Starclipper

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This article is about the Airbus A510 spacecraft. For the Space Patrol spacecraft, see Star Clipper class

Spacecraft Registry
Airbus A510 Starclipper
A510.jpg
The prototype A510 Starclipper in an early test flight, late July 2011.
Spacecraft Characteristics
Base HullCustom design based on the Orion III spacecraft from 2001: A Space Odyssey
Length64.94 m (213 ft)
Width33.22 m (109 ft) (wingspan)
Height15.54 m (51 ft) (height on gear)
Mass128,000 kg (282,192 lbs)
Drive TypeHybrid
Drive RatingPeak velocity 0.02c
Armamentnone standard
Primary ManufacturerAirbus / Yoyodyne Propulsion Systems
Ownervaries[1]
Flag of Recordvariable depending on owner
Factionvariable depending on owner
Registry Numbervariable depending on owner
LaunchedJuly 14, 2011
Purposepassenger & freight transport
Primary Crew2 (pilot, copilot)
Operational StatusActive
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The Airbus A510 (also known as the Starclipper) is the first mass-produced passenger and freight aerospace craft in Fenspace.[2] It also holds the distinction of being the first mass-produced vehicle in Fenspace co-built with Mundane corporations.

History

capsule history to be developed: The fine feathered fellows at Yoyodyne Propulsion Systems manage to ink a preliminary deal with Airbus bigwigs to design a passenger liner for the Earth-Fenspace market. They decide on the design of the Orion spaceplane from 2001, since it's photogenic, about the size of a mid-sized widebody like a 767, and the design is pretty iconic in both Fenspace and the 'Danelaw. So they put the design together, set up some shops to manufacture the necessary wavetech components & sell the thing to Airbus. Airbus immediately puts their people to work cranking out A510s, which don't sell *quite* like hotcakes, but sell enough to justify Airbus keeping the lines open and paying Yoyodyne a king's ransom for their trouble.

Design

to be developed: the thing is based off the 2001 spaceplane (see the image): pair of big thrusters in the rear with a set of secondary vernier thrusters and the like. The major wavetech components are the main engines, the life support system and the backup thrusters, which are a reactionless drive system. Major difference between the movie Orion and the Starclipper is the passenger compartment: the movie version only seats 40, whereas the A510 can seat up to 120 thanks to wavetech decreasing the necessary size of the engines/life support/etc.

Yoyodyne Propulsion Systems
to be developed: a small "upstart" group, made up of designers who couldn't create what they wanted to at Utopia Planitia, Kuat Drive Yards, Takeuchi, or Caprica. More designers than builders. Very transparent in their operations, and happy to let Blue Blazers come in and inspect whenever they ask.

Class Quirks

The A510, being a strongly hardtech vehicle built largely by mundanes, drifts toward mundane definitions of "quirk" more than the common Fen definition. The A510 is notoriously hard to handle at low speed thanks to the relatively small wing area, and the placement of the cockpit makes landing difficult - the craft has similar forward visibility problems as the Concorde, but without the Concorde's famous drooping nose[3].

Notes

  1. Major Mundane owners include British Airways, Swiss International Air Lines AG (who base their Starclippers out of 2138 Swissair), Emirates, American Airlines, United Airlines, Lufthansa and Air France. Fen owners include Artemis Foundation (SCSS H.R. Floyd, transferred from Stellvia Trading), Hermes Universal Deliveries (SS Andromeda, SS Cassiopeia, SS Cepheus, SS Hercules, and SS Perseus), and Orbital Air (USS Rio Grande, USS Rubicon, and USS Volga).
  2. Previously, Fenships were converted from existing transportation, with a very few exceptions (mostly one-off designs, but a few Type-7 shuttles and X-Wings were also built before July 2011); after the Starclipper's debut, purpose-built ships gained popularity across the Solar System.
  3. Airbus solved - or at least mitigated - this problem by using cameras installed in the nose and projector overlays