I might have to give this one a try...

[Mugs914]

This was posted over on the Secret Projects Forum (Great place to check out, by the way) and it is just begging to become a rocket.

Two motor cluster, sci-fi style fins with tip pods, canopy.... Just cool lookin'! I have plenty of parts in the stash and its been a while since I've done a new build...

Kinda looks like the result of a catastrophic Estes Wolverine drag race...

 

[jqavins]

What country is that from? Is it China? I should be able to tell from the name on the drawing, but I can't.

It's similar to this, from Lockheed XFV from the '50s, upgraded with jets (and a bigger tail instead of wings, and...).

 

[mh9162013]

What country is that from? Is it China? I should be able to tell from the name on the drawing, but I can't.

Russia, presumably, given how some of the drawings appear to be from the "Sukhoi" design bureau.

 

[Mugs914]

Yes, this was a Soviet era proposal for a tail-sitting interceptor from the Sukhoi design bureau. The name "Shkval" translates to "squall" in English.

As with most Cold War era projects, the Shkval went through several iterations before it was eventually cancelled. Most are very similar to this version but vary in appearance from 50s sci-fi to distinctly Gerry Anderson...

Here are a few others from around the web...

 

[mbeels]

This was posted over on the Secret Projects Forum (Great place to check out, by the way) and it is just begging to become a rocket.

Definitely!

 

[Hobie1dog]

Come on Mike, we thought you would have already started it by now

 

[Cape Byron]

Come on Mike, we thought you would have already started it by now

Isn’t it in the paint queue?

 

[burkefj]

I bet that could glide

 

[lr64]

Extra points for functional ramjets.

 

[Mugs914]

No Marty, not finished yet, but I did manage a (very) quick and dirty OR cook-up!

This version isn't really accurate scale-wise, just a quick sketch to mess around with the basic design.

BT-55 based, twin 24mm motor mounts, basswood fins. 1140 ft. on a pair of F44-8s. Of course, the sim is suspect due to all of the weirdness.

The actual rocket will be built quite differently than the OR version, of course (OR still doesn't support molded balsa parts ), but it gives a good idea about weights and moments.

I've saved several versions of the file to try different things, including a closer-to-scale version and upscales to 29 and 38mm mounts. Scale or not I'm liking the looks of the thing!

It would seem that I have just started yet another project...

 

[jqavins]

As a plane, that's extremely funky, mainly because of the rocket-like four fins. As a rocket, it certainly gets some funky points, but I don't think it's so funky that the sim is a great deal more suspect than most sims. And I could, of course, be dead wrong.