Shuttlecraft Help

[Nero's Shadow]

Hi guys

i,m doing a little project on the shuttlecraft from TOS and i need some answers to the following questions.

1. How many shuttlecrafts did the enterprise have ? Was it four?

2. What were the names of them i know possible two Galileo and the Copernicus.?

Thanks NS

 

[Warped9]

Try this:

 

[Captain Robert April]

The assumption that the Enterprise had four shuttlecraft comes from a line in "The Omega Glory" where it's stated that "all four" shuttlecraft were still on board the Exeter, indicating that four is the standard complement of shuttlecraft for a Constitution class starship.

As for names, the only names that were established on screen were Galileo and Columbus. The Copernicus was from the animated series, and looked quite differently than how Warped9 has it depicted above (not saying which one is preferable, just stating the cold, unrelenting facts).

 

[Warped9]

As for names, the only names that were established on screen were Galileo and Columbus. The Copernicus was from the animated series, and looked quite differently than how Warped9 has it depicted above (not saying which one is preferable, just stating the cold, unrelenting facts).

Very true, but I had little choice because there was no way in hell that the vehicle depicted in TAS was ever going to fit into the Enterprise's hangar facilities.

In retrospect because TOS had budgetary and resource limitations even if there had been a fourth season it's doubtful they could have afforded a new shuttlecraft design. Most likely the best they could do would be to tweak what they already had. It would have been nice if they could have swapped out different markings for the shuttlecraft mockup they had. In light of that I'm inclined to interpret the Copernicus as really just a tuned up variant of the familiar Class F (similar to what I had initially intended way way back when this project began.

 

[Captain Robert April]

If any of the series needs new visuals, it's TAS...

 

[Warped9]

If any of the series needs new visuals, it's TAS...

Fair point. But I don't think slick 3D visuals are the way to go. I don't think it's likely there will ever be a TAS-R, but if it ever happened I'd like to see some good 2d cel like animation that has things more consistent with TOS (in some respects) and more fluidity of motion for characters and ships.

 

[jtkirk]

So, say the ship & transporter were damaged beyond repair & the entire crew had to get down to the planet surface quickly or die. How would they fit 428 people into 4 shuttlecrafts? I'm not sure how many would fit into a single shuttlecraft, but I am assuming the majority of the crew would die. Unless of course there was time for the shuttlecrafts to make several trips back & forth for a rescue.

Having only 4 shuttlecrafts on the ship was not a well thought out idea. I guess safety wasn't an issue in the future?

 

[Christopher]

Well, the saucer was designed to function as a lifeboat and make an emergency planetary landing.

 

[Warped9]

So, say the ship & transporter were damaged beyond repair & the entire crew had to get down to the planet surface quickly or die. How would they fit 428 people into 4 shuttlecrafts? I'm not sure how many would fit into a single shuttlecraft, but I am assuming the majority of the crew would die. Unless of course there was time for the shuttlecrafts to make several trips back & forth for a rescue.

Having only 4 shuttlecrafts on the ship was not a well thought out idea. I guess safety wasn't an issue in the future?

There's also a matter of space consideration---there's only so much room. My impression is the shuttlecraft were never meant to be the primary vehicles in a lifeboat situation.

 

[Captain Rob]

That's what escape pods are for. Which we've seen in every other series and the movies. There's no reason for the nuEnterprise to have all of those racks of shuttles while having perfectly functioning transporters.

 

[Stompy]

Something I never noticed in all the years I've been watching Trek is the "PUSH" sign on the outside of the shuttlecraft door.

I love all the details I can see on the bluray versions

 

[Warped9]

Although they've never shown according to TMOST the Enterprise has at least two if not more large scale transporters for heavy cargo or large numbers of personnel. I assume these are what the Constellation's crew used to evacuate the ship before being killed by the planet killer. Franz Joseph included them in his Booklet Of General Plans.

 

[T'Girl]

The Enterprise at the time of the Galileo Seven (from the dialog) would seem to have been carrying only two shuttles.

Given that they are not the primary method of getting on and off the ship, you might want to question how many shuttles the ship really needs.

 

[Warped9]

The Enterprise at the time of the Galileo Seven (from the dialog) would seem to have been carrying only two shuttles.

Given that they are not the primary method of getting on and off the ship, you might want to question how many shuttles the ship really needs.

Well nothing in "The Galileo Seven" firmly establishes how many shuttlecraft there are aboard. And yet a reference in "The Omega Glory" does. In TMOST it states a complement of seven, but clearly this is contradicted by the reference in "The Omega Glory" and by the simple fact that there simply isn't enough room to carry seven unless more room in the secondary hull were allocated for them. And it doesn't look like that's the case.

 

[Christopher]

That's what escape pods are for. Which we've seen in every other series and the movies.

But the TOS Enterprise clearly had no escape pod hatches. The concept hadn't been established yet. After all, the idea of lifeboats in an interstellar ship is pretty silly. In the depths of interstellar space, where the hell are you going to go? Modern Trek has fudged the absurdity of it by postulating "micro-warp drives," but that's just trading one absurdity for another. Back in the days of TOS, though, it was assumed that you needed something bigger than a lifeboat to be useful as a spacecraft -- something at least the size of a shuttle. So the escape pod idea just wouldn't fit the technological or conceptual milieu of TOS. That's why they instead intended the saucer to function as a lifeboat. It didn't have warp drive, but at least it was a more plausible means of sustaining the crew than a bunch of tiny lifepods.

There's no reason for the nuEnterprise to have all of those racks of shuttles while having perfectly functioning transporters.

Of course there is. Redundancy is one of the most important principles of engineering. It's foolhardy to put all your eggs in one basket. Having enough shuttles to evacuate the whole crew is a great idea, and not having them in previous incarnations of Trek was a serious oversight.

Something I never noticed in all the years I've been watching Trek is the "PUSH" sign on the outside of the shuttlecraft door.

I'd imagine that's not so much a sign as a button.

 

[Warped9]

Something I never noticed in all the years I've been watching Trek is the "PUSH" sign on the outside of the shuttlecraft door.

I'd imagine that's not so much a sign as a button.

Right. And you can see it being used as such in "The Way To Eden" I believe when Kirk opens the hatch when they find the craft on the planet surface. The construction drawings seen on cloudster.com also identify as such I believe. And so that's what I did as well.

 

[kkozoriz1]

That's what escape pods are for. Which we've seen in every other series and the movies. There's no reason for the nuEnterprise to have all of those racks of shuttles while having perfectly functioning transporters.

The racks of shuttles are one thing that really bothered me. Why build this big space, put these big doors in place and then block access with these huge honking beams?

http://movies.trekcore.com/gallery/albums/xihd/trekxihd0985.jpg

 

[scotpens]

. . . In TMOST it states a complement of seven, but clearly this is contradicted by the reference in “The Omega Glory” and by the simple fact that there simply isn't enough room to carry seven unless more room in the secondary hull were allocated for them.

Actually six.

The ship's hangar deck area, where the vessel's shuttlecraft are stored, is located at the aft end (of the secondary hull). Huge hangar doors, 60 feet wide and 30 feet high, provide egress and entrance for the six shuttlecraft. Designed to carry a crew of seven, the shuttlecraft are used on limited exploratory patrols away from the Enterprise and are capable of entering the atmosphere of a planet (and landing) on its surface.

 

[Warped9]

^^ Oops. But my essential point is valid. There's just not enough room for six of them. Four is the limit with the room space available. That's probably why they went with that number.

 

[scotpens]

Considering that the Galileo's interior was much bigger than its exterior, maybe a shuttle could carry another shuttle inside!