Interceptor Jet Card Stock Airplane

This jet is good at going straight and fast. It won't glide much, but it'll go about 30 feet (10 meters) with a decent throw, and it is stable in the air. This design is fairly difficult to build. You'll need fine motor skills and knowledge of how to make an aircraft fly well—adjusting elevators and rudders, manipulating wing shape, taking into account wind direction when throwing, and other such things.

There was a comment from a viewer that I think may heave been deleted by moderators (?) or by the viewer. They felt that the timing of this project was poor, given that I published it in the early days of the war and it bears resemblance to some Soviet/Russian aircraft. I agree with their concern. It is not my intention to glorify or trivialize war.

-Two sheets of light card stock (8.5" x 11", 65 lb. / A4, 175 gsm)

-Piece of chipboard (such as back of a note pad, approx. 0.6 mm thick)

-Piece of white paper

-Craft stick, or popsicle stick (4 1/2" x 3/8" / 11.3 cm x 1 cm) 

-Glue stick & liquid white glue (PVA glue) 

-Scissors & hobby knife

-Straightedge & pencil

-Chopstick (to use as a tool)

Download the plans and print or photocopy them on the card stock.

Carefully cut out the shapes. The canopy piece needs to be traced onto white paper. The main fuselage must be pasted onto chipboard and then cut out. 

Using a straightedge, establish creases on the dotted lines of the wing top. Fold over the two leading edge panels to fully define the lines. With the glue stick, apply a consistent and thin layer of glue. Attach the wing top to the wing, with the two panels folding over the leading edges. Place it under a heavy book to dry.

Using liquid glue, attach the craft stick on the bottom of the main fuselage piece (the side that is not covered with card stock). A reference line is on the card stock side, and you’ll just have to do your best to line the stick up with it. Hold the stick in place for about 30 seconds, then check for accurate alignment (as it tends to drift) and make adjustments as needed before pressing the pieces together again.

Using a straightedge again, establish creases on the dotted lines of one of the intake / turbine / exhaust pieces. Push the angles to 90 degrees, then open up the piece again. Use a glue stick to apply a thin layer of glue to one of the two bottom panels, then bring the two panels together (forming the piece into a prism). Make sure the bottom panels are aligned very precisely. Reach in with a chopstick to press those panels together. Repeat these steps with the other intake / turbine / exhaust piece.

For the stabilizers, start again with creases on the dotted lines. Notice that each stabilizer has a brace. Use a glue stick to attach these to the stabilizers, but do not glue together the small tabs at the bottom! Those tabs need to bend out at 90 degrees.

Draw two reference lines on the sides of the chipboard, about 3 mm in from the edges. Apply a thin bead of liquid glue. Attach an intake / turbine / exhaust, such that the front of it reaches the shoulder of the main piece. Press the pieces together for about 10 seconds, then check the alignment and make tiny adjustments as needed. Repeat these steps with the other intake / turbine / exhaust.

Do a test placement of the wing on top of the fuselage. The forward point of the wing should reach the front of the main fuselage piece. Draw a reference line at the trailing edge of the wing. Apply liquid glue to the area of the main fuselage where the wing will be placed. Use a scrap piece of card stock to accurately spread a thin layer. Attach the wing.

Use liquid glue to attach the stabilizers to the aft end of the aircraft. Be careful not to confuse the horizontals with the verticals. (In a couple of photos, you'll see that I mixed them up! I was able to fix this later, with minimal damage.)

This part is tricky. You will get some glue on your fingers, so have something ready to wipe them. Start by gradually working the card stock into a curled shape. Using cylinders of descending size (such as a glue stick, marker, and pencil) as jigs can help. Practice making it into a pointed cone, then opening it up again. Apply a bead of glue under the edge that will overlap the rest. Curl the piece back into a cone.

With the cone shaped, apply liquid glue liberally to the end of the craft stick. Push the cone onto it and hold it in place for about a minute. Prop the aircraft so it rests in a vertical position, nose up, and let dry for at least 10 minutes.

Pieces A and B will form the back half of the nose. Start by establishing creases on the dotted lines, then work the pieces to curl them significantly. Apply a bit of liquid glue to the tabs of A and attach it to the fuselage (the small tabs folding under and being hidden) and nose (the tab fitting into the nose piece). Apply liquid glue to B and attach it underneath. Note that the corners of B come up and overlap A. Piece C is shaped like a ring and will cover up the overlaps.

Lastly, use liquid glue to attach piece D to the ventral side of the nose. This piece adds some strength to the bottom of the nose area, and it contributes nose weight.

Form the canopy. At each of the four pairs of cuts, the edges overlap slightly, and can be pinched together with a tiny amount of glue. Once the glue has set up enough for the canopy to hold its shape, attach it to the nose of the aircraft. If not flush, it can be pressed down somewhat, or the bottom of that canopy can be reshaped with scissors.

Add pieces E to the tops of the wings, using the reference lines for placement. Use a glue stick to do this. Pieces F will rest along the sides of the canopy and can be attached with liquid glue. If desired, cut two additional short strips of card stock to go across the top of the canopy (perpendicular to the fuselage).

Lastly, make creases on the dotted lines of piece G and use glue to form it into a sort of fin. This is what you will pinch in order to throw the aircraft. Attach it to the ventral and aft portion of the nose, such that it ends where the craft stick terminates.

Make sure you conduct test flights when conditions are very calm. Check the jet from all angles to make sure the wings and stabilizers are symmetrical and not suffering from unwanted warps. Card stock can be reworked, to a certain extent, until it remembers the desired adjustment.

For the first flights, make sure the elevators are raised by at least a few degrees. This aircraft will tend to fly with the nose high. If the angle of attack is consistently excessive, adjust the elevators and/or curl the trailing edges of the wings down ever so slightly.

Card stock is easy to repair. Don't worry about the nose getting damaged. You can always trim it and place a new, smaller cone over the end. A little extra nose weight might actually improve the flight.

Enjoy the supersonic interceptor!