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wbyrd — Kn-229 'Venture' free trader

#cargoship #spaceship #starship #transport
Published: 2016-02-09 03:31:02 +0000 UTC; Views: 874; Favourites: 15; Downloads: 26
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Description designed fro extensive atmospheric flight, and operation in regions where advanced Star ports are rare the venture class serves as both a local in system transport, and inter-system cargo ship. While it has almost identical performance and range as more conventional designs it has much better in flight characteristics when dealing with often unpredictable weather on worlds with more than trace atmospheres.

It's wings provide both limited lift, improved aerodynamic flight, and room for fuel storage. while it's extended  tail provides not only increased balance and agility, but also provides room for avionics, computer hardware, and other systems freeing up room in the main hull. with power systems, and landing gear housed in sponsons along the hull the center of the rear area is open to allow oversized cargoes, and cargo container pallets,It's large cargo hatch fitted with a drop down hatch/ramp structure at the rear of the main fuselage.

Crew quarters, flight deck, and a small lounge for crew and passengers are mounted above and forward of the cargo deck. The free trader is not intended as a passenger ship so luxuries are few, but often crews will spend effort, and money on making the ships more comfortable for themselves and passengers since the craft serves not only as a means of income, but a home for extended periods.

The Venture series is not as popular as other series since it's layout, and extra equipment reduce cargo capacity slightly. however it does find a place with operators and owners who can make use of it's unique features. In some cases the Venture is converted to a heavy scout prospector for groups who operate on habitable worlds, rather than asteroids, planetoids, and other airless locations. Several prospecting operations, private scout/survey services, an Universities operate the KN-229 as a logistics craft, and expedition support vessel since it can serve as an effective transport/scout/and  mobile facility with proper modules installed in it's cargo hold.


Statistics:
crew 
Pilot
Navigator
Engineer

Jump   1
Thrust 1
Armor  2pts
Power Systems: Fusion reactor
Fuel: sufficient for 4 weeks, and single jump
(fuel Processors installed.)
hardpoints: 2 reserved with installed fire control systems (no weapons installed at standard equipment)

State rooms: 10 Standard staterooms, (sufficient for 20 people if double berthed)
common area: 11 displacement tons dedicated to common area.( roughly the size of railroad box car, or city buss)
Emergency Low Berth( survival use only) sufficient for twenty persons.

cargo crane, and ramp
Cargo lock, and airlock on nose of ship.

Cargo space 75 displacement tons

Mining support vessel
12 tons workshop space
mining drones 5 drones producing 10-60 displacement tons( 14 to 840 cubic meters) useful ore per day
Ore processor 10 tons dedicated to producing 20 ton refined ore per day.
2 air rafts
35 tons cargo space

Dedicated cargo hauler:
Removes 6 staterooms, and has emergency low berths for four persons. Adds 28 displacement tons tons cargo space.

Kn-229F Far-trader:
Enhanced Jump drive, all other systems identical to free trader
thrust 1
Jump  2
Cargo Space: 59 tons


Statistics:
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Comments: 6

CageyJay [2016-04-14 03:25:58 +0000 UTC]

Is the spar between the main fuselage and the aft stabilizers really flat, as it appears here? That makes me wonder if it would experience some weird harmonics in atmospheric flight, without additional control surfaces.

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wbyrd In reply to CageyJay [2016-04-14 10:18:55 +0000 UTC]

It's more T-shaped than flat, the upper surface is curved, with a reinforcing ridge along the underside you can't see from this angle. Any harmonics would be dealt with by the ships fly by wire computer controlled flight systems.

This particular ship is about the size of an AN-225 heavy lift cargo jet, it's wings and tail are for enhanced performance in an atmosphere, so they don't have to lift the entire weight of the just provide extra aerodynamic control forces. Compared to a conventional aircraft, it would be a bit clumsy when relying completely on aerodynamic flight surfaces alone. Normally it would be receiving most of its lift from Gravitic systems built into the hull. The gravitic systems would be supporting 50-90 percent of its mass.

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schizmatic [2016-02-10 10:06:54 +0000 UTC]

I want to make a paper plane version of this and throw it off the porch. I really think it could work.

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wbyrd In reply to schizmatic [2016-02-10 12:16:20 +0000 UTC]

If it looks right it flies right....or so they say

I was very happy with the way it looked. took a few tries to get it to look balanced.

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Daemoria [2016-02-09 03:42:00 +0000 UTC]

Looks like a surprisingly spacious and comfortable craft to cruise around in. The only real issue I have with the design might be down to some inherent stability issues from not having a vertical stabilizer. Of course, you can just say it's fly by wire/computer guidance, and avoids those issues, and i'll just shut my fool mouth. :I

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wbyrd In reply to Daemoria [2016-02-09 06:41:44 +0000 UTC]

Keep the feedback coming

With the system I build ships for all starships have fly by wire and computer assistance...and gravitic control..so I can get away with a bit more radical designs. 

I was thinking of adding vertical assemblies to the tail, to creat an H tail.... or make the inverted V a bit more pronounced like the butterfly tail on some aircraft.( Beechcraft Bonanza is a good example)


I have used this as a base for several other designs I am working on...from the same "Design House" but I am still trying to find a tail design that looks right for them.

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