 m

- Height: 8,1 m

Dry weight: 101.402 kg

Fully loaded and fueled weight: 247.012 kg

Recommended VTOL MTOW: 180.000 kg

Cruise-speed: 150 m/s

Never exceed speed: 170 m/s (high risk of radiator panels loss)

Combat-speed: above 90 m/s

Minimum speed: 40 m/s

VTOL thrust: 192.000 N @sealevel and mach 0.0

Piloting advise: Fuel load as delivered is sufficient for VTOL take-off from KSC airport, when assisted by RCS thrust. Fuel load may be either lightened or increased in all center fuel tanks that are ENABLED. Disabled fuel tanks are not to be used due to changes in CoM. For an even lighter aircraft, MKII fuel tanks may be emptied. When loading or unloading fuel, please make sure to load or empty fuel tanks on a lateral symmetry, meaning that when a front tank is emptied, the rear tank should be emptied in the same way.

When airborne, please refrain from using maximum control outputs at high speeds unless in the event of an emergency maneuver. Using maximum control output may lead to an excess bleed of speed, loss of parts and potential loss of stability leading to the complete loss of the aircraft.

Combat can be either manual or by using guard mode. Should Guard mode be used, it's advised to aid the computer by selecting the desired weapon. The AI is at times unable to recognise the tactical advantage of using gunturrets such as the M230 or the Hydra turret, and has a bias towards the .50 cal, AIM-65 and AIM-120, even when they are unable to fire (due to LoS, LoF limitations). In extreme cases it may be necessary to switch to manual aim when the computer gets ********.

The M-GS-1 is equiped with an auto-pilot which is able to perform basic flight maneuvers. Letting the AI do combat is ill-advised, due to the sheer bulk of the aircraft as well as it's VTOL capabilities. It sometimes manages to succesfully take-off and engage in combat, however the odds of this to happen are small...

Controls:

Custom key #1: Toggles inner VTOL engines and enables ECM jammer

Custom key #2: Toggles outer VTOL engines

Custom key #3: Toggles two outer horizontal thrust engines

Custom key #4: Toggles four center horizontal thrust engines

Custom key #5: Toggles four inner horizontal thrust engines

Custom key #6: Toggles thrust reverse on horizontal thrust engines

M-GS-1 Liberator Battle Cruiser