HISTORY:

In April 1944, the German Me-262 was put into service and quickly started decimating Allied bombers. The allies knew that if they wanted their bombers to have any chance against this threat on their own, they would need to design a whole new type of bomber.

So Lightning Aircraft Industries took up the challenge and by July 1944, the company had finished the TI-85. What they had done was design a bomber that had technologies and designs that made the bomber unique.

To start, instead of using typical piston engines, they used turboprop engines with counter-rotating props. The main difference was that it had 3 engines instead of 4 or 2. This was because they added a third engine when they found it wasn't fast enough. they also used propeller blades with the scimitar design for the greatest possible speed using just the 3 normal engines. The company also had the idea to add 2 different types of engines to the aircraft, two turbo-jet boosters under the wings that could be turned on or off.

This was so if the bomber got intercepted, it could turn on the boosters and easily outrun the threat. These two types of engines combined were able to push the aircraft to a faster speed than the Me-262. Unlike other bombers of the time, the TI-85 had a new feature to reduce drag, a rotary bomb bay.

It could also hold 30x 500 lbs bombs. Another feature of this bomber was that as well as having a tear-drop bubble canopy, it only had a single pilot. But a remarkable feature of this bomber was that it was quite manoeuvrable, mainly with the additional stabilizer that was added when it was found that when trying to land, the normal elevator would not be as effective and could cause it to crash.

But the interesting thing was that there was one particular TI-85 that was different from the rest, and this was because it had a bare, polished metal finish like on the P-51 Mustang. Nobody knew why as the reason for this was kept a secret. This TI-85 was nicknamed 'The Silver Phantom' and somehow, was never shot down, even though it sometimes received extensive damage. Some said that 'The Silver Phantom' was haunted by some kind of guardian angel.

Overall though, the TI-85 had 12,000 built, yet only 20, including 'The Silver Phantom', are in preservation. At this point in time, 'The Silver Phantom' and 9 other TI-85's are in flying condition.

SPECIFICATIONs:

Max speed (only Turboprops): 375 kts (37,500 ft)
Max speed (Turboprops and Jet boosters):682 kts (37,500 ft)
Service ceiling: 37,500 feet
Range: Wright Airport to Snowstone island and back twice
Climb rate (only Turboprops): 4054 ft/min (from 242 ft)
Climb Rate (Turboprops and Jet boosters): 20,562 ft/min (from 242 ft)
Takeoff speed: 145 kts
Landing Speed: 150 kts
Aprroach speed: 160 kts
Fuel Load: 2,599 Gallons
Powerplant: 3 x LAI TL-908Z Turboprop, 2 x LAI BV-228D Turbo-jet booster
Armament: 30 x 500 kg bomb

CONTROLS:

AG-1: Rotary Bombay
AG-2: Stabilizers
AG-3: Turbo-jet boosters
AG-4: Landing Lights
AG-5: Navigation and Beacon lights
AG-6: Close/Open Canopy
AG-7: Cockpit Lighting
VTOL-Down: Flaps
Brake: Airbrakes

TAKEOFF AND LANDING:

For Takeoff, activate AG-2 for the stabilizers and set flaps to half. Throttle up to 100% and activate AG-3 if you want a quick takeoff. When 145 kts is reached, gently pull back on the controls and you will lift off. The stabilizer can be turned off after takeoff, but it might need to be used past 37,000 feet.

For Landing, activate AG-2 for the Stabilizers (so you won't crash) and set flaps to full. Make sure AH-3 is deactivated and approach at 160 kts. Gently touch down at 150 kts.

PICTURES:

CREATOR NOTES:

I found out after testing that all the speeds are the true airspeeds, not the indicated airspeeds
Be careful about how you manoeuvre at 37,500
The aircraft can go above 37,500 but I'm keeping it realistic
Make sure when bombing from low levels that you are not too close the blast or you will blow up too
Make sure that before deactivating AG-2 (stabilizer) is that the pitch is neutralized otherwise it will lock into position and cause unnecessary pitch
This aircraft has my first interpretation of cockpit lighting